Roskar: 35 years of development

 

 

The certificate of acceptance of the first turn of an integrated poultry farm has been signed in December, 1972 when the Soviet Union celebrated its 50^th anniversary. In honour of this event the enterprise got its name: «after the 50th anniversary of the USSR». The basic difference of poultry farms other poultry-farming complexes were 4-storeyed poultry-houses for birds growing and the commercial layers maintenance.

After 10 years after the second turn was started the production structure was represented by parent stock houses (100 thousand birds), a hatchery, rearing houses (61 8 thousand birds) and a commercial layer site (848 thousand birds); egg production was equal to 152 million. After seven years it was increased up to 227 million, having received 262 eggs from each layer.  In the same 1989 the integrated poultry farm began to produce whole egg powder - 120 tones a year.

 

In 1992 after privatization (all workers of the enterprise became the founders) the poultry farm located in the village of Pervomaiskoye on Karelian isthmus received the present name «ROSKAR», meant Russian Karelia.

 

Many integrated poultry farms could not survive in the crisis of 1990s. And how did it affect «ROSKAR»? «We mobilized just in time,” Director General Valery Goryachov recollects, “as we did not hope to have somebody’s help”. It is necessary to look at real facts: even if pensioners did not receive pensions why should the state give money to private enterprises? »

 

To level consequences of inflation, all the sites were put on a self-supporting basis all, measurements were done in natural parameters only: the electric power consumption was measured in kilowatt-hours; water consumption by one bird was measured in grams. Even manure output was taken into consideration so water in it was not counted as water consumption by one bird and to avoid additional transportation expenses. The limits were established literally on everything, and the overspending affected salaries. 

 

Moreover a program of development of the enterprise was made. It included, for example, reequipment and renovation of the feed house which in 1994 during two months only and without a stop became a feed mill. As a result the poultry farm became the first poultry farm in the region to stop buying feed and saved it is a lot of money: 10-14 billion not denominated roubles a year, that is expenses were approximately for 10 percent decreased. Today 16 kinds of feed for all bird ages are produces at the feed mill.

 

During that time, and again it was the first time in Russia,  the joint venture company for the maintenance of parent stock, included «Roskar» poultry farm, Lenptitseprom, Danish company "Scanlayer" and French company “ISA” was created. Grandparents and parents of ISA Brown birds were brought. Using the recommended technology, we reduced considerably the number of birds of parent stock: from 100 thousand to 30 thousand birds. The hatching eggs were begun to be taken not from 210-days layers but from 160 days old birds: the additional quantity of eggs during almost 1.5 months gave considerable result. Besides that breeding eggs with insignificant defect were not rejected any more

and that fact helped to increase productivity (for example, on «Hisex brown» (at that time existing breed) it grew from  260 up to З00 eggs). Then we made the maintenance duration of parent stock longer, so an output of breeder pullets became lower and the "transfer" birds became cheaper.

 

And, certainly, modernization was started. But to do that the credits were necessary, the own financial resourses were, of course, not enough. With the help of foreign credits which the Danish company helped to receive, the equipment was bought. Credits were given against a guarantee of the regional government. It also allocated the loans; but it was not cheap in fact (interest rate was 200 % a year), moreover it was necessary to insure them (15-17% more!).  But there was not any other way: at that time banks did not finance at all or the rates reached 260 percent. Nevertheless poultry breeders have provided a 4-month's stock of grain and could work stably. By the way, for 35 years «Roskar» didn’t let any supplier down, it returned all the credits in due time and has never delayed payment of salaries to workers.

 

Even in crisis years renovation and replacement of the equipment were not stopped. At that time an egg-grading machine MOBA-2000 was installed at egg processing site,

at feed house volumetric measuring hoppers were replaced for weight ones with computer control, the biofilters at waste water purification stations the and pump station were completely renovated, the nipple drinking system was installed. 

 

At that time we had 1 million layers, our slaughter house was obsolete, and it’s always rather difficult to sell meat of spent layers. That’s why we decided to buy a second hand killing line made in  “STORK” company (at first all the equipment was a second hand one), but at the same time new refrigerators for 200 tons of mea were built. By doing that we managed to solve all problems connected with slaughtering, storage and selling poultry meat products.

 

During the renovation of production sites the cage equipment was changed.

Now constant deliveries are carried out by "Hellmann" company (Germany). The equipment in rearing house for 800 thousand birds is completely renovated.

Each renovation means 2 times increase in number of birds placed and 2 times decrease in expenses for the electric power, transportation, and labour. Before the renovation to make 1 million eggs on the old equipment 150 persons worked, now owing to new cage batteries and egg collection system only 16 persons work.

 

There are already poultry houses where the performance (efficiency, feed consumption, water consumption, air exchange, etc.) is controlled by computers.

