The Minister for Food and Agriculture, Eric Opoku, has acknowledged reports of some beneficiaries of the government’s “Nkoko Nkitinkiti” Backyard Poultry Project killing and consuming the birds instead of rearing and selling them.
“Even though we don’t encourage that, because we wanted them to capitalize on this to earn something for their livelihood, if that is what they have decided to do, at the national level in aggregation it also helps,” he said.
He added that if Ghanaians build a taste for locally produced poultry, that is a big plus for us.
The Minister also addressed marketing challenges faced by beneficiaries, especially in the Eastern Region.
“Some of the farmers who benefited called me and said, ‘Honorable, our birds are ready. We are not getting the markets’,” he said.
Mr. Opoku said government intervened by speaking to processors, some of whom had to move vehicles from Accra to the regions to buy the birds.