CLUSTER FARMING CONCEPT FOR BACKYARD POULTRY FARMING (BYPF) IN INDIA : Backyard Poultry as a Resilient Technology for Augmenting Farm Income
Raising improved local poultry breeds in backyard is an important source of livelihood for the rural people of India. Poultry keeping in backyard condition gives high return as the investment in form of raw material and maintenance are low. The birds can be easily reared and handled by the farmers in village condition. Improved coloured birds under low input technology like Vanaraja, Chhabro, Kuroiler & Rainbow Rooster, Kalinga Brown, RIR and Other approved breed of GoI etc have its own merit because of its meat quality, high body weight, disease resistance and majestic look. The care of a small backyard flock can help fill the family food requirements for eggs and meat. It can also be a source of additional income. A valuable by-product is the chicken manure which is a very excellent organic fertilizer for farm and home gardens. It has been found that the dual purpose low input technology birds are reared under scavenging condition. They are dual purpose multi-colour birds with higher genetic potential resembles deshi birds in their physical characteristics. These birds have triple advantage of the characteristics of the indigenous birds in terms of hardiness & colour, high egg laying capacity (upto 130-150 eggs per year) , and high weight gain (2.5 kg to 3 Kg at 3 months. The eggs are brown coloured and fetches good price compared to white shelled eggs. The hens are kept for egg production and males are sold for meat purpose. Moreover, after the laying period, the spent hens can also be sold by the farmers with reasonable price which will add to their family income.
Rearing poultry birds is age old practice in rural India and is being followed till today. The per capita availability of Eggs and chicken in urban areas ranged between 80-120 eggs and 2.25 -3.5 kgs respectively against 5-20 eggs and 750 gms of meat in rural areas. Further thesepoultry products are expensive in rural areas due to non availability. Rural families in most part of India consume rice as their staple diet which is rich in energy but low in protein .Due to protein deficiency in rural areas the people particularly pregnant women , nursing mothers andgrowingchildren are becoming vulnerable to many common diseases. Egg is considered as one complete food with high protein . It is also a non adulterated food item. Poultry meat is highly nutritious and has high social acceptance.
Backyard rearing practice of L.I.T. poultry does not involve any input expenses as the birds are disease resistant and can feed on kitchen waste and has very good scavenging characters. Government of India has emphasized to popularize this birds and identified andapprovedvarious Low input Technology birds for disseminating it to rural population. Rural population has a great affinity for birds with colored plumage as it camouflage in the surrounding. There is high demand of poultry eggs and meat in Indian population and this huge demand of Poultry is met by bringing it from neighboring states. It is the need of the hour that the local poultry activities be popularize among the rural India as there is enough backyard area availableat village level.
Importance of backyard poultry farming in India
Although poultry farming has shown a very promising and rising trend in recent days, the major growth of this industry was found confined in urban or semi-urban areas of the country. It is easily understandable that most of the rural population don’t have opportunities to access fresh eggs and chicken meat from intensive farming or commercial poultry sectors due to a lack of proper preservation facilities and very little demand for processed meat (Devi et al., 2014). It’s a fact that 65% of the Indian population is estimated as rural people (Kumar et al., 2020) and their staple food is carbohydrates like rice and wheat. They don’t get a substantial amount of protein from their daily food. Therefore, it is extremely important to protect them from malnutrition and associated diseases by providing them with balanced nutrition with animal protein supplements. To overcome this issue, along with the intensive poultry production system, backyard poultry farming (BYPF) using highquality chicken breeds or native breeds is not only drawing huge attention but also acquiring popularity in the rural population to resolve the problems of hunger, malnutrition and protein deficiency (Alders et al., 2018). Moreover, BYPF would be a potential subsidiary income source among the rural people in our country (Kumar et al., 2021).
