While Ghana depends more than 80% on imports to meet its chicken needs, the new government wants to revitalize this sector and depend less on imports. According to government sources, studies are underway to optimize this sector by reducing the high feed costs that weigh heavily on chicken producers.
If the increase in production reflects the resilience of the poultry activity, it still remains insufficient to meet national consumption. It is in this context that the new government wants to revive the national poultry industry. According to official data, the country produced only 60,000 tonnes of chicken meat, or only 18% of total consumption in 2023.
“En 2022, la consommation totale de volail du Ghana était estimée à 324000 tonnes metric. Au delà de cela, seulement 15000 tonnes constituant 4.6 pourcentage était produit au Ghana”
Eric Opoku, Minister of Food and Agriculture – Ghana
In Ghana, poultry meat is one of the main sources of animal protein along with fish. With maize yields falling by 35%, according to estimates by the Ghana Grains Council (GCC), prices of the grain have risen, putting pressure on feed manufacturers and complicating poultry production. According to data from the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), the price of a 50 kg bag of corn has increased since 2019, rising to 227 cedis in 2023, while prices for the same quantities of starter, finishing feed and soybean meal have more than tripled over the same period.
“Nous avons conçu un programme visant à appeler les éleveurs de volailles sur la table de discussion afin que nous puissions travailler avec les associations de producteurs de volailles et les fournir des ressources financières pour qu’il puisse agrandir le business”
Eric Opoku, Minister of Food and Agriculture – Ghana
According to government statistics, the country relies on imports for more than 80% to meet its chicken needs. The country represents the second largest consumer of chicken meat in the West African sub-region behind Nigeria with more than 300,000 tonnes according to USDA data.