 Soon all the sites of the poultry farm will be controlled by a uniform control system

 for that the optimized complex program is developed. The specialists will be able to receive the qualitative analytical information. Works at the poultry farm are usually done ourselves. We hire contractors only in case there is a lot of work. And during mounting the equipment the local builders, electricians, sanitary technicians, electronicians, programmers are involved - they do everything qualitatively and in time.

By the way, the personal is prepared by concluding contracts with the educational establishment and paying for the training of the expert. If desired it is possible to raise the category at the annual certification: the higher the category - the bigger salary (high qualification workers’ salaries it can be more than 30000 rbls a month.

 

As to breeding business “Roskar” specialists cooperate with “Lohmann Tierzucht” company, because they appreciate a high level of genetics of its production.

So, this year a brown cross-breed appeared, it doesn’t have a gene connected with a fish smell of eggs at feeding by rapeseed or soybean oil meal. The poultry farm has both brown layers and white layer at a relation fifty-fifty.

 

About 10 years ago it was decided to grow meat-type birds after the bankrupt poultry farm "Korobitsyno” had been attached, and after the bankrupt meat-processing plant that was near Roskar was bought. That made it possible to avoid idle times in the slaughtery, to lower expenses for processing, transportation, to provide people with stable work.

There are more than 110 names among the products from the processed poultry meat:

cuttings (chicken legs, chicken thighs, chicken breasts, chicken hams, and chicken fillets), the packed ready-to-cook  poultry meat products (fillets,  steaks, cutlets, schnitzels, kupaty (ready-to fry raw sausages), etc.), poultry meat in brine, poultry meat in marinade (breasts, thighs), boiled-smoked products. The modern Dutch equipment allows to produce a wide product assortment:  different types of sausages,  cutlets, for example, «Chicken Nuggets», widespread at  "fast food" restaurants , «the Cordon Blue», «Pozharskiye" “Kiev cutlets” (with dried apricots, prunes, cheese, olives, mushrooms) and others.

Ready-to-eat deeply frozen products with half a year of shelf life are especially convenient to use as they need to be warmed up only in microwave ovens. This advantage is also appreciated by the workers of the poultry farm

 

Parents of meat cross-breed «Ross-308» are delivered from the Finland with similar climatic conditions: it takes only 6 hours to bring the chicks by the truck. Change of cross-breed has allowed increasing a weight gain from 45 up to 50 grams, and in some batches even to 52-56 grams, and also to lower feed consumption from 1.9 to 1.8 kgs. Almost 80 % of broilers are sold as whole bird carcasses, and cuttings shares have there is only 20%. Last year the new slaughter line «Мaine» with the capacity 1.000 broilers or 4.000 spent layers an hour is installed. Owing to meat cutting in gas shelf life became longer: to 9 days. In 2006 profitability from broiler meat selling was 1 4.8 percent.

 

Last year 8742.6 tons of poultry meat in live weight were produced. In 2008 after renovation of 24 houses in broiler rearing site, this performance will be increases up to 10 thousand tons. By the way, it became possible because «Roskar» was taken into the national project. Moreover owing to that houses for parent stock were also modernized, egg collection system with using curved conveyors (“galleries”) is installed. Now 50 thousand birds (parent stock and replacement pullets) are served by only four persons. Modernization has also allowed solving actual for all integrated poultry farms problem with chicken manure. About 74 thousand of this “production waste” were just taken to manure pits every year earlier. 

 

The nearest plant-growing facilities distributed the raw manure in their fields under contracts, but it was just a drop in the sea, but manure pits are not bottomless. In 2003 the poultry farm took part in a competition of the International program of the environment protection. This year the Dutch equipment “Dorset” for making 2 tons of pelleted organic fertilizer (the trade mark «the Crop without cares») was installed. 

It does not pollute an environment, it has no unpleasant smell.  Pay-back period is 3 years. One ton of a product now costs 50 times more than raw manure. The fertilizer is in demand, it is packed into special 1.000 kg bags (for agricultural facilities), and also into lightproof plastic bags for 5 kg and 10 kg (for retail trade). The package has information about a way of application, a class of danger, safety measures, storage recommendations, shelf life.

 

Egg processing of eggs is done according to international standards.

The visit card of Roskar poultry farm is its egg-processing plant, without which such a large company simply can’t exist. It was decided to start egg grading and packing more as long ago as 9 years when four egg-grading “Staalkat” machines were bought.

Owing to the weight control they began to grade and sell eggs according to their categories, broken eggs and cracked eggs were rejected by candling.

