January 23, (THEWILL) – Governor Ben Ayade of Cross River State has disclosed that the state-owned chicken processing plant, Calachika, has met almost all the requirements for certification by the National Agency for Food and Drugs Administration and Control (NAFDAC).
The 24,000 birds per day factory is one of the facilities established by the present administration in the state and located at the Ayade Industrial Park along Goodluck Jonathan Bypass in Calabar, capital of the state.
The governor said, “Our factory products are completely ready to hit the market, we are in the last phase of NAFDAC certification.
“The certification is taking a process because we need to separate the selection of the live birds from the production line,” he said.
Speaking on the health benefits of Calachika chicken, Ayade said, “the live birds contain high levels of pathogens and their pathogenicity is very huge.
“A typical example is cosidiosisimitis. It can be very infectious and its pathogenicity is well established. To create a control system, NAFDAC has given us clear specifications and we are adjusting our production process to meet the NAFDAC criteria.
“In addition, we needed to set up a laboratory, and the laboratory is already in place as we await certain sensitive equipment for final testing.
“Indeed, that is why we are yet to launch it aggressively, in terms of marketing and advertising, because we need the final NAFDAC certification to do so,” Ayade said.
The governor stressed that Calachika was poised to boost the protein intake of Nigerians, adding, “Statistics show that the average Nigerian consumes only 2.5k of chicken per annum and that is a little above one chicken.
“So it means that an average Nigerian is seen to be consuming a little over one chicken in a year. This means that a child growing up in an average Nigerian home has access to only one chicken in the entire year and chicken is one of the cheap sources of protein.
“Calachika provides a great opportunity for us to increase the growth level of our young children. In no distant time, Nigeria will experience a huge supply of chicken from Calachika.”
About the Author
THEWILL Correspondent, Aniekan Bassey has over six years experience that spans across several fields in print journalism including development communication, sexual reproductive and health rights issues, crime, climate change, social justice, business and human interest stories.
