Agroecology Is Affecting Village Chicken Producers’ Breeding Objective in Ethiopia

Abstract

This study assessed factors that determine village chicken producers’ trait preferences in different agroecologies of Ethiopia. Three hundred and eighty village chicken producers were sampled for individual interviews. Data were analyzed using descriptive and inferential statistical techniques. Inbreeding coefficients of chicken populations in the three major agroecologies were estimated. In addition, the multivariate regression model was employed to evaluate the degree to which agroecological difference and socioeconomic and institutional factors impact village chicken producers’ trait preferences. Egg and meat production for consumption and income generation were the three major village chicken production functions in the study. Plumage color and weight were ranked first for male and female chicken, respectively. Red plumage color (52.4%) was the primary choice followed by white color (24.5%). Agroecology and livestock holding (TLU) significantly ( P < 0.05 ) affected farmers’ preference toward economic traits, while land holding significantly ( P < 0.05 ) affected reproductive traits. Distance to market significantly ( P < 0.05 ) affected farmers’ preference toward adaptive traits. The inbreeding coefficient of 0.25, 0.23, and 0.06 was recorded in low, mid, and highland agroecologies, respectively. The agroecological difference is affecting village chicken producers’ breeding objective in Ethiopia. A higher inbreeding coefficient was observed in the low and mid agroecologies. Future breed improvement programs should give due consideration to village chicken producers’ socioeconomic characteristics and agroecological differences.

Breeding Practices and Trait Preferences of Indigenous Chicken Farmers at Madiga Village, Polokwane Local Municipality, South Africa

“…The findings of a study presented by Fitsum et al (2017) varied with the results of the current study since they reported that comb type, plumage colour and disease resistance were the highly ranked traits. However, another study by Tilahun et al (2022) obtained results agreeing with to those of the current stating that body weight was highly preferred trait in cocks. In breeding hens, mothering ability, growth rate and hatchability were the most important traits.…”

Phenotypic characterization and analysis of genetic diversity between commercial crossbred and indigenous chickens from three different agro-ecological zones using DArT-Seq technology

“…In addition, their impact goes beyond the provision of food, cash income, and employment, as they also serve as a means of capital accumulation and are valued in the religious and sociocultural lives of people [ 3 , 4 ]. Chickens are found on all habitable continents, agro-ecological zones (AEZs), and their morphology and traits vary, which may affect their genetic makeup [ 5 , 6 ]. Indigenous chicken ecotypes in Ghana are reared in the backyard and rely primarily on scavenging for their nutrition.…”

Agroecologies defined by species distribution models improve model fit of genotype by environment interactions to identify the best performing chicken breeds for smallholder systems

“…The lack of proper matching between the right genetics and the right environment is a major factor for low productivity of improved chicken breeds in the tropics (Lozano-Jaramillo et al, 2019b;de Kinderen et al, 2020). Studies conducted in Ethiopia have shown that breeding objectives of chicken producers and levels of production performance of breeds in terms of total number of eggs and growth vary across agroecologies (Lozano Jaramillo et al, 2018;Tilahun et al, 2022) indicating the need for a more tailored genetic improvement and livestock technology scaling approach.…”