Genetically Improved Poultry Breeds for Optimized Meat and Egg Production

Enhance Productivity with Resilient, High-Performance Chickens

This technology offers genetically improved chicken breeds designed for either meat (broilers) or egg production (layers). These breeds are developed through selective breeding, focusing on traits like growth rate, egg yield, and feed efficiency. Chicks are produced in large-scale hatcheries and require proper housing, nutrition, and health management for optimal performance. The technology improves poultry productivity by providing high-yield breeds suited for commercial farming.

This technology is TAAT1 validated.

8•8

Scaling readiness: idea maturity 8/9; level of use 8/9

Adults 18 and over: Positive medium

Others: No impact

The poor: No impact

Under 18: Positive high

Women: Positive high

Climate adaptability: Highly adaptable

Farmer climate change readiness: Significant improvement

Biodiversity: Positive impact on biodiversity

Carbon footprint: A bit less carbon released

Environmental health: Moderately improves environmental health

Problem

Limited Poultry Production: Low-quality chicken breeds with poor genetics and susceptibility to diseases.
Inadequate Meat and Egg Production: Limited meat and egg production in naturally selected local chickens compared to improved breeds.
Challenges in Breed Adaptation: Insufficient management and resources for genetically improved chicken breeds in extensive production systems. Dual-purpose chickens offer less intensive management options.

Solution

Genetic improvement through selective breeding: By selectively mating the best-performing males and females, the program enhances genetic traits related to meat and egg production, leading to improved overall poultry production.
Precise Identification and Recordkeeping: This ensures that only chickens with the desired traits for meat and egg production are selected for breeding. Accurate recordkeeping helps track and reproduce successful genetic combinations.
Controlled Incubation and Hatching: By controlling the incubation process, the program ensures that chicks have a higher chance of survival and development. This is particularly important for genetically improved breeds which may require specific conditions for optimal growth.

Key points to design your program

Livestock development programs and poultry value chain initiatives can improve meat and egg production by promoting access to genetically improved chicken breeds and better flock management practices.

Integration Steps:

Target poultry-producing communities
Focus on areas with strong demand for poultry products and opportunities for smallholder commercialization.

Facilitate access to quality chicks
Work with hatcheries and poultry suppliers to distribute improved broiler, layer, or dual-purpose breeds.

Strengthen producer capacity
Train farmers on housing, feeding, biosecurity, health management, and breed-specific production requirements.

Integrate veterinary support services
Link producers with animal health providers to improve disease prevention and flock performance.

Promote demonstration farms
Showcase productivity gains through model poultry enterprises and farmer learning activities.

Expand market and business opportunities
Connect producers with input suppliers, processors, and poultry markets to strengthen value chain development.

IP

Open source / open access

Scaling Readiness describes how complete a technology\’s development is and its ability to be scaled. It produces a score that measures a technology\’s readiness along two axes: the level of maturity of the idea itself, and the level to which the technology has been used so far.

Each axis goes from 0 to 9 where 9 is the “ready-to-scale” status. For each technology profile in the e-catalogs we have documented the scaling readiness status from evidence given by the technology providers. The e-catalogs only showcase technologies for which the scaling readiness score is at least 8 for maturity of the idea and 7 for the level of use.

The graph below represents visually the scaling readiness status for this technology, you can see the label of each level by hovering your mouse cursor on the number.

Scaling readiness score of this technology

Maturity of the idea 8 out of 9

Uncontrolled environment: tested

Level of use 8 out of 9

Used by some intended users, in the real world

Maturity of the idea										Level of use
9
8
7
6
5
4
3
2
1
	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9

Countries with a green colour: Tested & adopted
Countries with a bright green colour: Adopted
Countries with a yellow colour: Tested
Countries with a blue colour: Testing ongoing

Countries where the technology is being tested or has been tested and adopted
Country	Testing ongoing	Tested	Adopted
Benin	–No ongoing testing	–Not tested	Adopted
Botswana	–No ongoing testing	–Not tested	Adopted
Burundi	–No ongoing testing	–Not tested	Adopted
Central African Republic	–No ongoing testing	–Not tested	Adopted
Côte d’Ivoire	–No ongoing testing	–Not tested	Adopted
Democratic Republic of the Congo	–No ongoing testing	–Not tested	Adopted
Ethiopia	–No ongoing testing	–Not tested	Adopted
Gabon	–No ongoing testing	–Not tested	Adopted
Ghana	–No ongoing testing	–Not tested	Adopted
Guinea	–No ongoing testing	–Not tested	Adopted
Kenya	–No ongoing testing	–Not tested	Adopted
Madagascar	–No ongoing testing	–Not tested	Adopted
Malawi	–No ongoing testing	–Not tested	Adopted
Mozambique	–No ongoing testing	–Not tested	Adopted
Niger	–No ongoing testing	–Not tested	Adopted
Nigeria	–No ongoing testing	–Not tested	Adopted
Rwanda	–No ongoing testing	–Not tested	Adopted
Senegal	–No ongoing testing	–Not tested	Adopted
Sierra Leone	–No ongoing testing	–Not tested	Adopted
Somalia	–No ongoing testing	–Not tested	Adopted
South Sudan	–No ongoing testing	–Not tested	Adopted
Tanzania	–No ongoing testing	–Not tested	Adopted
Uganda	–No ongoing testing	–Not tested	Adopted
Zambia	–No ongoing testing	–Not tested	Adopted
Zimbabwe	–No ongoing testing	–Not tested	Adopted

This technology can be used in the colored agro-ecological zones. Any zones shown in white are not suitable for this technology.

Agro-ecological zones where this technology can be used
AEZ	Subtropic - warm	Subtropic - cool	Tropic - warm	Tropic - cool
Arid
Semiarid
Subhumid
Humid

Source: HarvestChoice/IFPRI 2009

The United Nations Sustainable Development Goals that are applicable to this technology.

Goal 1: no poverty

Goal 2: zero hunger

Goal 8: decent work and economic growth

Genetic Enhancement for Disease Resilience:

- - Identify chickens exhibiting resilience to diseases in your flock.
  - Select these chickens for breeding, prioritizing those with the strongest immune systems.
  - Mate the chosen males and females to produce offspring with enhanced disease resistance.
  - Repeat this selective breeding process over successive generations to strengthen disease resilience in your flock.

Trait Improvement for Elevated Productivity:

- - Assess the current traits of your chicken flock, focusing on growth rate, egg yield, and feed efficiency.
  - Identify the top-performing chickens in these areas.
  - Mate the highest-performing males with the highest-performing females to produce offspring with improved productivity traits.
  - Continue this selective breeding process to consistently enhance productivity over time.

Resource Optimization for Improved Breeds:

- - Provide supplementary nutrition to your improved breed chickens, ensuring they receive balanced feeds with specific energy, protein, and mineral content.
  - Construct suitable shelter that offers protection from predators and adverse weather conditions.
  - Arrange for regular veterinary check-ups and access to healthcare services for your improved breed chickens.
  - Monitor and adjust resources as needed to maintain optimal health and productivity.