Poultry farmers incurred over N3tn losses in 2023, the Chairman of the Lagos State chapter of the Poultry Association of Nigeria, Mojeed Iyiola has said.
The PAN chairman revealed this in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria in Lagos on Monday.
Iyiola attributed the losses to the persistent economic challenges that had gripped the country.
He said the unfavourable economic conditions had forced a significant number of poultry farmers to exit the industry.
“Since the closure of about 50 per cent of poultry farms across the country, the sector has lost over N3tn. This is because, in each state, we are losing N6bn; so, rounding it off, we have lost trillions of naira across all value chains of the poultry sector.
“We just want to continue to urge our members not to quit the industry despite the difficulties being faced,” Iyiola said.
Last year, PAN said that 50 per cent of its farmers shut down operations, amplifying the severity of the crisis in the country’s poultry sector.
The association attributed that widespread closure to the escalating production costs triggered by a significant surge in maize prices, a crucial component in poultry feed production.
According to the NBS price index for December 2023, the price of chicken feed increased 81.71 per cent between December 2022 and December 2023.
The NBS report indicated that the price of medium agric eggs increased 52.09 per cent during this period.
