Lagos Farmers Push for Egg Powder Plant as Unsold Eggs Pile Up

News in Brief:

— Poultry farmers in Lagos State are urging the state government to make its planned egg powder factory operational, saying unsold eggs are forcing farms to discard hundreds of eggs daily and incur millions of naira in losses.

— The Poultry Association of Nigeria, Lagos Chapter, is also promoting modern technology, improved feeding practices and extension support to raise productivity and profitability across the sector.

Poultry farmers in Lagos State have called on the state government to expedite the completion and commencement of operations at an egg powder factory to reduce losses arising from unsold eggs.

The appeal was made at the annual summit of the Poultry Association of Nigeria, Lagos State Chapter, where farmers were also trained on modern technologies and production practices to improve efficiency and profitability.

Farmers Report Losses from Unsold Eggs

Mojeed Iyiola, the Chairman of PAN Lagos, stated that poor market demand remained one of the major challenges facing poultry farmers, with some farms forced to dispose of hundreds of eggs daily.

He said the proposed egg powder facility would provide an alternative market for surplus eggs by converting them into products that could be stored and sold later.

“We have farms that break hundreds of eggs daily, translating to millions of naira in losses,” Iyiola revealed.

The association's head claimed that the Lagos State Government was supporting the establishment of the factory, but urged authorities to ensure that it becomes operational.

He noted that even without immediate export opportunities, processing surplus eggs for the domestic market would help farmers reduce waste and recover some of the value lost through unsold production.

Industry Pushes for Technology Adoption

The summit, themed Flocking to Growth: Transforming Nigeria’s Poultry Industry with Innovation and Investment, focused on encouraging farmers to adopt modern technologies and production methods.

Iyiola said the association wanted farmers to move away from traditional practices that increase labour requirements and limit productivity.

He said technological innovations could enable poultry businesses to achieve higher efficiency with smaller workforces, while improving profitability.

PAN Lagos has also begun training programmes involving experts from academia to provide farmers with theoretical and practical knowledge on modern poultry production.

Farmers Urged to Improve Poultry Nutrition

Olugbenga Ogunwole, a professor of Agricultural Biochemistry, Animal Nutrition, Poultry Science, Food, and Food Safety at the University of Ibadan, urged farmers to update their feeding practices to match the genetic potential of modern poultry breeds.

He said the continued use of outdated poultry production practices could prevent farmers from achieving the performance expected from improved breeds.

Ogunwole advised farmers to provide birds with properly formulated, quality feed based on current production standards rather than relying on outdated feeding recommendations.

Olushola Egbota, the Director of Extension Services at the Lagos State Ministry of Agriculture and Food Systems, further encouraged poultry farmers to adopt more of the ministry's extension services.

She said farmers could obtain technical information and assistance from the Lagos State Extension Services office at Oko-Oba, Agege, rather than depending exclusively on government interventions.

The proposed egg powder factory, with improved production practices and access to technical support, could provide poultry farmers with additional tools to manage oversupply, reduce waste and improve the profitability of egg production.