Farmers face hard times as feeds’ prices rise

MANY farmers are facing hard times following a rise in the prices of feeds, it has been learnt.

Their incomes, sources said, have dropped following cash flow problems.

The Chief Executive of Talon Group, Dr. Lanre Talabi, said: “The heavy hike in feed bills is responsible for fall in incomes.”

According to him, input costs for livestock farms have risen, particularly for bought-in concentrate, forage feeds and fuel.

He said rising production costs and harsh weather conditions affected on grain harvest potential, leading to increases in grain and animal feed prices.

He said livestock farmers will have to pay higher prices for animal feed and high rainfall levels meaning that the volume of feed used on dairy and beef farms will increase.

Thinner profit margins have forced the farmers to downsize their planting acreage. With the wettest year on record, likely to drive down farm profit, there are fears of a drastic decline in farm income.

Weather-impactedoutput, coupled with increased input costs had hit the industry over the last year.Livestock producers have been among the hardest hit, with higher feed costs and an increased feed use eating into profit margins.

The Lagos Chapter Chairman, Poultry Association of Nigeria, Adedotin Agbojo, said the industry is facing uncertainty and is on the verge of collapse because of high cost of feeds, which has reduced returns on investment.

Because of the shortage of grains, by-products, oil cakes, prices of animal feeds have been on the rise necessitating an increase in the cost of animal feeds to a point where most farmers are not able to sustain their products.

Farmers, he said, are managing their chickens at a loss and as a result, many have already started to reduce numbers, especially in poultry. Poultry feeds by their quality and price, he said, are some of the the major factors in determining the cost of poultry products such as eggs, broilers and profitability of the poultry farm.

He added that the prices of major raw materials used to make the feed have gone up tremendously. Farmers, he noted, have had to absorb the increases without being able to increase the price of a crate of eggs or chicken.

He warned that if the trend persists most if not all poultry farms would have to reduce their operations or close shop.

Poultry feeds produced by commercial feed mills, he said, are handicapped on account of raw materials, which are transported from the north. He added that the increase in diesel cost by about 70 per cent has added to the problem.

Given the increased demand for Soya beans by China and other producing countries, there are indications that the trend may lead to a significant change in buying patterns and cause a tight supply probloem for local poultry producers.

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