LPM 222: Diversified poultry production and current concepts in poultry management and marketing [Livestock Production Management (Regional Interest)] (1+1)

Integration in commercial operation

INTEGRATION IN POULTRY PRODUCTION

• Integration is the association, coordination, amalgamation of companies engaged in various stages of production of particular product, or related products, so that, there will be a smooth flow of inputs and outputs from one unit to other, leading to overall reduction in the cost of production of the final product. 
• In all developed countries, the poultry production at present is an integrated operation from the primary breeder to the consumer.  Each stage or unit is associated with the other stages.
•  An integrator will coordinate all these activities.  Usually, an integrator is the owner of the processing plant, hatchery and the feed mill and pay commission to others for the services rendered by them. There are only few integrators in each developed country, who will control the entire poultry production in these countries.
• The poultry farmers are acting only as contract growers receiving commission for the eggs, broilers and turkeys produced by them. The farmers are not the owners of the birds, but the integrators are the real owners.
• In India, integration was introduced in the broiler sector about a decade ago, but it is not a complete integration. Broiler production, from principal breeder farm to commercial grower farms are integrated. Therefore, our integrators can go for forward integration with processing plants, marketing channels, rendering plants etc., to fetch a fair price for eggs and broilers and to prevent exploitation by the middle men.
• Integration has not yet been well developed in India in the layer sector, except for supplying feed and taking back of eggs from the farmers by the integrator, while the layer farmers continue to be the owners of the birds.

Types of integration

• Vertical
• Horizontal
• Parallel