The total population in Ethiopia is estimated to be 56.5 million (ILCA, 1993). Despite the fact that 99% of the poultry population in Ethiopia consists of local birds (Almargot, 1987), their contribution to farm household and national income is not in proportion to the high numbers (Alemu and Tadelle, 1997). In most parts of Ethiopia, consumers have high preference to poultry products. Besides preference, poultry products provide proteins of high biological value (Solomon, 2004).
Modern poultry production started in Ethiopia about 30 years ago, mainly in colleges and research stations (Alemu and Tadelle, 1997). The activities of these institutions mainly focused on introduction of exotic breeds to the country and the distribution of these birds to farmers, including management feeding and health care packages. By doing so, they have contributed a lot to the establishment of a large-scale commercial state in the country. Now-a-days, a number of government and private farms have started flourishing in and around large cities and towns. More than 95% of commercial farms are concentrated around Addis and Debre Zeit. This would seem to be a positive trend in increasing the supply of animal protein to the people whose primary source of protein is of plant origin. |
