Implementing small‐scale poultry‐for‐nutrition projects: Successes and lessons learned

Abstract

This paper examines Helen Keller International's model for nutrition-sensitive poultry production using a programme implemented in four diverse African contexts-three rural and one urban. Consecutive cross-sectional surveys conducted every 5 months among~15% of participating households show that despite project-provided training and inputs, there was only limited uptake of many "best practices." Few households constructed improved henhouses; vaccination rates varied and were highest when support was provided. Poultry mortality was high. Egg productivity remained average for village poultry systems, and egg consumption remained low (two to six eggs consumed per household per fortnight). However, children whose mothers were exposed to project messages on nutrition were more likely to eat eggs, and consumption was consistently higher among households with chickens. Women's involvement in chicken rearing was widespread, but their control over revenues from the sale of poultry products was limited. Key lessons learned from implementation were as follows: (a) strong behaviour change communication is needed to encourage egg consumption, (b) nutrition-sensitive village poultry programmes should often focus more on improved practices than improved breeds, (c) supporting women's chicken production is not a route to empowerment without complementary activities that directly support women's ownership and decision making. There is also a need for rigorous research on the role of village poultry in livelihoods, food systems, and consumption as well as the structure of poultry and egg markets in low-resource areas.

Eggs: A high potential food for improving maternal and child nutrition

“…The first paper provides an overview of the role of eggs in the diet of maternal and child nutrition and updated data on egg consumption (Lutter, Iannotti, & Stewart, ), while the second summarizes how social marketing was used in a randomized controlled trial of eggs early in the complementary feeding period to foster brand loyalty and high compliance, as well as empowerment of participants and policy change in Ecuador (Gallegos et al, ). The third and fourth papers examine how a controlled intervention to foster poultry production affected child dietary diversity and nutritional status in Ghana (Marquis et al, ) and Zambia (Dumas, Lewis, & Travis, ), while the fifth paper reviews successes and lessons learned from a project on small‐scale poultry production to increase egg production and household egg intake in four diverse African contexts (Nordhagen & Klemn, ). A novel approach to use chicken eggshells to improve dietary calcium intake in rural sub‐Saharan Africa is reported in the sixth paper (Bartter et al, ), while the seventh paper reports on business models for poultry production in East Africa and India (Beesabathuni, Lingala, & Kraemer, ).…”

Poultry production in Burkina Faso: Potential for poverty reduction and women’s empowermen

“…While vaccination for Newcastle Disease has been shown to dramatically reduce mortality rates (Awan, Otte and James, 1994), adoption in Burkina Faso and similar contexts remains limited due to cost (Sodjinou,2011). Nordhagen and Klemm (2018) report that at least 73% of farmers vaccinated their entire flock when this service was subsidized, but this fell to around 50% once the subsidy was removed. The regulated cost of Newcastle vaccination is 50 FCFA (approximately 8 cents USD) per head (Billaz and Beauval, 2011) and the SELEVER training team recommended that farmers vaccinate their flock at least twice per year.…”

“…While poultry ownership is correlated with higher egg consumption, this remains low even among poultry-owning households. A study conducted a year after implementation of a poultry production and nutrition education intervention in the Eastern region of Burkina Faso found that households that had been involved in the program consumed a mean of 2.5-5.5 eggs per fortnight depending on the season (Nordhagen and Klemm, 2018).…”

“…Lack of access to credit often constrains the expansion of poultry-keeping enterprises. And while women's involvement in poultry rearing is widespread, their control over revenues is often limited (Nordhagen and Klemm, 2018). This implies a misalignment between effort and incentives, which may limit the impact of poultry income on women's traditional spheres of responsibility, in particular household diets and child health.…”

“…For this reason, livestock-based development interventions, including SELEVER, often target women. An evaluation of a similar intervention promoting poultry-rearing in four African countries observed a negative trend over time in women's control of income from this activity in the two countries where poultry sales increased the most, suggesting capture of its economic benefits by men (Nordhagen and Klemm, 2018). 7…”