Economic analysis of artificial insemination in broiler production in Oyo state, Nigeria

Artificial insemination (AI) in poultry production is a veritable technique in solving the problem of breeding and meeting the increasing demand. This study assesses the economics of artificial insemination in broiler production among sixty randomly selected broiler farmers in Oyo State, Nigeria. Primary data were used for this study. They were collected using a well-structured questionnaire. The analytical techniques applied include descriptive statistics, gross margin analysis and stochastic frontier analysis (SFA). The results have shown that most of the farmers are male and are at their prime age. The majority of the livestock farmers have some form of formal education and a minimum of five-year experience in poultry farming. The capital was mostly sourced from the bank. The majority of the farmers have a stock size of more than 25,000 birds. They have a gross margin of N341, 933,406. Only 20% of gross income was used for operating expenses with a return on invested capital of 4.3. The mean technical efficiency was 80.70%. Feed, vaccines and stock size were statistically significant in determining efficiency while education and extension visits are the statistically significant variable influencing technical inefficiency. It is therefore recommended that affordable and accessible input, as well as training, be made available to farmers to achieve self-sufficiency and sustainability.