Agric Minister Assures Poultry Value-chain Improvement as New Intervention Set to Boost Production

Ghana’s Minister for Food and Agriculture, Honorable Eric Opoku, has assured the government’s determination to improve the poultry production value chain of Ghana, as he believes that there is the need for a structured value chain in order to avoid the issue of gluts, given the government’s intervention to boost poultry farming across the country.

The minister stated that the government is aware of the implications of supporting new and existing poultry farmers through the nkoko nkitinkiti and other related policy initiatives to increase production, which is the reason why the government intends to have a value chain that will include the processing of poultry products.

Hon. Opoku noted that as part of the Feed Ghana program, the Ministry of Food and Agriculture and its affiliate institutions have been campaigning for more participation in poultry farming and the production industry.

“We are fully aware of the marketing problems that will ensue. I’m saying ‘will ensue’ because of the campaign we are making and the investment we are making. As part of the Feed Ghana program, we are campaigning for mass participation in the project. The campaign itself is yielding some dividends. We have a lot of people participating now in the space.

“I have a lot of ministers also on board—former ministers, former MPs, and many others, including journalists. They are all participating. The cumulative effect is that at the end of the day, we are going to have so much on the market.”

Hon. Eric Opoku, Ghana’s Minister for Food and Agriculture

He further emphasized that as policymakers, they are proactively considering the marketing dimension of the poultry production value chain, especially in light of the anticipated surge in output. Adding that their goal is to prevent market gluts that could destabilize prices and discourage producers.

He noted the recent complaints by poultry farmers about egg gluts are as a result of their campaign for more participation in poultry farming since February 2025, when he assumed office as minister, querying whether such gluts were ever experienced in previous years.

He explained that President Mahama has since directed the Ministry of Education to purchase the surplus eggs in the market for the school feeding program, emphasizing that as of now the clearing of the egg gluts is solely under the control of the Ministry of Education.

The minister emphasized that as a result of the anticipated increase in production that could possibly lead to gluts, as is the current situation for egg production, there are plans in place to ensure an improved value chain whereby these products can be processed and supplied to consumers in the markets.

“We are establishing, together with the private sector, a poultry processing center at Bechem to buy from the farmers, process, and then make it available to the market. And then we have also decided to select some of the existing private processes.

“Those who have the capacities to see the kind of support we can extend to them, under specific projects being implemented and being funded by our donors, so that they can have the capacity to also expand their capacity. When all these things are done, then along the chain, everything will be set, and this complaint will not come.”

Hon. Eric Opoku, Ghana’s Minister for Food and Agriculture

The minister further emphasized that the government is determined to stimulate the interest of individuals in the poultry business in order to boost production, as he lamented the huge gap between the demand and supply of poultry in the country, which has often been catered for by the importation of poultry products from other countries.

The government’s interventions, as he stated, will start with the Nkoko nkitinkiti initiative where government will provide households with just some few beds and feed, and then task the veterinary people to follow up and ensure that government’s investment is protected

He also stated that there will be support for large-scale commercial farmers, where the government will identify 50 of the well-established, experienced poultry farmers in Ghana and then offer them the support they require to be able to expand, given that they already have the experience, the capacity, the facilities, and everything to be able to engage in commercial farming.

There will also be another initiative for the medium-scale type, those people who are doing from 1000 to 3000 beds. According to the minister, these persons will be supported in building their capacity to ensure that they engage in sustainable production.

All these initiatives are therefore to help increase output in poultry produce from the farms to help supply processing centers with the needed raw materials

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