By Osordi Ayomide
There is something unsettling about seeing a poultry farm with empty pens. Across Nigeria, farmers are battling the rising cost of day-old chicks, feed, energy, medication and transportation, with some struggling to keep their businesses afloat. A May 2026 report by a national newspaper highlighted shortages and delayed deliveries of chicks, rising feed costs and weak hatchery output, with some farmers reportedly scaling down or shutting down their operations. For many farmers, the question is no longer how to expand their businesses, but how to survive.
The shortage and rising cost of day-old chicks are particularly troubling because poultry farming depends heavily on timing. Imagine preparing a poultry house, arranging labour and setting aside millions of naira, only to discover that the chicks you need are unavailable, delayed or being supplied at a price that makes production increasingly difficult. For a farmer running thousands of birds, that is not a minor inconvenience; it is money sitting idle.
A July 2026 report by another national newspaper noted that hatcheries are heavily concentrated in the Southwest, forcing farmers in other regions to travel long distances for chicks, while transportation and “last-mile” challenges add to costs and expose the fragile birds to stress and mortality. The Federal Ministry of Livestock Development has also acknowledged supply challenges, announcing plans to strengthen oversight of poultry import allocations and establish a database to track imported grandparent stock and parent-stock eggs and chicks.
Then comes the battle over feed — arguably the biggest recurring expense in poultry production. Industry stakeholders estimate that feed accounts for roughly 65 to 70 per cent of production costs, leaving farmers highly vulnerable to fluctuations in the prices of maize, soybean and other inputs. Even when the prices of raw materials fall, however, the relief does not always reach farmers quickly. In February 2026, the Poultry Association of Nigeria said maize and soya prices had fallen substantially, yet finished feed prices remained high, with layer feed reportedly selling for about N15,000–N17,000 per 25kg bag and broiler feed around N20,000–N22,000 at the time. This raises an important question: when the cost of raw materials falls, how quickly does that relief travel down the value chain? The question matters because farmers cannot simply transfer every increase to consumers without risking weaker demand.
But chicks and feed are only part of the problem. Farmers must also contend with electricity and diesel costs, veterinary care, labour, transportation, financing, insecurity and disease. In June 2026, the Federal Government and the Food and Agriculture Organisation launched an initiative to strengthen Nigeria’s preparedness against highly pathogenic avian influenza following reported outbreaks in several states. The Poultry Association of Nigeria has also identified inadequate pullet supply, rising feed and production costs, disease-management challenges and limited access to finance among the sector’s major concerns. The result is a vicious cycle: rising input costs increase production expenses; higher prices put pressure on consumers; weaker purchasing power affects demand; and farmers who can no longer sustain the pressure are forced to reduce production or leave the industry altogether.
The danger is that the crisis does not end with the farmer. Eggs and chicken are important sources of animal protein for Nigerian households, while the poultry value chain supports hatcheries, feed mills, grain farmers, veterinarians, transporters, processors, retailers and countless workers. This is why discussions about the potential growth of Nigeria’s poultry market must also consider the condition of the farmers expected to drive that growth. A market can become more valuable because prices are rising while the number of viable farmers is falling. The real measure of a healthy poultry industry should therefore not be the amount of money changing hands, but whether farmers can produce profitably enough to remain in business. Government has announced measures aimed at reducing production costs, improving chick availability, strengthening disease control and expanding access to finance, but the success of such interventions will ultimately be felt at the poultry house, not at the press conference.
Nigeria undoubtedly has the population, demand and agricultural potential to build a stronger poultry industry. But potential alone will not keep a poultry farm open. The farmer does not eat market forecasts, cannot pay workers with promises and cannot keep birds alive with policy announcements. What he needs is access to quality chicks when they are required, affordable and reliable feed, financing, security, effective disease control, functional infrastructure and a market that allows him to recover his costs and make a reasonable return.
If farmers continue to reduce their operations or abandon the business because the numbers no longer add up, Nigeria may eventually discover that the most expensive chicken is not the one on the market, it is the chicken the country can no longer afford to produce. The warning signs are already visible, and addressing them will require sustained action from government, producers and other stakeholders across the agricultural value chain before today’s struggle becomes tomorrow’s industry-wide crisis.