Egg farmers in the Philippines will be helped to take advantage of the growing demand for cage-free eggs through a new training initiative.
“Cage-free Egg Production, the Basics” will offer an introduction to animal welfare and cage-free farming, rearing practices, monitoring bird health and behavior, biosecurity, disease prevention and layer productivity.
The initiative is the result of a collaboration between consulting firm Global Food Partners (GFP), the Philippines’ Department of Agriculture’s Agricultural Training Institute (ATI) and agricultural organization Batangas Egg Producers Multipurpose Cooperative (BEPCO).
GFP and ATI will organize and promote the training while GFP will also lead the courses and teach farmers how to optimize egg production, flock health and management practices using an e-learning platform.
Additionally, GFP and BEPCO will provide technical support to egg farmers on cage-free management practices, bird health and welfare. The two groups plan to engage with institutional egg buyers using a buyer roundtable to better understand how the Philippines layer industry can respond to growing cage-free egg demand.
The collaboration was made official at a ceremony during trade fair Livestock Philippines on August 24, 2022.
Global Food Partners Sr. Manager of Corporate Engagement Dawn Neo stated, “Our mission is to help farmers implement best practices on farm so that they can remain competitive and profitable as demand increases for cage-free eggs. We work across Asia to support egg producers, and we are excited to bring our expertise and learnings to the Philippines.”
The Philippines and HPAI this year
In 2022, the Philippines has been challenged by balancing its poultry products supply to its population and diminishing the risks of spreading highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI). Over the year, the disease has spread to the country’s main islands Luzon and Mindanao and affected approximately 300,000 birds.
Even in the face of HPAI, lasting effects of COVID-19 and increasing feed production costs, the country’s demand for chicken has risen and its supply situation is stable, according to Philippines news agency.
