The pandemic has taught us many things. More importantly, it taught us to adapt to the current situation. Local event company, Kaizen Quality Sdn Bhd, took up the challenge brought upon by the virus, and trained their employees to handle ducks instead of humans.
From event management to duck farming
Project Executive Siti Syahawauridha Ramli’s life took a 180 degree turn after hearing her company’s director proposal. In a bid to sustain the company during the pandemic, Siti was asked to watch over a duck farm. Working for an event management company, the 27-year-old was used to managing people, hence the thought of managing ducks took her aback.
Commenting on the transition, Siti said it was far worse than handling people. “When I did event management, I had to manage people. I had to manage the set-up, the inventory and others. I was used to them and everything was easy.”
So when her director asked her to manage a duck farm, Siti was dumbfounded. “I thought about it over and over again. Should I say yes, or should I say no? In the end, I decided to challenge myself and get out of my comfort zone.”
Today, Siti found friendship amidst her little friends and their eggs.
She disclosed she did not want to eat the little creatures. “I don’t eat duck meat. They’re like my friends! However, it may seem cruel as I am selling my friends to others to eat!” she joked.
Nonetheless, Siti conceded to feeling sad whenever she had to sell duck meat via her company’s Facebook page ‘KQ Breed Farm’.
“I will make sure I am not there to watch them. I know this is the sacrifice that they have to go through. Deep down, I know they can make people happy when they are enjoying a nice duck meat meal at home,” said Siti.
Her company, Kaizen Quality Sdn Bhd, started off with 200 baby ducks. Then it gradually increased the population. With around 3,000 ducks and ducklings at the farm today, Siti recalled a nightmare during the initial stage.
“The ducklings tended to drown themselves in the drinking water we provided in their cages. Since they were still young, they did not know how to swim. But over time, we learned that if we could not control the ducklings, we could reduce their water,” said Siti.
Remembering that period, Siti said she and her team had to dig and make ponds for the ducks. They also needed to watch their food consumption. “It was difficult to handle as we did not have the correct basic knowledge to care for them. But we really learned a lot from other local farmers. We were not afraid or shy about asking around,” she added.
With an ever-growing population of ducks, Siti’s routine work at the farm is to count the number of ducks, collect their eggs and wash them.
On the different species of ducks reared on the farm, she explained, “We have two types. One is the Khakis Campbell that gives us eggs. Another type is the Muscovy duck, which produces meat.”
Siti Syahawauridha Ramli showing the Khakis Campbell breed — the duck that provides us with eggs. 
The Muscovy duck breed — the duck that we see on our dining table.
In a week, Siti disclosed that a maximum of 2,000 eggs could be collected on the farm. “One duck can lay two to three eggs per day while a hen can lay every two weeks.”
After two years, hens will stop laying eggs due to old age. Then, they will shed their feathers and grow new ones. “By then, we will need to feed them formula in order to make them lay eggs again. Although the shells of the eggs will be thinner, they are still good for consumption.”
Hoping to have a population of 5,000 ducks next year, Siti’s company does not plan to close its duck farm once the pandemic is over.
Instead, Siti will have to juggle between managing ducks and humans. “Despite my interest in working among ducks on the farm, I will definitely continue my work in event management in the future. We will not close the farm as we already have a good team and an expert farmer to manage it,” she said.
Having worked at the farm, Siti said she had learned survival skills in the wild. If she were to land herself on a deserted island, two ducks would be enough, she said.
Though initially, she found it difficult to handle the ducks, Siti has learnt to love them. “Now, I love my work on the farm,” she added.
