WINDHOEK – The annual member meeting of the Poultry Producers Association was held this week in Windhoek and at this day members and industry role players gave an overview of the year ahead as well as the challenges they are facing. The drought condition which lead to large scale losses in terms of maize harvest in South Africa and the coupled shortages, will lead to increased feeding costs. This is of notable interest for especially the intensive commodities as feeding costs are the biggest part of the total production costs of these commodities. On the positive side the demand for chicken meat has increased in Namibia during the past year. This feature creates good sentiment in the industry and gives local producers the opportunity to expand their activities. Economy of scale is a critical success factor in any farming business and producers thus must continuously strive accordingly to increase their competitiveness.
The Agricultural and Marketing Agency (AMTA) intentions to expand to the poultry industry was also discussed during the meeting. As the extent of AMTA’s planned involvement is not yet known, it creates uncertainty and is seen as a risk by the producers. Two guest speakers attended the day. Dawie Brand spoke about which feed and other factors influences the depletion age of commercial laying hens. Willem Vermeulen discussed the holistic natural approach towards poultry health which invited positive reaction amongst members.