Buy chicken with confidence
Most chicken buying goes wrong for boring reasons: nobody asked what weight they needed, nobody knew what fresh should look like, and nobody did the yield maths. This page fixes all three.
1.2–1.8 kg
Typical dressed bird
65–72%
Usable meat yield
0–4°C
Chilled, always
24 h
Typical turnaround
Four things that matter
1.2–1.8 kg dressed
Our broilers run a little under 2 kg, which suits most Kigali households and commercial kitchens. Tell us your target weight and we will aim for it.
Brooding 30–45 days
We buy day-old chicks, brood them, then process at the age and weight that fits the order. Bigger birds are available on request.
0–4°C, always
Slaughter, chilling and holding all happen between 0 and 4°C. That is the number that decides how long the meat stays tender.
Target weight, not a range guess
We are not selling you a bag of mixed sizes. Give us a target and a tolerance, like 110 g drumsticks at 100 to 120 g.
If you only have time to read one page, read this one, then jump to cuts explained when you are ready to choose, or how to cook it when you are standing in the kitchen.
How to spot fresh chicken
This matters more than any label. The single most useful check is smell, but the table below is what to look at while a pack is open in front of you.
| Check | Fresh looks like | Not fresh looks like | Why it matters |
|---|---|---|---|
| Colour | Pale pink to creamy white, glossy and moist | Grey, greenish, dull or patchy | Colour is a clue, not a test. Lighting and freezing both change it. |
| Smell | Faint, clean, faintly metallic | Sour, sharp, ammonia-like | Smell is the most reliable signal. Open the pack and take a breath. |
| Texture | Firm, springy, returns when pressed | Slimy, sticky, or falling apart | Raw chicken should spring back from a finger press. |
| Ice and drip | Clear ice crystals, minimal pink liquid | No ice, cloudy liquid, or a swollen pack | Ice crystals on arrival mean the cold chain held. Swelling means it did not. |
| Pack | Flat, intact seal, correctly labelled | Bulging, leaking, torn or past date | A vacuum pack that has lost its shape is not doing its job. |
| Bone and joints | Joint surfaces clean and pale | Dark, greasy or bruised joint surfaces | Bruising turns grey and slimy. Ask us to change it if you see it. |
Our meat should arrive with ice crystals or a chilled pack still in the box, and at 0–4°C. If it arrives warm, call us before cooking — the safety guide covers what to do next.
Do the maths first
Price per kilo is the least interesting number on a chicken invoice. What you actually care about is how much cooked meat lands in the pan, and that is a yield calculation.
- Dressed bird to usable meat: 65–72%. The rest is bone, skin and trim.
- Bone-in to boneless portions: lose a further 15–20%.
- Cooking loses another 25–30% to water and fat. Plan portions from cooked weight, not raw.
- Order the bird size that matches your cut spec, or you are paying for weight you trim away. See the cut guide.
How to order well
Decide the cut first
Whole, fillet, thigh, drumstick, wing, or a mix. The cut decides the cooking method and the price, so it comes before everything else.
Decide the weight next
Tell us the target piece weight and the total kilos. That way the bird size is right and you are not paying for weight you will trim.
Decide the format
Fresh chilled in trays, or vacuum-packed for the freezer or for a busier display. Say skin on or off, bone in or out.
Decide the volume and rhythm
One-off, weekly standing order, or a bigger weekly volume with two deliveries. Regular orders get scheduled slots.
Then let us handle the rest
Slaughter, chilling, cutting to your spec, packing and refrigerated delivery across Kigali, usually within 24 hours.
Volumes, minimums and standing schedules are covered in wholesale chicken supply, and coverage and cut-off times in chicken meat delivery.
The rest of the essentials
A few things buyers ask about that fit better in their own pages than squeezed onto this one.
Answered
What size are your broilers?
Is your chicken fresh or frozen?
What does dressed chicken mean?
How much meat will I get from a whole bird?
Do you deliver to my area?
Can I get a weekly standing order?
What is the difference between your whole and cut products?
More on chicken meat
Chicken meat products
The full range we sell, from whole broilers to vacuum-packed portions.
Read more →Chicken cuts & butchery
Every cut explained, with average weights, yields and what each one is best used for.
Read more →Chicken meat processing
What happens between the farm and your delivery, and how to spec cuts that fit your kitchen.
Read more →Chicken meat delivery
Coverage, order cut-offs, refrigerated fleet and how to set up a standing weekly drop.
Read more →How to prepare chicken meat
Safe prep, internal temperatures by cut, and cooking times that match the clock.
Read more →Chicken nutrition facts
Protein, calories and fat per cut, and how to buy for a high-protein kitchen.
Read more →Fresh chicken & food safety
Cold chain, storage temperatures, shelf life and safe handling from delivery to plate.
Read more →Wholesale chicken supply
Standing orders, minimums, delivery schedules and cold room capacity for Kigali businesses.
Read more →Now you know what to ask for
Tell us the cut, the target weight and how often you need it. We will price it, schedule it and deliver it cold, usually within 24 hours across Kigali.
+250 788 309 077
Poultry supply
+250 788 867 296
Wholesale orders
Email us
Rusororo
Gasabo, Kigali