Quail bird keeping an alternative to Chickens

In Malawi chicken rearing as a business has been in practice ever since time in memorial. Almost every household in the village keeps chickens and other domesticated birds. When someone mentions the word poultry, one may think of the chickens due to their popularity in the Malawian setting. We have known chickens, kept them, and ate them since we were kids. Even our grannies and ancestors had been keeping chickens as long as we can remember. This generation has come up with a new poultry rearing enterprise of small birds called Quails. Quails are small winged animals from the poultry family; they look like chickens or guinea fowl but very small in size. Naturally Quails are wild animals but thanks to the Chinese who natured them and produced domestic quails species. These species can now be reared in pens just like any other poultry bird.

To say the truth, Quail farming is not common here in Malawi. Many farmers shun keeping Quails because of their size; they doubt their ability to produce enough meat for the whole family. Most farmers venture into keeping large poultry birds for example chickens, and ducks because they are assured of many benefits they get from them.  Looking at the brighter side, Quails have many advantages over any other poultry animal you can think of.

Quails grow faster and mature quickly than any other poultry bird raised domestically. A day old Quail will only take six to seven weeks to mature and be ready for plate. On the other hand, hybrid broiler chicken which is claimed to be the fastest to grow takes a minimum of eight weeks to be fully matured. Judging from this scenario you can agree with me that keeping Quails is the best viable option for a local farmer struggling with few resources.

Not only are Quails liked for their fast growth rate, they also lay a lot of eggs than chickens and other domestic birds. They can lay eggs each and every day in their first year of growth though the rate keeps on decreasing till stoppage in their third year. A Quail in its entire life time can produce a thousand eggs which is the highest number of eggs in all poultry birds. These eggs are smaller in size and do not take up much of storage space and they can also be used in home decorations.

Another score that Quails have over Chickens is their ability to resist most of the diseases that attack poultry birds. Quails are genetically created with genes which are a little bit different from other birds, no wonder they originate from the wild. A wise farmer would choose to keep Quails other than Chickens to save costs on medicines and vaccines. On top of that, a farmer keeping Quails is assured of low bird mortality rate thereby increasing his/her profits.

Last but not least, Quails have lean white meat which is very low in animal fat but rich in vitamin B. Nowadays people are keeping watch their health and a lot of research is being done on food with low fat content. People are opting for foods with low fat content in order to combat diseases like high blood pressure. Quail meat is being recommended over chicken meat by those people suffering from high blood pressure and also the people desiring to lose weight. A farmer who chooses to venture into Quail keeping business is assured of making more profits than raising chickens.

Quails pen do not require a lot of space as it is the case with Chickens, a square meter can accommodate nine Quails. Even the pen itself is not as complicated and expensive as other poultry houses, it can be made of cheap Bamboo sticks and thatching grass only. This kind of house will suit a local farmer with low capital investment thereby making Quail farming a viable business especially in Malawi.

            

FISP-Driver for Malawi economy?

FISP acronym for Farm Input Subsidy Program is a government initiative to subsidize some of the farm inputs in Malawi. The idea behind FISP is to empower local subsistence farmers whose financial muscle is very low to at least be able to purchase fertilizer and seeds at a lower price. This is achieved by acquiring government FISP coupons through village chiefs.

For the past ten years, a slice of national budget has been directed to FISP program. The program has raised eyebrows among Malawian citizens as to whether it is beneficial or just punching holes to an already staggering economy. Some citizens are opting for the discontinuity of the program while others are in full support.

Looking critically at the program, one can notice that FISP have many upside downs rather than benefits. To begin with, the program main aim is to contribute to a wider economic growth and poverty reduction through increased food availability. The bigger questions are; has poverty been reduced for the past 10 years? Does Malawi have food available throughout the year? Judging from these questions one can tell that the program is not succeeding; in short FISP is failing Malawi. On the other hand FISP has some credit worthy appreciating; it is proving food to those who had none, but the number is very low.

There is also a growing concern that the rich are benefiting at the expense of the poor. FISP target group is poor local farmers who cannot afford to pay the full price of a bag of fertilizer. Instead of poor farmers accessing these FISP coupons, it is the rich who have full access to FISP coupons. The rich of course can afford to buy fertilizer on their own without the subsidy but not our poor local farmers. If poor farmers who are also dedicated farmers are denied these coupons, how can the economy grow?

Not only is FISP blamed on helping the rich in disguise, there is also an increase in corruption cases. FISP coupons are believed to be accessed at an auction price in some parts of the country. People who can offer to pay more than their counterparts are prioritized and issued these coupons. Those with personal hatred with people incharge of issuing coupons, in this case village chiefs are left out. To make matters worse, people in charge of issuing FISP coupons favour their relatives leaving out deserving people. How can one achieve or contribute to food security if he/she is denied the tools to do so?

Climate change and Agriculture:The two way process

Climate change is the gradual change in the statistical distribution of weather patterns which lasts for an extended period of time. When we say climate is changing, we are just comparing our weather patterns to what our ancestors used to have. The bigger questions still remain; what causes climate change? Is really climate changing? At what rate is climate changing?

Though Agriculture is being affected by climate change, it is the same agriculture that is fueling climate change. It is like two children on a seesaw, one suffers on the expense of the other and vise versa. Agriculture sector has become one of the main driving force of gas emission, gas being an agent of climate change. Carbon dioxide emission is linked to deforestation and burning of bush when clearing land to make room for field and pastures. In addition, modern chemical agriculture is believed to be polluting water bodies which in turn inhibits the water cycle. This result into interference with the nature and change in climate.

Evidence of climate change is everywhere, here in Malawi we used to have reliable rainfalls from early November to late April. Over the years,the situation has changed; currently we are experiencing persistent droughts which was not the case before. This is manifested through very ugly land surfaces with large cracks especially in dry season symbolizing onset of droughts. Long periods without rainfall are worsening people’s access to clean, and drinkable water. These droughts are also hindering irrigation projects due to low levels of available water.

It is difficult to quantify the rate at which the climate change is occurring. It usually happens gradually without us noticing, that is the reason why some people deny its existence.