Evaluation of Egg Production in Jos North Local Government Area, Plateau State, Nigeria

Appraisal of Chicken Production with Associated Biosecurity Practices in Commercial Poultry Farms Located in Jos, Nigeria

“…Although a strictly commercial farm-based approach is the mainstay of the production system, a large contribution to the production capacity was made from family production which was usually semicommercial. Earlier reports in Nigeria indicated the preponderance of small-scale family chicken production as a means of reducing food insecurity and improving family income [ 2 , 9 , 18 , 24 – 27 ]. The flock size per farm was frequently <1000 with the commonest flock size of 200–500, but aggregate population of chickens in this type of holding was just 38.3% of TBP.…”

“…Entrepreneurial initiatives in the commercial poultry (chicken) industry increased in recent time in Jos, Nigeria, in response to national animal protein demand and as a result of the mild climatic environment and apparent profitability of the business. The industry is characterized by low to medium integration of inputs representing the downstream poultry sector where the flock stocking is low and involves raising day-old chicks, supplied by integrated farms, to mature weight (broilers) or egg-laying (laying hens) using commercial feeds and veterinary products from retail outlets [ 1 , 2 ]. The chickens are fully housed in intensive management system and often reared on deep litter within urban and periurban locations.…”

“…The production system is oriented towards profitability and the efforts to reduce cost of production may impact negatively on the system through neglect of important pivotal elements of poultry preventive health. Communicable diseases and problems related to feeding constitute the major constraint to profitable chicken production in the locality [ 2 ]. Therefore, disease prevention and control are veritable components of commercial poultry production.…”

“…The application of biosecurity is affected by small-holder, farm, social, and community characteristics [ 7 , 8 ]. There have been reports of breaches in biosecurity measures in poultry production systems in parts of Nigeria because of lack of awareness and failure to implement components of biosecurity [ 9 – 11 ] resulting in frequent outbreaks of diseases which drastically reduce profit or lead to capital loss in the industry [ 2 , 12 ]. The operational cost of biosecurity is usually low and there is a high benefit-cost ratio [ 4 , 7 , 13 ], but inadequate implementation of biosecurity measures may be due to insufficient motivation and lack of understanding of its economic benefits [ 14 ].…”

“…We hypothesized that the structure of chicken production in poultry farms, in the study area, was commercially oriented, family-based, and income-generating investment, which were set up as small-holder, farm-based intensive production system with some deficiencies in biosecurity practices and constraints associated with disease outbreaks [ 2 ]. The objective of this study, therefore, was to appraise chicken production along with the on-farm biosecurity practices (consistent with standard bioexclusion and biocontainment protocols) in commercial poultry farms located in Jos, Nigeria, and to assess whether some characteristics of the farms affect biosecurity rating and effectiveness in reducing outbreaks of communicable disease.…”