ZFRPA pushes chicken boom to 2030
Zimbabwe plans to boost indigenous chicken meat output by 31 percent to reach 20,500 tonnes by 2030, according to Agriculture Permanent Secretary Obert Jiri. The Zimbabwe Free Range Poultry Association recently marked its 10th anniversary in Harare with the announcement that free-range production would expand from its current levels of 15,545 tonnes.
The Presidential Poultry Scheme will provide 10 birds to each participating rural household along with training support. Association head Beauty Jiji said 2.5 million chicks have been distributed to families with plans to reach 4.5 million birds across 450,000 homes nationwide. The government aims to have every household maintain flocks of up to 100 chickens and transition from subsistence farming to commercial operations.
The association has grown the national free-range chicken population from 23 million in 2015 to 63 million last year through training programs and advocacy. Members have secured contracts worth more than $30 million while the group coordinates bulk purchases of breeding stock and feed. Officials developed production standards with the Standards Association of Zimbabwe and work with marketing agencies to expand domestic and international sales channels for processors and farmers.
