Chicken Shortage Looms As Hike In Poultry Feed Price Pushes Farmers To Brink

The Poultry Association of Nigeria (PAN) on Friday called for urgent intervention by President Bola Tinubu’s administration to address the astronomical hike in poultry feed prices.

The association warned that failing to take immediate action could lead to the complete collapse of the poultry sub-sector of the economy.

Mr. Hakeem Musa, Secretary of PAN’s Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Chapter, made the call in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Abuja.

Musa, also the Chief Executive Officer of Mushak Agro Consult, expressed concern about the continuous increase in feed prices and suggested that government grants could help farmers stay afloat.

Using layers mash as an example, Musa explained that a 25kg bag of feed cost N8,000 in November, then rose to N9,100 in the first week of December, N9,350 in the second week, N9,550 in the third week, and has now reached N10,950.

“Nobody knows when this increase will stop,” Musa said.

“November and December are supposed to be times of maize surplus, so if it’s this expensive now, what are we to expect in February and March?”

He expressed confidence that the new administration would prioritise the poultry industry and provide the necessary support. “The primary intervention we need is grants, not loans, to sustain the industry. Farmers have lost a lot of money over time, and they won’t be able to repay loans,” he said.

Musa attributed the high feed cost to the shortage of maize and soybeans, key ingredients in feed production, as well as the ban on maize importation.

He noted that the price hike has negatively impacted farmers, forcing many farms to close down and others to significantly reduce their bird capacity.

Nan