Wednesday, July 27, 2011

Ghana calls for poultry production investment

Heavy investment is needed in livestock and poultry production to enhance domestic competitiveness and decrease Ghana's deficit, according to Dr. Tia Alfred Sugri, the country's deputy minister of food and agriculture in charge of livestock.
Such investment would lower the deficit, which stands at 50%, as well as lower production costs and add value to Ghanaian animal products, according to Sugri. Right now, Ghana's needs are largely met via imports. "The live animals are moved into Ghana by road daily from our neighboring countries, namely Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger, [and] live day-old chicks are brought in by air while the frozen beef, chicken and pork come in through the harbor,” said Sugri. While the poultry sector has a number of commercial farms in the urban areas, domestic production is largely restricted to small-scale farmers in the northern savannah and coastal plains.
Sugri has said that he would like to see larger domestic involvement and a stronger commitment to reducing dependence on imports.

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