There are three common raising systems for broiler chickens: floor rearing, net‑floor rearing and cage rearing. Each system comes with unique strengths and limitations for different farm sizes. This article breaks down each production method and introduces the combined cage‑to‑floor raising solution for practical broiler production.

1. Floor Rearing with Deep Litter

Floor rearing uses deep bedding spread on the house floor. Broilers live directly on top of litter. Manure mixes with bedding and ferments, creating a special micro‑environment inside chicken houses. This method is widely adopted by small‑scale family farmers.

Advantages of Floor Rearing

• Fermentation of litter and manure generates heat, raising house temperature and helping broilers resist cold weather.
• Micro‑organisms in litter produce vitamin B12. Chickens peck and scratch bedding to take in this essential nutrient.
• Low requirements for building and equipment. Lower initial investment for small household farms.
• Soft bedding reduces leg disorders and breast blisters. Higher qualification rate for market‑ready broilers.

Disadvantages of Floor Rearing

• Birds have direct contact with manure. Higher risks of coccidiosis and pullorum disease.
• Requires large land area. Sourcing and disposing bedding material bring extra workload.
• Heavy manual labor, limited productivity for large‑scale operation.

2. Net‑floor Rearing

For net‑floor rearing, a frame is built around 60 cm above ground. Metal, plastic or bamboo grids are laid on frames. Broilers stay on top of the net, manure falls through gaps onto the ground. Manure is cleaned out only after the whole flock is marketed. Common mesh size is 1.25 cm × 1.25 cm to avoid foot injuries while letting manure pass through. Manual work is basic; automatic feeding, watering and manure removal equipment can be added.

Advantages of Net‑floor Rearing

• Birds are separated from manure, greatly lowering coccidiosis risk.
• Manure stays dry, leading to better indoor air quality.
• More uniform environmental conditions for the whole flock.
• Easy‑to‑source construction materials with reasonable cost. Ideal for regions short of bedding supply.
• Compatible with mechanization to cut labor cost.

Disadvantages of Net‑floor Rearing

Incidence of leg problems and breast blisters is higher compared with deep‑litter floor rearing.

3. Broiler Cage Rearing

Cage rearing for broilers has grown popular in recent years. Multi‑tier stacked cages greatly improve building capacity.

Advantages of Cage Rearing

• Extremely high stocking density: 4‑tier stacked cages can hold up to 100 birds per square meter. For a 12 m ×100 m chicken house: floor rearing raises 15 000‑20 000 broilers per batch, while cage rearing can reach 60 000‑80 000 birds. Output increases more than four times under same building space.
• Separate male and female rearing is achievable. Makes full use of gender growth differences, improves feed conversion and uniform market weight for better profit.
• Restricted bird activity cuts energy consumption. To reach market weight, production cycle shortens by 12 % and feed consumption drops by 13 %.
• No direct contact with manure, reduced coccidiosis outbreaks.
• Friendly to mechanized workflow, boosts labor efficiency for better economic return.

Disadvantages of Cage Rearing

High one‑time investment for complete cage equipment. Breast blisters and leg disorders tend to occur more frequently in caged broilers.

4. Combined System: Cage Rearing Followed by Floor Rearing

Many medium‑and‑small farms in China use this hybrid solution: cage rearing for brooding phase (0‑28 days old); switch to deep‑litter floor rearing for finishing phase (5‑8 weeks old).

• The brooding stage needs high house temperature. Multi‑tier brooder cages save space, simplify temperature control and save heating energy.
• After 28 days old, chicks are transferred onto floor covered with 10‑15 cm deep litter. Soft bedding prevents breast and leg damage when chickens gain weight rapidly.

This hybrid solution combines benefits of both cage and floor raising. It is highly recommended for medium & small‑size broiler operations.

Conclusion: How to Pick Your Broiler Raising System

• Small family farm with abundant bedding: choose floor rearing
• Shortage of bedding resource: go for net‑floor rearing
• Large‑scale intensive production with sufficient equipment budget: choose cage rearing
• Medium‑small farm wanting balance between efficiency and bird health: hybrid cage‑to‑floor system is your best option