–as bird flu hits US, President Ali says

GUYANA will not sit idly by as the avian influenza (bird flu) rocks the global supply chain, President, Dr. Irfaan Ali has said, noting that there are ongoing efforts to ramp up the local production of broilers.

The President said this during a recent live broadcast, where he addressed the bird flu outbreak, which has affected several large nations such as the US.
Guyana imports more than 52 million hatching eggs and this year, the demand will increase, President Ali said. It is important to understand that almost all of those hatching eggs come from the US
More than 20 million egg-laying chickens in the US died last quarter because of bird flu, data from the US Department of Agriculture shows.
This is the highest number to hit the country’s egg supply since the outbreak started.

Most of Guyana’s imported hatching eggs, if not all, come from Georgia and Miami, the President noted.
Those areas have not been affected, as yet, by the bird flu, but the outbreak has still disrupted the supply chain in the US.

“When you have a situation where the US, which is a major player in the market, has such a big impact, then of course they will have to meet their local demands and of course this will have an impact on the global supply chain,” President Ali said.

Notably, although Guyana’s poultry industry has seen some significant growth, President Ali said: “We are trying to ramp up our production of broiler meat, the demand is projected to increase tremendously this year.”

In this regard, efforts are being made to support local farmers in order to ramp up production.
For the first time, Guyana was able to produce hatching eggs owing to a pilot programme launched last year. Owing to this programme, Guyana was able to produce one million hatching eggs.
The Head of State then said the government is looking to see how Guyana can become self-sufficient in the production of hatching eggs within three to four years.

“So, this year will have heavy investment and support to the private sector consortium in building out the industry, so that we can increase more of the hatching eggs that we produce locally,” Dr. Ali said.

Also, the PPP/C administration has introduced black belly sheep, swine, breeding bulls, and other livestock to enhance farmers’ stock.
Further, Guyana’s Ministry of Agriculture has an actionable task force that is liaising with the World Animal Health Organization and the US, Dr. Ali said.
The President disclosed that there are daily meetings being done so Guyana can keep abreast with what is happening in relation to the global bird flu scenario.

PROTECTING GUYANA
President Ali said that the implementation of measures to mitigate or reduce the effects of this global challenge is being taken serious by the government.
As such, drones and other forms of technology are being utilised to aid in monitoring.

Guyana is also a part of the global information sharing network that would allow it not only to generate information, but also to proactively and aggressively address these issues since they could have severe implications in the supply chain, especially if Brazil gets affected.
The second highest producer of meat and eggs on the market, is Guyana’s neighbour, Brazil.

Now if Brazil gets affected, this will cause a major disruption in the global poultry market, Dr. Ali stated, noting that Guyana needs to plan with this in mind.

The Head of State said: “So it’s very important also for us to work closely with Brazil to ensure that their production system is insulated and secured against this bird flu scenario that we are faced with. So, this is an important, global situation that, we are faced with and we are looking at, mitigating, or reducing the effect of this challenge, globally.”