President of the Greater Accra Poultry Farmers Association, Mr. Michael Nyarko Ampem has urged poultry farmers in the country to employ new and effective methods in poultry management to reduce production cost.
According to him, for players in the poultry farming business to be successful, they needed to exercise a high level of management in housing, feeding and disease control to cut production cost.
Speaking at a training programme for members Greater Accra Poultry Farmers Association, Mr. Michael Nyarko Ampem urged the farmers to “employ modern and globally accepted trends in poultry farming to increase the competitiveness of domestic poultry production.”
Mr Ampem also acknowledged the continuous positive impacts of the government’s flagship program on the economy.
He urged government to consider the plight of poultry farmers regarding the price of the commodities.
Head of Veterinary Laboratory, Dr. Theophilus Odoom, cautioned the members to consider poultry as a business and not a hobby.
He indicated that the process of poultry farming is an investment that entails enormous capital infusion to make it sustainable.
“Farmers must properly account for inputs and investments, costing, business registration. They must also employ digital marketing through the internet and if possible be on salary as the business owner,” he said.
Management Committee Chairman of GAPFA, Mr Seth A. Wilson, also highlighted the need to follow the proper processes in brooding management in order to grow healthy birds.
He noted that drinkers and feeders must always have the right amount of feed and water.
“They must be clean at all times to prevent disease outbreak,” he added.
The training programme was held in collaboration with the Ghana Poultry Project, a United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) funded initiative.
Members of the association, were trained on new and effective ways in poultry management, bookkeeping in poultry management, vaccination procedures. Other areas of training included disease prevention and control, biosecurity, medication and brooding management.