Southern States - Andhra Pradesh   

MoU to boost poultry feed output

By Our Special Correspondent

Hyderabad May 10. The Government today decided to have two MoU involving three parties -- soyabean and maize farmers, processing units making poultry feed and representatives of Andhra Pradesh Poultry Federation (APPF) for sowing the two crops at required level and for supplying the feed to poultry units after having it made at processing units. At a meeting of Government officials and poultry farmers, convened to solve the problem of feed shortage, the connected Ministers -- Vadde Sobhanadreswara Rao, (Agriculture) and N. Kistappa (Animal Husbandry and Dairy Development) -- also constituted a State-level committee headed by the Commissioner for Agriculture, now Sutirtha Bhattacharya, and with directors of Animal Husbandry and Agriculture, MDs of Markfed and Oilfed, presidents of the APPF and the Federation of Farmers' Associations, M. P. Seshaiah and P. Chengal Reddy, and K. G. Anand of Venkateswara Hatcheries, for taking necessary steps, including formulation of the modalities for the proposed MoU.

This was the first time that such a meeting was held on the problem and Mr Sobhanadreswara Rao said this would be followed by another interaction in a week.

Emerging as an effective alternative to dry-fish feed which was most sought after by poultry farmers till it became scarce due to human consumption, etc, soyabean hogged the limelight at the meeting with participants making a fervent plea for taking up the crop in a big way.

According to Mr. Seshaiah, APPF president, there are 15,000 poultry units in the State with 5 crore layers, giving out 3.5-crore eggs per day, and 15 crore broilers serving dining-table purpose. All birds require about 3.5 million tonnes of feed yearly but there is a shortage with the availability being only 1.9 million tonnes -- 1.3 million tonnes out of maize and 0.6 million tonnes from soyabean.

The poultry farmers are forced to import soyabean feed from Madhya Pradesh, the main feed centre in the country, and Maharashtra shelling down a whopping Rs. 40 crores towards transport cost alone.

Information given by others during today's interaction also showed that soyabean is now being grown only in Adilabad district and to a limited extent in Krishna, Guntur and Prakasam districts. It is being preferred as it is only 75-day crop.The poultry farmers want the crop grown on at least one lakh acres initially.

The Animal Husbandry Minister opined that the MoU could be replaced by an Act later. Noting that only one soyabean processing unit existed in the State at Adilabad, the Agriculture Minister, heeding to a suggestion, said the present solvent extraction plants existing in considerable numbers in some districts, could be converted into soyabean processing units with mere addition of some machines. The committee would examine this issue as well. Mr. Sobhanadreeswara Rao was sceptical about poultry farmers' insistence on soyabean, and said the Government would certainly concede their plea but wanted a categorical assurance from them that they would exhaust all the produce themselves and that they would pass on the benefit to farmers. Replying to a suggestion made by Mr. Seshaiah, the Minister said he would soon organise a meeting with the Chief Minister for on-the-spot decisions.

Mr. Chengal Reddy sought assurance from poultry units to evacuate the entire produce if soyabean was taken up and market intervention by the Government towards that end. I. V. Subba Rao, Vice-Chancellor, Prof N. G. Ranga Agriculture University, said soyabean could be taken up in many unconventional areas. Asutosh Mishra, Agriculture Secretary, was present.

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