Poultry Investors Divest, Sell Off Birds Over Feed Scarcity
Hard times have hit poultry farmers in the country as many of them are in financial distress and are unable to feed their birds due to the high cost of poultry feeds.
Investigations revealed that many of them are selling off their birds at ridiculously low prices in a bid to recoup some of their investments.
It was gathered there had been a shortage of soybean and maize, which is a major raw material for poultry feed in the country.
This, according to stakeholders, has led to increase in the price of soybean by as much as 193 per cent and maize by 89 per cent.
The farmers said the glut during the lockdown adversely affected their finances and ability to sustain the business.
Investigation showed that demand for day old chick has drastically dropped despite a crash in price from N600 per chick to N200.
About 20% of Ogun poultry farmers shut farms
The Chairperson of the Poultry Association of Nigeria, Ogun State Chapter, Blessing Alawode, said many poultry farmers in the state had shut down their farms as a result of the high cost of feed.
According to her, available statistics showed that 20 per cent of the farmers in the state have folded up.
She said the affected farmers had either put their farms and birds for sale or downsized.
Alawode said, “Currently, not less than 15 to 20 per cent of the farmers have closed down and the bulk of this number is the smallholders with 500 to 2,000 birds.
“There is no way they can cope with the cost of production viz a viz the selling price. For instance, you buy seeds for N4,500 before salary and you have an average attendant who collects N20,000 per month.
“What I am trying to say is that at the end of the day, a smallholder is going to end every month at N300,000 loss going by feed at N4,500 and egg sold at N1000 per crate.”
She said the industry was facing serious challenges as a result of unabated rise in the prices of bird feeds and concentrates used to feed chickens.
She lamented that the feed inputs such as soybean had gone out of reach of an average poultry farmer.
The livestock farmers appealed to the Federal Government to save the Nigerian poultry industry from imminent collapse.
Alawode added that the price of the commodity had increased from N115,000 per tonne in August to N215,000 in November 2020, representing an increase of 86.95 per cent within a four-month period.
She noted that with the unabated increase in feed prices especially, the prices of soya beans and soya bean meal, the prices of eggs and chickens might go out of reach of many Nigerians.
A chicken, according to her, may be sold between N5,000 and N10,000 during Christmas depending on the size.
She made this known in a release tagged ‘Poultry Industry, a trillion-naira investment in Nigeria, faces imminent collapse as prices of maize, soya beans, soya bean meal and finished feeds rise unabatedly’.
Alawode appealed to Federal Government to come to the rescue of farmers and save poultry industry from collapse since the business was no longer profitable due to the increased prices of feeds and concentrates, which in return, skyrocket the prices of finished products such as chickens and eggs.
She also alleged large scale corruption by feed millers and merchants.
According to her, they cause artificial scarcity by hoarding the produce and illegally exporting it to neighbouring countries, putting unnecessary pressure on the industry.
She said, “In August 2020, maize and soya were sold at N170,000 and N115,000 per tonne respectively, with the market price of commercial feeds at an average of price of N3,300 per bag of 25kg. While the price of maize remained at N170,000 per tonne in September, soya jumped to N125,000 with commercial feeds at N3,600.
“In October, while the farmers were glad of a small decrease in maize to N152,000 per tonne, soya rose again to N150,000:00 per ton and commercial feeds then was N3,959.
“As of today, maize is N145,000, soya beans is N215,000. This represents 86.95 per cent increase in four months and commercial feeds at N4,400, while the market is already resisting a tray of egg for above N1,000.
“Intelligence gathering on issues around price increases in maize and soya reveal hoarding of the maize and soya by merchants, thereby causing artificial scarcity. Export of processed soya bean meal by some millers and poor harvest due to low-quality seeds caused by the climate change and insecurity in the grains producing zones, among other factors.
“We, therefore, call on Federal Government of Nigeria through the Ministry of Agriculture for a quick intervention to work around the immediate ban on the export of processed soya beans and soya bean meal until local consumption is sustained and guaranteed.
“Approval of importation of animal feed grade grains must be given to cushion effect of the feed crisis. The CBN should, through its Development Finance Department, facilitate a working relationship between the producers (grain farmers) and the consumers (poultry farmers) to check the profiteering tendencies of the merchants.
Alawode advised the government to intensify efforts on dry season farming in order to improve production capacity while not neglecting the quality of the seed to ensure a high yield to reduce high cost of production per hectare.
Feed demand drop by 94%, soybean now N220,000/tonne
Feed millers in the country are also lamenting the scarcity of grains, especially maize and soya beans, which are important for the feed preparation of livestock animals.
They said at a press conference in Lagos on Tuesday that the scarcity had led to the high cost of the grains.
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The millers, under the aegis of Feed Industry Practitioner Association of Nigeria, said aside the scarcity, there had been a drop in demand for animal feed as most farmers were divesting and selling their birds.
