Indigenous chicken production in Kenya: I. Current status

Abstract

The majority of the Kenyan population resides in the rural areas and is characterised by low income and food insecurity leading to high levels of poverty. Poultry production and in particular indigenous chicken (IC) production play a significant role in the economic and social life of these resource-poor households, contributing to cheap source of animal proteins and cash income. Indigenous chickens are present whenever there are human settlements and their economic strength lies in their low cost of production which is a characteristic of the resource-poor rural households. They are highly adapted to the harsh scavenging conditions, poor nutrition and disease and/or parasite challenges. Their low productivity has hindered their exploitation. This paper highlights the current IC production circumstances with a view to identifying the major challenges which need to be addressed in order to improve the IC productivity and thereby improve the livelihood of the rural households who are the custodian of these genetic resources. It is concluded that the IC in Kenya posses high genetic diversity and are popular among the consumers. There is potential to improve IC productivity in Kenya and therefore individual and national efforts are required that takes into account the whole IC production value chain.

Effect of age on production characteristics of Boschveld indigenous chickens of South Africa reared intensively

“…Despite increased use of commercial breeds by large-scale producers, around three quarters of chickens on the continent are indigenous breeds (CTA, 2007). Indigenous poultry farming with native breeds is practised in many developing and under-developed countries throughout the world (Bett et al, 2011;Magothe et al, 2012a;Magothe et al, 2012b),where the importance of native birds for rural economiesis immense (Magothe et al, 2012a;2012b). Although these birds are being used for rural backyard poultry production, their genetic potential has not been fully exploited.…”

“…Although these birds are being used for rural backyard poultry production, their genetic potential has not been fully exploited. Improvements of native breeds through selection are being carried out, but have to be given more importance (Dessie et al, 2011;Magothe et al, 2012b;Roothaert et al, 2011;Selvaggi et al, 2015). Indigenous chickens provide livelihood security to the family and secure the availability of food.…”

An Analysis of the Value Chain for Indigenous Chickens in Zambia’s Lusaka and Central Provinces

“…Okello et al, (2010) and Magothe et al, (2012) show that in Kenya, indigenous chickens play a significant role in contributing to the nutritional and economic welfare of resource-poor rural households through provision of protein and cash income. Indigenous chickens have also been found to play a significant role in the fight against HIV and AIDS in Zimbabwe where women and child-headed households have used them as part of their consumption-smoothening strategies when incomes fluctuate due to various shocks (Mutenje et al, 2008).…”

Valuation of livestock eco-agri-food systems: poultry, beef and dairy

“…• In addition to their use as an important source of food and income, chickens are used in Kenya as part of traditional funeral rites, as gifts, and as a biological clock to tell the time of day in rural areas (Magothe et al, 2012). Furthermore, livestock in East Africa represent a means of assuring cultural ties and support the building of social capital between groups and communities, through, for example, inheritance and loans, and through the use of livestock as an indicator of social status and in marriage rituals (Hesse and MacGregor, 2006).…”