Phases of backyard poultry farming
There are two important phases of backyard poultry farming including, a) nursery rearing and b) free-range rearing. a) Nursery rearing: The most important point in nursery rearing is artificially providing proper feed, temperature, protection to the newborn chicks (Hedlund et al., 2019). This phase is extremely important in backyard farming as it resembles intensive poultry farming in the context of quality feeding, proper management, and good health care practices (Rajkumar et al., 2021). In this phase, chicks are reared until they reach the age of 4-6 weeks and mature enough to start scavenging their feed and protect themselves from their surrounding predators. b) Free-range rearing: Another important phase in which chicks ( between 4-6 weeks of age) are familiarized into the backyards carefully. Poultry farmers should observe the seasonal temperature before introducing the chicks in the backyard. The total number of domestic chicks mainly depends on the availability of area coverage and the source of natural feed. According to experts, a total of 15-20 chicks per family is an ideal number for effective free-range rearing. It was observed that up to 200 chicks are ideal for rearing under a small-scale freerange phase. In that case, chicks are needed a large foraging area and a hygienic poultry house for their night shelter (Tufarelli et al., 2018). To get optimum productivity from chicken, ‘supplementary feeding’ is of utmost importance. In general, chickens reach their protein requirements during foraging in backyards. They scavenge on insects, soil worms, etc. After foraging in the daytime, the chickens should be fed with cereal grains and oilseed cakes in the evening. Through this process, chickens are meet the basic requirements of essential nutrients (Tufarelli et al., 2018). Farmers should give the mixture of stone grit, shell grit, or lime powder as a calcium supplement during the egg-laying phase (Wakenell et al., 2016). It was proven that without proper calcium supplements, chickens often lay brittle or broken eggs, even shell-less eggs (An et al., 2016).
The usefulness of small-scale intensive poultry farming in the rural area
Small-scale intensive poultry farming is mostly practiced by rural, resource-poor people who often experience food insecurity throughout the year. Such a poultry farming model is easily accessible to those rural people, and most importantly it could be a good income and nutritious food source for them to improve food security (Kumaresan et al., 2008). Not only does small-scale poultry farming enhance nutrient utilization in a better way, but also it greatly contributes to mixed farming practices and women empowerment in rural India (Nordhagen et al., 2018). Generally, poultry farmers should start small-scale intensive farming including 200 to a few thousand chickens, which could be reared in a similar way to intensive broiler farming. Intensive farming should be continued till chickens reach a bodyweight of about 1.5 kg in a flock. Such practice is beneficial for the production of meat by using fast-growing chicken varieties including, Krishibro, Vanaraja, Kuroiler, Srinidhi and Rainbow Rooster (Rajkumar et al., 2021). It was estimated that about 10–20% of the backyard poultry farming is continued with this model system, especially in north-eastern states, and large areas in Himachal Pradesh (Thakur et al., 2012). Apart from the beneficial side of extensive small-scale poultry production systems, rural farmers often face significant obstacles to getting full benefits due to disease and predation. Such problems can be overcome with better agricultural and livestock management (Conan et al, 2012).
The management of small-scale intensive poultry farming
Studies demonstrated that native village chickens are useful and an important income source for domestic expenses. Traditional freerange poultry production systems in developing countries can be improved with the proper use of quality dual-purpose chickens (Kumaresan et al., 2008). Important Indian chicken breeds which were documented for small scale intensive poultry farming including, Ankleshwar, Aseel, Daothigir, Busra Chittagong, Denki, Haringhatta black, Ghagus, Kadaknath, Kashmir Faverolla, Kalasthi, Miri, Tellichery, Punjab Brown, Titri, Nicobari, Teni, frizzle fowl and Naked neck (Agarwal et al., 2020). Apart from the documented breeds, some desi chicken breeds are also reported (Sankhyan et al., 2013). According to research, scientists have found eight different strains of native chickens which are identified and reared by the rural peoples of East Godavari district of Andhra Pradesh including, Shankarjati Kodi, Nati Kodi, Medajari Kodi, Geesa Kodi, Rencha Kodi, Mattedu Kodi, etc. Interestingly, these indigenous breeds are Aseel in origin which has great value for their tasty meat, good fighting abilities, agility, and quick escape ability from their predators (Padhi et al., 2016). But farmers need to keep in mind that native chickens are slow growers in nature. Naturally, desi hens lay about 50-100 eggs in a year with alternating brooding phases. As discussed earlier, Aseel meat is superior in quality and composition; therefore, it is very popular among native chickens compared to commercial broilers (Rajkumar et al., 2016). It was observed that the native chickens are slow-growers and also poor layers in nature but they have the qualities to be ideal as a brooder, exceptional foragers, robust-bodied, and resistant to seasonal diseases (Rajkumar et al., 2017). Maintaining good chicken varieties which are highly productive, have better immunity against seasonal diseases with a short budget for nutrition and management is challenging for the farmer. Therefore, farmers always need to maintain good breeds or varieties. The researcher suggested good ways to introduces elective breeding in already established desi breeds and also crossbreeding with exotic varieties or native breeds (Rajkumar