 

Lately the advanced egg-grading complexes were bought by Roskar:  “МОБА”, its capacity is 120 thousand eggs; “DIAMOND”, its capacity is 140 thousand eggs, this year the installation of even more powerful МОБА is being done, its capacity is 180 thousand eggs an hour. In the warmed galleries of egg collection system the eggs go to egg grading and packing plant. All process is automated: the first person who touches an egg is the buyer who opens the package at home.

 

For the first time in Russia «Roskar» together with company "Praxis» sell eggs of branded egg category  «Extra», the features of which are strong shells, bright orange yolk colour (not less than 12 units in “Roche” scale) and excellent taste because the layers get addition corn, gluten,  vitamins, microelements.

Then the list of functional eggs was added by «Omega-З» eggs(with the content of polyunsaturated fat acids omega-З not less than 0.2 %, that is 20 % of a person’s daily need), «Aktivita (the content of selenium is 35 mkg, the content of iodine is 50 μkg in one egg that provides accordingly ЗО% and 50 % from daily need of a person), «the Happy Layer» (the floor maintenance of layers, carotenoids content in an egg is not less than З mkg/100 grs), "Mega" (egg weight is more than 75 grams). All the needed information is specified on a package.  Recipes are developed by laboratory together with Institute of a Food Products where the researches are carried out and the conclusions are given out. Valuable recommendations are received from "Olteck" company

 

Certainly, the prices for such eggs are bigger: «Extra: 10 % more, «the Happy Layer»:         13% more, «Aktivita: 15 % more, «Оmega-З Aktiv»: 37% more.

 However buyers appreciate them. If to compare with 2000 enriched egg production became 57 times bigger. .

 

The economy of factory became considerably more stable after the start of the egg-processing plant in 1999 - the similar enterprise was the first in Russia. The prepared eggs arrive here from the egg-grading plant in pallets. The capacity of egg-breaking machines is 80 thousand eggs an hour. On an automatic separator eggs are separated for whites and yolks, then they are pasteurized, and a part of products is dried.

 

As the general director of V. Goryachov said, egg-processing is a very complex process.  It was nowhere to be trained in Russia, that’s why specialists from Belgium, Holland, Japan were invited.

 

Now of the half of volume of gross output, the capacity is 1.2 million eggs a day. In Europe it would be an independent big plant with the most modern equipment. Last year 195 tons of whole egg powder, 902 tons of white powder, 437 tons of yolk powder, 2162 tons liquid whites, 4308 tons liquid yolks, 2924 tons liquid whole egg, were produced and totally 18 kinds of products from whites and  yolks are produced. It is just a visible part of an iceberg. It’s not easy to start using new technologies, but it is much more difficult to make the way to the market that is full of imported products, and to make new domestic products be trustworthy. And only those people who did that know how much time, energy, patience, nerves are needed to do all the necessary preparation work to get the innumerable quantity the approving papers from numerous authorities

And again «Roskar» became the first poultry farm in Russia to enter the market of dried egg products, forcing the importers to move importers. Roskar products are demanded in fish-processing industry, in confectionery industry, in baking industry, in cosmetics industry, in tanning industry, in pharmaceutical industry. Well, there is “Roskar” white powder in every “Milky Way, "Mars” bar of chocolate, and also in every marshmallow in chocolate.

 

After the egg-boiling machine (the rated capacity is 14 thousand eggs an hour) a novelty - boiled eggs in the marinade, packaged in plastic buckets for 75 or 150 eggs appeared in the assortment list. Their popularity constantly grows among public catering establishments. From 2003 a control system of quality and safety of foodstuff НАССР (Наzаrd Analysis and Critical Control Point).is used at “Roskar” The integrated poultry farm “Roskar” was the first company in Russia to receive the certificate of that system. This kit will switch to quality control system ISO-9000 (GOST Р ISO 9001-2001). The information about any batch can be traced within two hours.

 

According to rating results of "Agro-300" club the poultry farm is always among the best ten companies. It became the winner of the European premium after Giovanni Markor, the owner of gold medals of exhibitions "Golden autumn", «Chicken King », «Prodexpo», the owner of a golden sign «the All-Russian Brand (the 3^rd millennium), the quality sign of the 21^st century», the owner of the diploma of competition «the Best Food Products» and many other awards.

 

In 2003 International Egg Commission has declared the Russian integrated poultry farm to be the best egg company of the world. But all Roskar people led by the director think that the most important award is the consumers appreciating the quality of production. And their responses are very important for Valery Pavlovich: «If they are happy, that means, we didn’t work in vain”. He was very pleased when after the security guard in the bank had recognized him he said: «I buy your products only, they are always of excellent quality».

