Genetic gains research to transform smallholder chicken farming in Southeast Asia

The International Livestock Research Institute-led Asian Chicken Genetic Gains project is improving smallholder chicken production by increasing access to locally acceptable, adapted and highly productive chickens in Southeast Asia. Launched in May 2021, the project is making available new and proven technologies to increase chicken production in Cambodia, Myanmar and Vietnam.

Despite the COVID-19 pandemic, the project team has made several achievements so far, mainly in Vietnam and Cambodia. These include the completion of a baseline survey in November and December 2021 in Ha Nam (Red River Delta), Hoa Binh (Northwest) and Quang Binh (North Central Coast) provinces of Vietnam; characterization of three indigenous poultry breeds and establishment of national innovation platforms both in Vietnam and Cambodia.

Photo credit: A live chicken vendor weighs a chicken in Hung Yen province, Vietnam (ILRI/Nguyen Ngoc Huyen)