Hatching an industry

Photo By Pfc. Christopher McKenna | Thousands of baby chicks, one of the first steps in the renewed poultry and egg...... read more read more

Photo By Pfc. Christopher McKenna | Thousands of baby chicks, one of the first steps in the renewed poultry and egg industry sit in warming shelves at an Iraqi poultry farm just outside of Mahmudiyah.  see less | View Image Page

BAGHDAD, IRAQ

04.27.2008

Story by Pfc. Christopher McKenna 

3rd Brigade Combat Team, 101st Airborne Division (AA) Public Affairs

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3rd Brigade Combat Team, 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault)

BAGHDAD – This week, chicken farmers in Mahmudiyah, 20 miles south of Baghdad, received the jumpstart their industry needed – the arrival of 45,000 eggs, each ready for hatching.

Among the many economic projects initiated by Task Force Marne, revitalizing the region's ailing poultry industry ranks as a top priority. Such initiatives play a crucial role in Multi-National Division - Center's counterinsurgency strategy.

The Mahmudiyah Poultry Association is one such project used to strengthen the vertical market integration that will ensure the long-term success of the poultry industry in the region.

In order to lay the foundation for sustained growth, profitability and market success, coalition forces now are making strategic investments in infrastructure to implement the association's business plan. These investments include refurbishing hatcheries, upgrading feed mills to produce higher protein feed, and renovating processing plants.

"As farmers and residents recognize the close association between increased security and their enhanced standard of living relating to poultry farming, it is likely they will reject criminal insurgents in favor of growing prosperity," said Maj. Jessica McCoy, a member of the Baghdad-4 embedded provincial reconstruction team, attached to 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault).

This first batch of fertilized eggs arrived at the Qadhari hatchery in Mahmudiyah, after a long journey originating in Holland. Over the next two weeks, the hatchery will receive two additional shipments of 45,000 and 40,000 eggs. Delicate procedures will help ensure that a maximum number of eggs survive the incubation process.

One of the association's goals is in-country breeding of fertilized eggs. By no longer having to import high quality fertile eggs from abroad, the country can become self-sufficient for breeder eggs, generating lower prices over time.

The chicken farmers' hard work will pay off around May 13, with the anticipated hatching of nearly 35,000 chicks. In the weeks after the initial hatching, farmers hope to hatch another 65,000 eggs.

Soon after, members of the association will pick up the young chicks and distribute them to 20 poultry farmers. The chickens will mature for an additional 37 days, at which point they will have grown into fully developed broilers.

After a trip to the local processing plant, the broilers will find their way into Iraqi markets and eventually onto dinner plates in Iraqi homes and restaurants.

McCoy, a U.S. Army veterinarian who directs the revitalization of the Mahmudiyah poultry farming industry, anticipates that in one year, more than 50 active broiler farms will operate in the region. This figure represents an enormous improvement from last year, when only four farms existed.

In addition to providing a vital source of nutrition for the region, the initial investment in this industry propagates a trickle-down effect that infuses the regional economy across multiple sectors.

"Breathing life into a dormant poultry farming industry makes great sense all around," McCoy said.

Revitalizing the industry will generate as many as 600 jobs in chicken farms and potentially more than 1,500 related jobs such as employment in feed mills, transportation, processing plants and retailing, said McCoy.

"It's all about capacity building and creating jobs," said Col. David Brost, effects coordinator for MND-C. "To do that, you have to attack the whole poultry value chain. Targeting just one area will only benefit that single person and would not be sustainable ... by attacking the whole poultry value chain, everyone benefits."