et al., 2021). Besides breeding, nutrition plays a crucial role in regulating the genetic potential of the poultry chickens for improving the numbers and quality of eggs, also maintaining their body weight. Well-adjusted nutrition should provide young chicks with their overall health improvements and proper functioning of body metabolism (Cherian et al., 2015). Of note, the requirements of nutrients vary with the type of breed, body size, genetic makeup age, the temperature inside the poultry, physical stressors, etc. (Barzegar et al., 2020). The importance of night shelter in backyard poultry was always mentioned by different experts (Conan et al., 2012). Therefore, night shelter infrastructure should be proper for the birds to protect them from predators and adverse outside environmental conditions. The types of night shelters are variable and largely depend on the flocks’ size as well as available resources (Al-Qamashoui et al., 2014). In India, smallscale and intensive poultry farmers usually made night shelter constructions with asbestos roofs, concrete walls (made up of cement instead of mud), and wire mesh for cross-ventilation purposes (Zhao et al., 2014). It was estimated that a poultry bird ideally requires one square feet space for their growing phase and around 2.5 square feet during the egg-laying phase inside the night shelter (Kumar et al., 2013). Another important aspect of the backyard poultry management system is always to keep an eye on the health issues of birds. The studies showed that health management in poultry largely depends on bio-security and proper vaccination (Hofacre et al., 2002). Maintaining the highest level of bio-security like the commercial sector could be difficult for backyard poultry farmers such as proper immunization of birds under the scavenging system, veterinary facilities, protection from predator attacks were considered main constraints for the small-scale poultry farmers (Hossain et al., 2021). The most predominant chicken diseases were found as Newcastle disease and Fowlpox. These viral diseases show remarkable infectivity in the hot and humid coastal regions, therefore periodic vaccination is extremely important to protect the flocks (Hassan et al., 2020). Also, the chickens are naturally exposed to different pathogenic loads while scavenging and need continuous monitoring of their health conditions. If some disease symptoms appear, immediately the diseased birds should be separated from others and need to take necessary measures (Galarneau et al., 2020). Despite the several limitations, it is recommended to practice mass vaccination programs with the help of local NGO teams, veterinary experts, Govt. departments to control the viral diseases effectively (Kumar et al., 2015). It was a proven fact that the proper use of a thermostable vaccine has successfully decreased the Newcastle disease infection in backyard poultry farming (Dey et al., 2017). Apart from this, there are possibilities for poultry birds for exposing different other pathogens including, avian influenza, infectious bronchitis, infectious bursal disease and Marek’s disease which are potential causes of significant morbidity and mortality (Fulton et al., 2013). Some bacterial and parasitic diseases also cause harm to the poultry birds but can be prevented with proper vaccination and biosecurity measurements (Hauck et al., 2017). According to research, both bacterial and parasitic infections occur from the source of contaminated poultry feed and water. To prevent such situations, mass deworming should be done in specific time intervals (six months intervals recommended) (Bessell et al., 2019). It is generally suggested to apply deworming-related medications a week before the vaccination of poultry birds to prevent viral diseases. Several studies identified the potential source of contamination as sewerage in the backyards. The contaminated water mostly contains different harmful intestinal parasites including cestodes, nematodes and trematodes, which affect the health and hygiene of poultry birds (Asumang et al., 2019) and could be a reason for huge losses to the poor farmers. Other sources of external parasites are night shelter houses or poultry rooms with unhygienic conditions such as the damp, moist, wet floor, and poor ventilation systems (Singh et al., 2017). Therefore, experts always suggest to poultry farmers to keep breeding and rearing areas clean with proper disinfectants . Small-scale intensive poultry farming needs proper surveillance, training, reporting as well as the documentation of breeding history, abnormal symptoms of birds, vaccination, mortality trends if concerned, etc. (Thornton et al., 2010) Antibiotic resistance in poultry birds is a matter of concern now. Data suggested that substantial anti-microbial resistance of E. coli bacteria in chicken was developed in most of the poultry farms worldwide. Interestingly, Norway and Sweden had good practices for using fewer antibiotics showed lower levels of E. coli resistant in poultry birds (Wierup et al., 2021). According to research, overuse of antibiotics may have some adverse effects on chicken such as administration of tetracyclines for a long time may show metabolic deregulations and immunosuppressive effects. For these reasons, there was a reduction of normal intestinal microbiota observed in the gut of poultry birds and they become more prone to different opportunistic infections (Shang et al., 2018). During excessive antibiotic treatment, commensal microbes are destroyed in young birds and there is a fair chance to develop harmful bacteria and coccidia populations (Noack et al., 2019). Prolonged use of other two antibiotics including, aminoglycosides and sulfonamides may damage the kidney and weaken the minerals absorption capacity in poultry birds (Mund et al., 2017). Also, the overdose of steroid hormone therapy demonstrated a negative effect on chicken’s health and sometimes causes food toxicity (Jeong et al., 2010).
