Poultry Value Chain, Food Security and Poverty in India

The study has covered value chain, food security and poverty alleviation aspects of poultry which is one of the fastest growing segments of the agricultural sector in India. Poultry farming in India has changed dramatically over the past two decades. It has moved into a well-organised network of integrated farming also known as contract farming. However, in many parts of the country, poultry value chains are still not fully developed, leading to high costs and inefficiencies. There has been a significant change in the ownership and size of backyard poultry within the past decade and poultry distribution is more skewed towards small farm households. There has been a significant increase in the consumption of poultry products during past two decades; however, per capita consumption of poultry products is poor as compared to the recommended balanced diet. The growth of the poultry sector can contribute to enhanced nutrition and food security in India, particularly for the rural poor. The study has observed that the promotion of backyard poultry farming is essential as it continues to remain important for rural households, ensuring a steady flow of quality food and cash income and reducing their vulnerability. The study has observed that developing the entire poultry chain will require large investments in improving the yields of feed ingredients; building large scale feed mills; investing in breed and health care research; improving hatching facilities; and setting up better transport and storage infrastructure. It is also necessary to attract large and integrated players who, along with farmers would invest in building different elements of the value chain in poultry.