July 17, 2014

 

The Ghana Broiler Revitalisation Project (GHABROP) is launched in the national capital of Accra and seeks to improve local capacity in production, processing and marketing of broiler chicken.

 

The project would also develop the poultry industry along the poultry value chain and ensure that production farms, input suppliers, hatcheries, feed mills, veterinary service producers, processors, marketers/cold stores and consumers contribute to maintaining self-sufficiency.

 

The project was an initiative of Ghana through the Ministry of Food and Agriculture (MOFA), in collaboration with the Ghana National Association of Poultry Farmers (GNAPF), which would run for 10 years.

 

Dr Hanna Louisa Bissiw, the deputy minister of food and agriculture in-Charge of Livestock, said the project was necessary for the survival of the local broiler industry.

 

"Ghana is deficient in its meat and milk requirements. Unfortunately the present levels of livestock and poultry production are inadequate to meet the animal protein needs of 24 million human population," said Bissiw

 

"This has resulted in Ghana becoming a net importer of frozen meat of which poultry meat constitutes the highest proportion."

 

The Deputy Minister believed that increasing local livestock and poultry production was the way forward in ensuring self-sufficiency in meat production and creation of employment opportunities.

 

Bissiw stated that the aim is to produce 30,000 tonnes of broiler meat with an expected increase to 60,000 tonnes by 2016. These targets would progressively reduce Ghana's meat import burden by 40%.

 

According to the minister, arrangements are made earlier with hatching eggs earmarked for the project. The eggs would be hatched by selected hatcheries and day old broiler chicks have been made available to selected hub farms for brooding.

 

To date eight hubs and 58 satellite farms were selected to start the project in the Ashanti and Brong Ahafo regions. The hub farms will subsequently work with satellite farms to grow more broilers.

 

The Deputy Minister noted that hub farmers were selected based on farmer's acceptance and commitment to the terms and conditions of the project. The criteria includes experience in broiler production, availability of space, and past performance in similar projects.

 

"The farmers will be financially and operationally responsible for the satellite farmers and are the channels through which resources (funding/inputs) will get to the satellite farms. Importantly, they will jointly supervise the satellite with a technical team from the MOFA to ensure conformity to quality standards and avoidance of side marketing of the mature broilers," Bissiw said. "It is expected that the birds would be ready by the 45th day and picked up by processors before being packaged for distribution."

 

The minister added that MOFA will ensure the market is secured for the broilers under the project and that products would meet desired quality and packaging standards.

 

Meanwhile, Kwame Qokro, executive secretary of GNAPF, said the association is highly committed to the project due to the huge socio-economic benefits it held for the Ghanaian economy. He also urged MOFA to establish the National Poultry Council to regulate the industry.

 

"GNAPF has a strong belief that strict adherence to quality standards along the broiler value chain is non-negotiable and we need a Council to take up this responsibility," Ookro said.