The Poultry Farmers Association is calling on Government to begin producing more maize and soya under the Planting for Food and Jobs program to alleviate the challenges of poultry farmers.

According to members of the Association, the price of ingredients for poultry feed has seen an astronomical increment, thereby impacting the price of chicken and egg sold on the market.

Currently, a 200 kg bag of maize is sold for over GH¢200, while it used to sell for less than GH¢100 months ago.

Speaking to Citi News, the Vice President for the Greater Accra chapter of the Poultry Farmers Association, Kwame Ntim said many farmers have shut down their businesses with many on the verge of collapse due to high cost of doing business.

“People have had to close their poultry farms because the production costs are rising by the day, and the only way you can break even and make margins is to sell beyond the production cost.”

Mr. Ntim noted further that “others are on the verge of collapse because the business to them is no longer sustainable.”

The association has previously called for interventions amid fears that the imported frozen poultry may take over their business.

The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) has reported that Ghana’s poultry imports reached 360,000 metric tonnes in 2021 from 295,165 metric tonnes in 2020.