Initiative urges adaptation to climate-smart farm practices for Nigeria to attain food security

For Nigeria to attain food security through increased poultry production viability, Abundance of hope initiative has urged farmers to embrace the culture of climate-smart practices to reduce production costs and enhance productivity in the sector.

The initiative made the call yesterday in Nasarawa state during a free three days climate-smart training for over 150 women and youth beginners in poultry farming.

Speaking during the training, the initiative team leader of public interface, Lambo Hosea Chun noted that adaptation to climate-smart practices in poultry farming will make poultry farming easily accessible for women and young entrepreneurs looking to start with modest investments and scale over time.

According to Chun, the development will not only infuse environmental stewardship within poultry farming practices but will also empower farmers with scalable and sustainable techniques that reduce reliance on costly chemical inputs.

He said that adaptation to climate-smart farming practices will further stimulate economic empowerment, especially for women and youths, by equipping them with in-demand skills.

“In essence, the event served as a catalyst for community-based transformation, where education transcends individual farms, spurring broader economic and environmental benefits. The training will create a paradigm where women and youths can take center stage in a traditionally male-dominated field, fostering financial independence and gender equality.

“Through training in climate-smart practices, the event will not only cultivate skills but also seeded hope – the hope for thriving farms, healthier communities, and a greener planet.” He added.

According to Chun climate-smart practices offer multiple advantages which not only enhance productivity of poultry farms but also make it an appealing sector for youths and women to engage in, maintaining that poultry farmers can grow their small-scale cage systems into larger farms without a proportional increase in labor and also get massive decrease in production costs due to the practice.

Also, a facilitator, Damilola Oluwatuyi who lectured the beginners on feed formulation said that organic poultry feed formulation has myriad of advantages capable of promoting animal health and meat quality.

“It is Free from synthetic additives, antibiotics, and constitutes natural grains, protein sources, and minerals beneficial to poultry.” She added.

According to her, organic poultry feed not only meets the birds’ nutritional requirements but also reduces exposure to harmful substances, which can accumulate in their bodies and potentially transfer to humans upon consumption.

“Moreover, organic feed helps in enhancing the immune systems of the poultry, leading to a lower incidence of disease and reducing the need for medicinal interventions.

This holistic approach to nutrition supports the growth of poultry in a more natural way, often resulting in better quality products with improved taste and nutritional values.” She explained.