People in
Mexico love to eat chicken. At least that was what
Enrique told us, and I think he is right.
When I
asked him about the possibility of getting a business
started that could generate some income to help
supplement the contributions we receive to fund the
breakfast program, a chicken business was first on
Enrique's list. It was a business that would not need a
large investment to get started and one where there was
a demand for the product.
The week
last APRIL'S that Helen and I spent with Enrique was
the start of Pollos de Solidaridad. When we left Mexico
after that week the business had gone from a concept to
reality. We knew that a Mexican was eating a
Solidaridad Pollo (chicken) as we were riding north out
of the country.
I had
thought the business would start with little chicks.
They would be fed and nurtured until of the size to feed
a family and then they would be sold for someone's
chicken taco. Maybe that was what Enrique also had in
mind. However, between the concept and reality things
changed.
The
business now is really a chicken processing business.
Enrique buys 2.5 to 3 kilogram live chickens from a
wholesaler and takes them to the Pollos de Solidaridad
pen. They are held in the pen until he has a buyer for
a chicken. Then the chicken is butchered and delivered
to the buyer. The buyer is getting a very fresh
chicken. In fact, Enrique has said that the chicken
that is eaten for dinner was singing at breakfast.
We
started with 2 pens and 2 women who were keeping the
chickens and preparing them. The 2 we started with have
not worked out as well as hoped, so Enrique took back
both pens and has started over. We now have one large
pen and one women, Carmen, who is doing the work.
Enrique
buys the chickens and transports them in the combi to
Carmen's house where he puts them in the pen. Carmen is
responsible for the chickens' food and water until
Enrique has a buyer. She then cuts off the heads and
does the usual chicken preparation thing. The buyers do
the cooking and eating! Enrique's goal is not to have
the chicken for more than a day or two.
The good
news is that the business is making a little money.
Carmen earns money for each chicken she prepares and the
rest of the profit goes into a pot. We also pay Enrique
a little each month for his management of the business.
He keeps the books and always has them ready for me to
check when we see him. This time he pointed out that
there is a profit and he wanted permission to use some
of that money to buy medicine for people in Solidaridad.
I was thrilled with the word "profit" and gave him the
permission he requested.
Here is
Carmen with her son, Victor, in front of the pen. It is
located behind her house which is right across the
street from the mission church in Solidaridad.
Incidentally, Carmen is the sister-in-law of Alejandro
who I wrote about a while back. Her husband and
Alejandro's wife are brother and sister. Carmen,
Alejandro, and their mother-in-law, Felipa are turning
out to be pillars of the mission church.
Next I'll
tell you about what happened with the school shoes this
year.
