Improving village chicken production to elevate the livelihoods of poor people in Ethiopia

Tadelle Dessie (ILRI)EIAR Workshop, Debre Zeit, April 11, 2013

Poultry production in Ethiopia• Village system responsible for majority of poultry

production (more than 90% meat and egg)

Poultry offers poor people pathway out of poverty (by and for the poor!!!!!! –real opportunity)

Let us go for a walk

2011

Koepon

Funding

-Egg production-Growth (wt at 16 wks)

-Age at first egg

2006-2010

Breeding

Objective

Set up breed improvement

program

- 2nd generation

- Promising results

Diagnostics

High mortality

Facility

Man power

2010

DFID

Funding

2009 to dateEgg production

34-75 at 45 wks of age

Age at first egg223-148 days

Growth550-788 g

2000-2003

High within

variability

Characterisation

Livability50%-97%

Way

forward

-10th generation

-Color fixation

-Divergent selection for Disease resistance

-Crossbreeding and supply

-Composite breed development and test

-Develop and test different scenarios of dissemination

SELECTION STRATEGY . . .

G E N E T I C I M P R O V E M E N T O F L O C A L C H I C K E N S

G_9 Population

G_5 Population

G_6 Population

G_10 Population

20 Sires200

Dams

G_7 Population

G_8 Population

20 Sires

20 Sires

20 Sires

20 Sires

200 Dams

200 Dams

200 Dams

200 Dams

The simplest and lowest cost intervention is to disseminate improved indigenous chickens, with some improved

management

Model breeders

Breeding Units

Farmers

Community/Farmers

Eggs

Key elements

Establish a supply of chickens with improved growth, egg production feed conversion and disease-resistance traits Potentially within-breed

selection Multiplier flocks established and

scaled-up via mini-hatcheries When target scale is reached,

hatcheries begin sale of day-old improved chicks to farmers

Chicks vaccinated by poultry workers in the mini-hatcheries

Mini Hatcheries

Day-old chicks

Community/ Market

EggsLive chickens

VaccinesMedicines

Genetically improved hens and cocks

(Improved Horro)

Selection / development

Dissemination / multiplication

Supply to smallholders

• Research project identifying and testing different sources of indigenous chickens.

• Could involve within-breed selection or cross-breeding

• Might take 2 to 3 years (we have it).

• Establishment of multiplier flock.• Starts with initial flock of female

birds (and suitable number of cocks) selected or developed in Phase 1

• Rapid multiplication over period of 24-30 months to achieve scale

• Ongoing supply of chicks from the multiplier flock

• Some chicks retained as replacements to sustain multiplier flock

• Male and female chicks vaccinated and sold to farmersKe

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• Create initial flock:– 100 hens– Appropriate # of cocks

• Grow multiplier flock (hens)– Start: 100– 12 months: 1,970– 18 months: 38,800– 24 months: 765,000– 30 months: 15 million

• Supply vaccinated chicks to farmers, while sustaining flock– 10 male, 10 female per year– Benefit: $???? per smallholder

– millions smallholders– More million smallholders

Phase 1 Phase 2 Phase 32 years Ongoing

Scale can be achieved quickly through multiplier flocks in village-based mini-hatcheries

Poultry’s high rate of reproduction enables rapidscale; Distribution could begin after 18 months

6 12Phase 2 Months 18 24 30

Size of multiplierflock 100* 1,970 38,800 765,000 Millions100

Number of smallholdersbenefited

7,300 145,000 millions More millions

No chick distribution Limited distribution (5-10%)

Full dissemination

This model can be implemented simultaneously in multiple geographies.

Some people who contributed to the success!!!!!

• Continue animal health investment to determine if lifelong disease resistance can be conferred by either a single vaccination to the chick, or through breeding (Newcastle, Marek’s disease)• Opportunity to breed for disease resistance, or

for synergy between breed and vaccine

Additional Recommendations

Thank you