Venco Research and Breeding Farm Limited, established to breed broilers suited to Indian agro-climatic and management conditions, is a joint venture (an equity participation of 60:40) between Venkateshwara Hatcheries Limited and Cobb-Vantress Inc. of USA, one of the world's oldest established breeders.
Every year, millions of records on traits of economic importance are collected from thousands of broilers and broiler breeders and analyzed using latest computer software. Based on these analyses, a few birds with the most desirable (profitable) make up for Indian market conditions are selected as parents of the next generations.
The pureline operations of Venco are carried out in the environment friendly outskirts of Pune. Grandparent operations are strategically based – two at Hosur and Hyderabad, for poultry markets of the peninsular south and one at Dehradun for dense pockets of the northern India.
Vencobb broiler parents are regularly exported to Nepal, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and Iran. Commercial broiler chicks and hatching eggs are also exported to Saudi Arabia and other Gulf countries.
Recognizing the work done by Venco, the Department of Scientific and Industrial Research, Ministry of Science and Technology, conferred upon it the National Award for R&D Efforts in Industry in 1990.
In 1994, the United States Department of Agriculture awarded it the 'Certificate of Appreciation' for Scientific Accomplishment in a Research Project for a study on feed efficiency undertaken by Venco for five years.
In 1995-96 on a turnover of 18.9 crores Venco spent Rs. 4.7 crores (25 percent) on Research and Development.
Venco has won the national productivity council award in the year 1998.