Impact of Agro-Ecological Belts and Rainfall Distribution on Poultry Production in the Major Tropical Regions of Nigeria
This study investigated the factor responsible for poultry production in the Northern and Southern regions of Nigeria. Using Geographic Information System (GIS) and applying the FAO categories of poultry farm production for the Northern Nigeria: 55.6% of Household free-range (HHFR) farms (<200 birds) produced at 67.7%, 58.6% of Backyard commercial (BYC) farms (200-4,999) produced at 56%, 52.7% of Medium-scale commercial (MSC) farms (5,000-19,999) produced at 51.5% and 32.6% of Large-scale commercial (LSC) farms (with ≥20,000 birds) produced at 23.7%. In the South: 44.4% of Household free-range (HHFR) farms (<200 birds) produced at 32.3%, 41.4% of Backyard commercial (BYC) farms (200-4,999) produced at 44%, 47.3% of Medium-scale commercial (MSC) farms (5,000-19,999) produced at 48.5% and 67.4% of Large-scale commercial (LSC) farms (with ≥20,000 birds) produced at 76.3%. Agro-ecological production distribution showed Arid/Semi-Arid (14.2%), Derived Savanna (38.7%), Humid Forest (28.5%), MidAltitude (9.9%), Northern Guinea Savanna (6.3%) and Southern Guinea Savanna (2.4%).