Importance of microfinancing co-operative poultry farming model in rural India
The micro-financing cooperative poultry farming model was considered beneficial for small-scale intensive farmers who own the local poultry farms and together run and share the profits (Kumar et al., 2015; Chaiban et al., 2021). The successful cooperative poultry model was established by a nonprofit organization in the central part of India with nearly 10,000 farmers. Importantly, most of them were rural women, previously involved in other manual laborworks. After successful training on poultry management, women farmers were provided with initial monetary support by giving a part loan to build the poultry farming infrastructures. In this model system, each farmer is required to start work with 300-400 chicks. Currently, they work with 600- 1000 chickens/batch, and the estimated productivity level is 220 eggs/chicken/year. Moreover, the health and hygiene issues of each poultry farm (known as a cluster) are monitored by the team of para-veterinary personals (Beesabathuni et al., 2018). Nowadays, several microfinance organizations are supporting smallscale intensive poultry farmers in rural areas. The cooperative model was successful in India because of the flourishing and fast-growing input industries, giving procurement at affordable prices for different NGOs to help poor farmers. Studies also suggested that India achieved the position of the third-largest producer of eggs in the world, mostly with the collective efforts of medium and large-scale poultry farms (Chatterjee et al., 2015).
Backyard poultry farming could be an excellent initiative for rural people of India and may play an important role in improving food security and sustainable development. In this current scenario, small-scale poultry farmers are facing hurdles at the initial stage of their business establishments but strategic management and support from NGOs, social volunteers, Govt. sectors are expected to increase the net productivity and costeffectiveness of backyard poultry farming . Scientists already identified the major hurdles in this field including, unavailability of superior breeds, poor health and hygiene, recurrent emergence of viral diseases in poultry birds, antibiotic resistance-related problems, inappropriate infrastructure for rearing house and night shelters, the high price of chicken feed supplements, a high mortality rate of the birds, etc. With the advancement of animal husbandry research, effective and low price vaccines, quality supplemental feeds, disinfectants, and improved poultry water sanitization systems are available now in the market. Therefore, it is anticipated that challenges and limitations will reduce to a substantial level soon. Also, the practice of backyard poultry farming will give the benefit of economic independence to the rural women who are actively involved in this small business. Farmers need to comprehend the importance of native and better-quality breeds for the improved production of eggs and meat as they have a good demand nowadays. Overall, the cooperative backyard poultry farming model will be beneficial and environment-friendly if proper strategic planning and training are provided to the poultry farmers on regular basis.
In order to achieve maximum benefits from backyard poultry farming, strategic and systemic training is required for rural communities. In addition, technical and motivational support should be provided to encourage farmers for running small-scale backyard poultry production systems, since this is an important sustainable agricultural practice for increasing food production, food security, and women empowerment and employment to the rural Indian population.
Compiled & Shared by- This paper is a compilation of groupwork provided by the
Team, LITD (Livestock Institute of Training & Development)
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Reference-On Request.
Technical Manual Handbook on Desi Poultry Breeding Farm
Technical Manual Handbook on Desi Poultry Breeding Farm
CLUSTER FARMING CONCEPT FOR BACKYARD POULTRY FARMING IN INDIA
CLUSTER FARMING CONCEPT FOR BACKYARD POULTRY FARMING IN INDIA
BACKYARD POULTRY REARING AS A TOOL IN POVERTY REDUCTION IN RURAL INDIA