The National Chairman of FIPAN, Mr Raymond Isindiaso, warned that the trend, if allowed to continue, could jeopardise the school feeding programme of the Federal Government, which was highly dependent on eggs.
He said that investors in the livestock value chain had witnessed a great degradation in the success they had recorded over the years.
Isindiaso attributed the grain supply challenges to flooding in most key grain-producing belts of the country and insecurity arising from banditry and kidnapping of farmers.
He noted that there had been a disconnect between the grains producing regions and the grains utilising regions of the country.
FIPAN chairman alleged that some group of people had started sabotaging grain supply in the industry by exporting soybean and maize in large quantities in order to earn foreign currency.
He said, “We called this world press conference to alert the nation and appropriate organs that our industry ship is sinking and may sink in few days to come if nothing is done to mitigate against total destruction of multi trillion investments, labour (employment), various linked businesses to livestock value chain like banks and loans, infrastructure rented and owned, students feeding programme.
“The multiplier effect of these on our economy could be greater than the recession we are in now, as it will involve both food, life and finance.”
According to the Managing Director, Conerstone Feeds and Concentrate, Dr Folarin Afelumo, this is the season of harvest of soybean but the farm produce is scarce and expensive.
He said soybean which sold for N75,000 per tonne before the pandemic now sold for N220,000 per tonne.
A former Chairman, Poultry Association of Nigeria, Lagos Chapter, Mr Lanre Bello, said patronage had dropped drastically by 94 per cent as millers that usually sold 80,000 tonnes of feed in a week struggled to sell 5,000 tonnes.
He called for immediate stoppage of exportation of soybean seed or meal and urged the government to subsidise the grains and store excess in grain reserve.
He said stakeholders needed a quick intervention of the government on importation of maize for livestock feeds only at official foreign exchange rate.
Most poultry farmers out of business in Akwa Ibom
A Poultry farmer in Akwa Ibom State, Mr Godwin Edet, said most farmers in the state had been thrown out of business as they could no longer cope with the high cost of feeds and drugs.
Edet who spoke with our correspondent in Uyo, Akwa Ibom State on Tuesday complained that a bag of feed that was selling at between N2,900 to N3,200 suddenly went up to N6,000, saying the situation had become unbearable.
He said the most frustrating situation was that the product had disappeared from the market.
“Immediately after the lockdown, the prices of feeds skyrocketed and went up to N2,900 to N3,000 depending on the product,” Edet said.
He added, “After the lockdown when they started relaxing transportation, the price was around N2,900 to N3,100 but in the last two months, the situation has become very unbearable to the extent that most poultry farmers have been driven out of business due to high cost of feeds and drugs.”
He blamed the state government for not helping the farmers despite recognising agriculture as one of its cardinal policy trust.
Raw materials are inaccessible – Edo miller
The Chief Executive Officer, De Agricare, manufacturer of poultry feeds, Collins Onagbake, attributed the price increase to inaccessible raw materials and unavailable funds.
He lamented that a tonne of maize which cost N90, 000 at the beginning of the year now goes for between N175, 000 and N180, 000 leading to a rise in the cost of feed mill, noting that securing loans also posed a big threat to production.
“Access to raw materials for production is a big problem. Most of the millers, not only in Nigeria, are not into farming. We are unable to produce the raw materials we need to produce the feeds.
“So, we have to rely on suppliers who we order from. If my company runs out of materials, what I do is place my order but it takes time to get to us because the millers who need the materials are many and you have to wait for your turn.
“Feed production is also capital-intensive because without proper funding, your production will be limited. Lack of fund is a major problem the millers are facing.
According to him, a tonne of maize is now goes for between N175,000 to N180,000 as against N90,000 at the beginning of the year, increasing by 89 per cent.
“I do business with my personal funds because getting loans from banks is not easy. You must have collateral to be able to get loans from banks. We have never had support from the government. The government to some extent is not encouraging the millers.”
However, he said the present government in Edo State had reduced the taxes the millers pay.
Lagos farmers lament increase in feed price
The Chairman of the Poultry Association of Nigeria, Lagos State Chapter, Mr Godwin Egbegbe, lamented the impact of the increase in poultry feeds prices.
In an interview with one of our correspondents on Tuesday, Egbegbe said the increase in feed prices had sent many poultry farmers out of business in the state.
He said, “One thing about eggs and other poultry products is that they are perishable goods and there is a limit to how we can increase the prices. When it becomes too expensive, people will no longer want to patronise us. Therefore, farmers will be forced to sell at loss sometimes.
“Some of our members are selling their birds already because they can’t cope with the increase in feed prices.
“The major problem is that nobody is bringing in soybeans into the country despite that the fact that local production cannot meet the demand. Even those that have soybeans in the country are now processing to export.”
The Lagos PAN chairman said some brands of feeds were already being sold for over N4,000 per 25kg bag.
