Challenges of Poultry Production and Nutrition in Iran

In 1954, with the importation of broiler pure breeds, industrial poultry farming began in Iran. The per capita chicken meat and egg consumption is now about 25 and 10 kg, respectively. Chicken meat and eggs provide more than 60% of the animal protein consumed by each Iranian individual. Due to wrongful production management and nutrition practices, the raw materials in poultry industry are used with low efficiency (70%). The production period of broiler chickens is too long in Iran and therefore it increases the cost of feed, energy and maintenance. The poor technical knowledge and incompatibility of climatic conditions of the country, such as altitude and lack of land planning, play an important role in reducing the efficiency of poultry farming. Investigating the diversity of the research projects, suggests its incompatibility with the needs of the country, whereas, the performance of poultry farms is equivalent to 73.8% of the genetic potential of commercial strains. With regard to the Iran ranking position in the world (eighth) in broiler chicken production, it may be possible to compensate for the losses caused by the low efficiency of the industry by addressing the problems and providing solutions. Therefore, it seems that in addition to more research efforts, the research direction should be changed toward the requirements of the industry.