Nigeria’s poultry industry is facing rising production costs and shortages of key inputs, threatening farmers’ livelihoods, food security and access to affordable protein.
Feed, which accounts for a large share of poultry production costs, has become increasingly expensive due to rising prices of maize and soybean, alongside high electricity, transportation and financing costs. Farmers are also facing shortages of day-old chicks, further increasing production expenses.
The Poultry Association of Nigeria (PAN) is calling for cheaper financing, lower input costs, improved access to quality chicks, better veterinary services, stronger biosecurity and modern processing and storage facilities.
The Federal Government has begun efforts to address some of the challenges through improved oversight of poultry import allocations and measures to increase access to day-old chicks. It is also engaging industry stakeholders on ways to stabilise prices and strengthen the sector.
Several large-scale poultry projects are also being planned or supported, while some state governments are investing in processing and integrated poultry production.
Stakeholders say Nigeria needs a coordinated national poultry policy that supports farmers across the entire value chain, from feed and breeding to production, processing and marketing.
They also called for greater use of public institutions such as schools, hospitals and security agencies as reliable buyers of locally produced poultry products.
A stronger poultry sector, they said, could help lower food prices, create jobs, improve nutrition and increase demand for locally produced maize and soybean.
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