Rural Poultry Production and Marketing: Flock dynamics and Characteristics of Rural poultry Production and Marketing systems

Poultry production is an important sector in Ethiopia where chickens & their products are important sources of food and income. Backyard poultry production in Ethiopia represents a significant part of the national economy in general & the rural economy in particular. Chickens kept under backyard poultry production system considerably contributed to the cash income of the rural families in Northern Ethiopia. Ethiopian chickens are estimated to be over 56 million which are mainly local or indigenous breeds. The rural areas of Central Tigray are some of the potential areas for household based poultry production system & almost every household reared chickens for economic & social benefits. However, disease outbreak and lack of proper health care, poor housing system mainly in lowland agro-ecology & lack of extension service for indigenous ecotypes & seasonality of market prices were the main constraints of rural poultry production & marketing systems in the study area. Therefore, modern training on rural poultry management & appropriate poultry extension & credit packages should be designed to improve production & productivity of indigenous chickens in both agro-ecologies.