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From Okwe Obi, Abuja
As Christmas and New Year approach, poultry farmers, butcher and foodstuff vendors traditionally gear up for a surge in demand, stocking their shops in anticipation of high sales and the promise of profitable margins.
The festive period has long been a time when the demand for poultry, especially chicks and broilers, soars, driving up the costs of chicken feed and labour. Yet, in 2024, the story was far different as many poultry farmers found themselves grappling with poor sales due to the prohibitively high prices of chicken, which remained out of reach for the average Nigerian.
A market survey conducted by Daily Sun revealed staggering prices: a single chicken was sold for between N23,000 and N25,000, while a basket of onions fetched anywhere from N15,000 to N20,000 at Kabusa Market. In the same market, a turkey could be purchased for N60,000 to N65,000, depending on its size, and a kilogram of beef ranged between N7,000 and N7,500. Chevon, or goat meat, was similarly priced at the higher end of the spectrum.
Dr. Onallo Akpa, the Director General of the Poultry Association of Nigeria (PAN), expressed concern over the situation, revealing that more than 50% of the broilers produced for the holiday season remained unsold, largely due to the diminishing purchasing power of consumers.
“Families are struggling to meet their basic needs, leaving poultry meat—a luxury protein—off the table for many during Christmas and New Year. Poultry farmers, who had hoped for even modest profits, are now lamenting their losses,” Dr. Akpa stated. “More critically, the government must focus on ensuring the nation’s nutrition and food security, areas where poultry plays an essential role.”
A poultry farmer from Galadima Village in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Agnes Agbe, echoed Akpa’s sentiments, highlighting the sharp decline in demand during the festive period.
“We barely made any sales this Christmas,” Agbe lamented. “Parents opted for beef and chevon instead, due to the soaring costs of chicken feed. It’s tough for everyone right now. We, as farmers, have to make a profit to survive.” She further explained the strain on farmers, many of whom had purchased their birds on credit, only to see a portion die before reaching market size. “We need government support, however small it may be,” Agbe urged, suggesting subsidies for chicken feed and a reduction in fuel costs, which would help farmers buy chicks from neighboring states where prices are lower than in Abuja.
Despite these widespread grievances, not all poultry farmers blamed the economy for their struggles. Oge Emmanuel, a farmer from Dogon Gada in Lokogoma District of Abuja, pointed fingers at her colleagues, accusing them of greed and price gouging.
“Many farmers took advantage of the festive period and drastically inflated the prices of their broilers,” Emmanuel charged. “Before Christmas, chicks were sold for as little as N3,000 to N5,000, but by the time the holidays arrived, some farmers had raised prices to N25,000 or even N30,000 per bird. I, on the other hand, kept my prices reasonable, selling chickens for N10,000 to N15,000 and still making a profit.”
Emmanuel criticised the greed of her counterparts, emphasizing that such steep price hikes only served to alienate potential buyers. “Chicken became a luxury for the wealthy this season,” she said. “Some farmers even sold native chickens for N12,000 to N13,000, which is just too much. The price should have been N18,000 at most.”
She recounted an instance where a nearby vendor insisted on selling a chicken for N25,000, despite Emmanuel’s suggestion to settle for a lower price of N23,000. “I had to advise my customers not to buy because the price was too high. The chicken was worth no more than N18,000.”
Emmanuel continued, shedding light on the rising cost of chicken feed, which has now reached N27,000 per 25-kilogram bag, compared to N15,000 to N22,000 in previous years. “Despite the high feed prices, I still made a good profit by selling my birds at fair prices,” she explained.
She also pointed out the long-term consequences of unsold stock. “The longer the chickens stay unsold, the more they depreciate in value. And as you continue to feed them, you’re incurring more costs. I saw that woman who refused to sell her chickens for N23,000 earlier today, and now she’s still holding onto those birds. I just had to laugh. She’ll end up selling them at a loss once the season is over.”
Emmanuel further elaborated on how farmers can avoid such losses: “If you want to sell, you mix the small and big chickens and sell them at a fair price. You’d be surprised—the chickens you think are too small often have more weight than you expect.”
She concluded with a word of caution: “The chickens that were overpriced during the festive season will soon become unsellable at such high prices. After Christmas, people won’t pay that much for them, and those who refuse to sell at reasonable prices will suffer the consequences, having to offload their stock at a loss.”
The struggles of poultry farmers this festive season highlight the deeper issues within the industry, from rising feed costs to unsustainable pricing strategies, and underscore the urgent need for government intervention to ensure food security and support for those who play a crucial role in feeding the nation.
