Reviving Ghana’s poultry industry: Call to action ... A 25% import substitution challenge

Ghana’s agricultural past proudly featured a thriving poultry industry—once a vital pillar of food security, rural employment, and economic independence. 

Today, however, that legacy is under threat. Cheap frozen imports—primarily from the EU, USA and Brazil—now dominate the market, accounting for over 90 per cent of national poultry consumption.

Local producers, faced with rising feed costs, weak infrastructure, and limited policy support, struggle to compete. The result is a hollowed-out sector, and once-flourishing rural communities now face shrinking incomes and diminished opportunities.

But the situation is not irreversible. Ghana's poultry sector still holds untapped potential. What it needs is a bold, coordinated revival effort—one rooted in clear targets and national commitment.

A strategic and transformative starting point would be to substitute 25 per cent of the current 400,000 metric tons of annual poultry imports with local production.

This 100,000 metric ton target is not just symbolic—it is a practical rallying point. Achieving it would stimulate investment in breeding, hatcheries, feed production, processing, and logistics. It would create jobs, strengthen rural economies, and reduce Ghana’s dependence on volatile international markets. Most importantly, it would restore dignity and competitiveness to Ghanaian poultry farmers.

The question now is: Are we ready? Are stakeholders—public and private—willing to mobilize resources, align strategies, and pursue this ambitious but necessary transformation? This article explores what such a goal entails, what it will take to reach it, and why now is the time to act. Let us paint a vivid picture of Ghana’s poultry sector reborn—productive, inclusive, and proudly Ghanaian.

Scaling for sovereignty

To achieve this goal, Ghana will need to produce approximately 66.7 million broilers annually — equating to 1.28 million birds every single week. Each broiler is expected to deliver a dressed weight of 1.5 kg, which means the live weight must average 2.08 kg based on a 72 per cent dressing yield.

This magnitude of scale is well beyond the reach of most smallholder farms. It calls for a shift toward large-scale commercial farming, backed by investment in vertically integrated supply chains, coordinated logistics and strong farmer-based organisations.

Feeding ambition

Feed represents the lion’s share of poultry production costs — often up to 70 per cent. To produce 100,000 metric tons of dressed meat, Ghana will need an estimated 222,222 metric tons of total feed annually. 

This level of demand presents a significant opportunity — and challenge — for Ghana’s crop sector. Expanded cultivation of maize and soya, enhanced post-harvest handling and structured input financing schemes must be prioritised. If Ghana fails to build reliable local feed supply chains, dependence on imported feed will continue to erode competitiveness.

Building breeding and hatchery

To sustain a weekly broiler output of 1.28 million, Ghana will need to hatch around 1.35 million day-old chicks (DOCs) per week. This translates into setting roughly 1.69 million hatching eggs every seven days.

Currently, Ghana’s hatchery sector is constrained by outdated infrastructure and limited quality assurance. Investments are urgently needed in hatchery modernization, breeder farm establishment and biosecurity enhancements.

 
From farm to market

Processing infrastructure remains a weak link in Ghana’s poultry value chain. To accommodate 1.28 million birds per week, the country must expand its slaughter and packaging capabilities significantly. This includes:

• Modern abattoirs for hygienic slaughter and dressing.

• Chilling and cold storage systems to preserve meat quality.

• Efficient waste disposal and by-product management solutions.

Without these investments, Ghana’s producers will remain tied to informal markets dominated by live bird sales — undermining both hygiene standards and market potential.

What achieving a 25 per cent Import Substitution Target Truly Entails: The Outlook.

To substitute 25 per cent of Ghana’s current annual poultry meat imports—equivalent to 100,000 metric tons—with locally produced chicken, the following production and input benchmarks must be met. This outlook provides a realistic scale of the national effort required:

1. Targeted Substitution Volume: 100,000 metric tons of locally produced poultry meat annually.

2. Annual Broiler Production Requirement: Approximately 66.7 million birds must be raised and processed each year.

3. Weekly Broiler Processing Demand: This translates to about 1.28 million broilers processed every week.

4. Day-Old Chick (DOC) Requirement: To sustain this volume, hatcheries must supply roughly 1.35 million DOCs weekly.

5. Weekly Hatching Egg Set Requirement: At an average hatchability rate of 80 per cent, approximately 1.69 million fertile eggs must be set each week.

6. Processing Infrastructure: 40 medium-to-large facilities, each processing 2,000 birds/hour in two shifts daily.

7. Total Weekly Hatching Eggs Needed: Accounting for an eight per cent egg rejection rate, hatcheries must produce over 2 million eggs weekly.

8. Breeder Stock Requirement: Approximately 527,000 broiler breeder females are needed to maintain the supply of fertile eggs.

9. Annual Feed Requirement: An estimated 222,222 metric tons of poultry feed will be required to sustain this scale of production.

10. Maize Requirement (60% of feed): Approximately 133,333 metric tons of maize must be secured annually.

11. Soya Meal Requirement (35% of feed): About 77,778 metric tons of soya meal will be needed each year.

These figures illuminate the scale of investment and coordination needed across breeding, feed production, hatchery management, and processing infrastructure.

Meeting this target is not merely aspirational—it is an ambitious but attainable benchmark that can redefine Ghana’s poultry landscape and restore the sector’s rightful place in the national economy.

Conclusion: Feed Ghana with Ghanaian chicken

The 25 per cent import substitution target should not be just a number — it must represent a bold industrial policy shift. With over 400,000 MT of chicken imported annually, this initiative offers Ghana a chance to reclaim its food sovereignty, grow jobs and ignite agribusiness investment.

It will not be easy. But it is possible. Ghana has the knowledge, the market and the people. What it needs now is coordinated, courageous selfless action.

Let’s feed Ghana with Ghanaian chicken — nutritious, proudly local and economically empowering.