The status of smallholder poultry production in the Alfred district of Kwazulu-Natal, South Africa: priorities for intervention

A survey was conducted in the Alfred District of South Africa, to evaluate the status of smallholder poultry production and identify priorities for intervention amongst ethnic rural households through participatory methods. The survey covered 180 households randomly selected by cluster sampling and data were analysed using descriptive statistics. In households where no chickens were kept, comparatively larger numbers of cattle (10) and sheep (8) were reared and gross incomes were as high as households that kept an average of 37 chickens (R787.50 vs. 825.30). The data underlined the fact that, as the average number of chickens per household increases from 10 to 40, cattle and goat numbers increased form 7 to 16 and 4 to 16 respectively. Gross income per household increased with increasing chicken numbers from R500.30 to 1036.75, whilst protein security (Kg protein intake/person/month) decreased from 4.26 to 1.17. Freely scavenging indigenous chicken contributed 16.5% of the total meat consumed but a negligible cash income to resource poor households. The average flock size per household was 17 chickens, with 39% of the respondents being female poultry owners. Chick survival ranged between 50 to 60%, with Newcastle Disease accounting for most of the losses. The major constraints to production were poor housing, poor disease control, extremely high rearing mortalities, a lack of well-organised vaccination programmes and poultry extension services. There are numerous advantages to be drawn from keeping indigenous chickens if affordable and sustainable measures can be taken to limit the impact of factors constraining production.