Ghana spends US$400 million annually on chicken imports, Agric Minister warns of lost opportunity

Ghana continues to spend an estimated four hundred million every year on chicken imports despite ongoing efforts to boost local poultry production. The Minister of Agriculture has described this spending pattern as unsustainable, stressing that it undermines the country’s long term goal of achieving food security and building a competitive domestic poultry market.

According to the Minister, Ghana’s heavy reliance on foreign poultry products is due to a long standing structural imbalance in the local poultry value chain. Although Ghana once had a thriving poultry industry, challenges such as high feed costs, insufficient processing capacity, inconsistent supply, and limited access to modern technology have weakened the sector’s ability to compete with cheaper imported chicken.

He emphasized that imported chicken often arrives at lower prices because producing countries benefit from large scale commercial farms, government subsidies, and advanced processing facilities. As a result, local farmers struggle to match the low prices on the market, further discouraging investment in local production.

The Minister noted that reversing the trend will require significant investment in feed production, hatcheries, cold chain systems, veterinary services, and training programs for young farmers. Government is currently rolling out targeted interventions to make local production more attractive, including support for maize and soy growers to reduce feed prices which account for more than seventy percent of poultry production costs.

Stakeholders in the poultry industry have welcomed the renewed commitment, stating that a strong local poultry market will create thousands of jobs and stimulate economic activity in rural communities. They believe the four hundred million currently spent on imports can instead circulate within the local economy if the poultry sector receives consistent investment.

As Ghana works toward reducing dependency on imports, the Minister reassured citizens that government plans to collaborate with private investors and development partners to rebuild the poultry sector, promote agribusiness, and strengthen national food security.