 

During the transition period 11 small-scale warehouses were set up in the northwest of the country.  Necessity for them has disappeared with development of trading network. Their share has increased up to 70 %, therefore it is already impossible to refuse of cooperation with them, otherwise the goods remains not demanded. The fact that eggs are stored at the warehouse for only 2.5 days proves that they have an art talking to network shops. 

 

The company profit is about 200 million roubles, but it invests much more money for the production development: about 500 million roubles. Therefore they can’t go without credits. Moreover this year the profitability will decrease from 19% to 10% because feed prices are 2 times bigger, but products prices are not changed. 

 

It is not a brass farthing for any hi-tech enterprise if a person only carries out functions of an appendage serving it. At Roskar poultry farm the workers, their interests; their working conditions were always paid the main attention. 

 

As strange as it may be, but since Soviet times it is still saved, no, in fact it still works, the powerful trade-union organization works actively. In each of 40 structural divisions trade union members make the majority, there is a trade-union leader, members of a trade-union committee, authorized working safety agent, a person, responsible for cultural and sports work, members of the commission on labour disputes, social insurance members. The collective agreement regulating social-labour relations is not just a formality, not a vestige of the past, it’s a sign of a reliable company which cares of the staff, giving to them the additional rights and guarantees. The admittance and dismissal rules, work and rest regimes, payment rules, labour safety, social guarantees are registered in the agreement.

 

For example, paid social holidays for unforeseen situations, on wedding of workers are given. Mothers receive monthly payment to take care of children up to 1.5 years old and up to З years old in the amount of 250 roubles and 450 roubles accordingly. Material aid and aid to workers on holiday in the amount of 100 roubles for each working year, including the women being on holiday to take care of children. When a person is going to retire on a this money aid depends on the length of service: less than 5 years - 1,000 rbl., less than  10 years - 2,000 rbl., less than 15 years - 3000 rbl., less than 20 years - 4000 rbl., over 20 years - 5000 roubles. Those people who get signs «the Veteran of the Enterprise» get the monetary premium and valuable presents. Every month all the workers and pensioners are given the products: 30 eggs and 6 kilos of poultry meat products (pensioners are given З kg of poultry meat products).

The workers doing feed unloading receive free-of-charge hot meals. Money amounts and premiums are allocated to the International Womens’ Day, for different sports events and sport equipment, for transport. The post of the sport instructor is in the poultry farm staff.

 

There is a sport hall and there is a training hall, there is a ski station and there is a ski line. In six sections of sports club more than 100 persons are engaged. Members of trade union can receive subscriptions to a swimming-pool and to a fitness-club. There is also a dispensary. Obligatory and voluntary medical insurance for which it is spent one million roubles is provided.

 

Moreover material encouragement according to the results of work for a year is paid. Every year the competitions to the Day of Agricultural worker are organized: the winners are encourages with the monetary premium and they are congratulated at Grand Meeting.

 

In 2003 Roskar company became the best one in the competition for the best primary trade-union organization in Leningrad region. In c0mmemoration of the 100^th anniversary of trade unions of Russia 32 workers of the poultry farm were rewarded with anniversary medals and the director were rewarded with a gold anniversary medal. The most active, erudite and competent persons are elected to the local trade union committee. They are trained in the Zone educational center of trade union in St.-Petersburg.

 

In each division the information about public and production life, about labour safety is updated regularly. All the workers, including administration are trained and examined on a labour safety regularly. On the basis of certification of workplaces addition special clothes (40 positions) and footwear (80 positions), and also means of an individual defense are given out.

 

At the beginning of this year the government of Leningrad region has summed up the results competition «the Enterprise of the high social responsibility» and has awarded an integrated poultry farm «Roskar» with the diploma for the second place in a nomination «Health protection and safe working conditions at the enterprise ».

 

A Culture House is on the poultry farm balance; about 220 poultry farm workers and their children joint different clubs. Different parties, concerts, discotheques, balls, meetings with actors and actresses, performances are arranged here. It has become a tradition to arrange free-of-charge weekend trips to the suburbs of St.-Petersburg, visiting museums and theatres.

 

When and the poultry farm representatives told about it and about many other things at the session of the Central Committee of trade union of workers of an agriculture, there was a surprise in their answer:  «Yes,  you live in a communism period»

 

To fulfill the terms of the collective agreement, in 2006 the company has spent 21.9 million roubles (12.4 thousand rbl. for one person). For the additional non-productive charges which were not described in the contract, it was spent more than 10 million rbl. (6 thousand rbl. for one person), including in 9 million rbl. for transportation of people to work. This money was taken from the profit.

 

When the Director Valery Goryachov was asked to name the most difficult years for 35 years of existence of the company, he said that everything was not easy. In fact the enterprise is constantly developed despite of everything. And people here are never forgotten: the life standards of people connected their destinies with the poultry farm improve with each passing year.