For many poultry farmers, year 2024 will not be forgotten in a hurry, considering the series of challenges that almost ran the sector aground.
Based on reports, while many farms were shut down, others were running skeletal operations, as others moved to other line of businesses, due to their inability to cope with the hardship faced by the industry.
The major challenge faced by the farmers was high cost of feeds, coupled with increased price of fuel, the inflation rate, and other factors caused by the current administration’s economic policies.
This development forced incessant review of price of eggs and other poultry products. For instance, a crate of eggs sold between N1500 and N1700 in January 2024, closed the year as high as between N6000 and N7000, with a stern warning from the farmers that it could hit N10, 000 per crate.
This development obviously impacted the last yuletide, as many households celebrated the Christmas and the New Year festivities without their favourite chickens as the price of the birds went practically beyond their reach.
A survey across markets in Lagos, Ogun and other parts of Southwest and South South indicated a sharp increase in the price of chicken by about 300 per cent.
For instance, old layer stock previously sold at the rate of N4,000 at the Oja-Oba, Abule-Egba; Ile-Epo; Agege, Daleko and other popular markets in Lagos between January and February 2024, was sold between N11,500 and N12,000.
The Broiler stock previously sold for between N10, 000 and N12, 000, jumped to between N28, 000 and N30, 000, competing with the price of a live turkey and goats that sell around that region. A cockerel was sold between N15, 000 and N20,000.
In Ogun, though a bit affordable to what obtains in Lagos, the least price of a broiler was between N28, 000 and N28, 500, while the least price of old layers was between N8, 000 and N10, 500.
The development, did not only led to a bleak season for the consumers, it also negatively impacted the poultry farmers, as they practically recorded low patronage as at Wednesday, January 1, which was the New Year day.
Reports from poultry markets and major farms showed that chickens of different varieties and sizes could not attract buyers, as the buyers sought for alternatives.
The Guardian learnt that aside the high cost which farmers attributed to increase in prices of feeds, drugs and other poultry materials, low purchasing power due to the state of economy worsened by the high cost of fuel were the factors advanced for the low patronage.
A poultry farmer in Arigbajo area, Ewekoro Local Council, Ogun State, Ayinla Ogungbe, lamented that he has never had it so bad since he started his farm as his desperate efforts yielded little result.
“At first, I thought the lack of patronage was due to the location of my farm, but when I took another step of taking them to the market, it was the same situation, even when we reduced the price, we only enjoyed few patronages. The situation was worse as people were practically broke.
“Currently, I have stocks that are only consuming feeds without buyers, they are actually tying down my money and I don’t even have any motivation of buying another set to breed. Since I didn’t sell these for the New Year, I don’t know how I am going to sell them.”
At the chicken section of the Ojo-Oba market, Abule-Egba, The Guardian noticed that the section, which is usually a beehive of activities, was unusually silent during the festive period.
“The country’s economic situation actually affected our sales. There was no way we could have reduced the price because it will affect us and no one is willing to incur losses. Currently, we still have stocks, which we might likely return to the poultry farmers, unless there is a miracle.”
Another poultry farmer, Adigun Oloyede, who operates from Ibadan, Oyo State, said one of the major challenges that poultry farmers faced in the year was high cost of feeds. “I know some people who couldn’t continue the business because of the high cost of buying feed ingredients, so they closed down their farms.
“Even for me, it wasn’t easy, considering the number of chickens I had but thank God for sustaining me. I decided to plan for this year. Planning is important in business because it helps a business achieve its goals, improve its operations, and make better decisions. I have purchased feed ingredients in bulk for this year.
“I bought sweet potatoes, cut them into pieces and dried them. I also bought wheat ofal, noodles, and P.K.C fish nutrients in tons to store just to ensure we stay in business this year. The way price of grains are going up daily even tough is harvest period is alarming.”
To survive the lingering challenges, especially on high cost of feeds, Oloyede advised other farmers to start buying their feeds now, “because the prices maybe higher in the next few weeks.”
The Guardian
