Poultry is a huge source of animal protein (eggs and meat) globally. Smallholder poultry production accounts for about 80% of the poultry flock in low- and middle-income countries. It is an important animal-based agricultural system that has a vital role to play in feeding the world. Specifically, it contributes significantly to the entire poultry value chain through enhanced diet, nutritional diversity, good health and well-being, market access creation, economic empowerment, improved livelihoods, and food security of the rural and peri-urban households. However, the overall output of poultry species from smallholder farmers is very low amidst increasing demand for animal-sourced protein and the rapid global human population growth. This necessitates poultry research and development using innovative and technological approaches to boost production and effective disease and waste management to maximize profits.
Smallholder poultry production systems (SPPS) are characterized by poor production as well as low productivity. This has resulted mainly from low genetic potential, genetic erosion of the birds as a result of indiscriminate crossbreeding, poor nutrition, health, and housing, limited technical know-how on the part of the farmers, and vagaries of climatic factors. There is therefore a need for innovative and technological ways to address this teething problem to scale up production through improved performance of the birds. Recent advances in SPPS development include the application of genetics and genomics to identify several key health, adaptive, and productivity traits, the development of more productive birds through improved genetics and nutrition, production of specific vaccines for SPPS for disease prevention (e.g. Newcastle disease (ND)), and conservation of poultry genetic resources.
In this second volume, we aim to build on the knowledge acquired in the first one, focussing on articles that cover poultry species including but not limited to chickens, guinea fowls, turkeys, ducks, geese, ostriches, pheasants, and pigeons. In this collection of Frontiers in Genetics (IF: 4.772), original high-quality research and review papers are solicited from authors in the following areas:
1. Phenotypic and molecular characterization;
2. Quantitative and population genetics;
3. Genetic/Genomic/Proteomic evaluation;
4. Analyzing genomes to improve disease control in poultry;
5. Animal genomics and infectious disease resistance;
6. Application of classical phenotyping methods such as biomarkers, machine learning algorithms, etc. to health, nutrition, production, and reproduction including interactions between the environment and poultry species;
7. Poultry waste management methods as well as agricultural and environmental issues; and
8. Climate-smart approaches to poultry genetic improvement and development.
Poultry is a huge source of animal protein (eggs and meat) globally. Smallholder poultry production accounts for about 80% of the poultry flock in low- and middle-income countries. It is an important animal-based agricultural system that has a vital role to play in feeding the world. Specifically, it contributes significantly to the entire poultry value chain through enhanced diet, nutritional diversity, good health and well-being, market access creation, economic empowerment, improved livelihoods, and food security of the rural and peri-urban households. However, the overall output of poultry species from smallholder farmers is very low amidst increasing demand for animal-sourced protein and the rapid global human population growth. This necessitates poultry research and development using innovative and technological approaches to boost production and effective disease and waste management to maximize profits.
Smallholder poultry production systems (SPPS) are characterized by poor production as well as low productivity. This has resulted mainly from low genetic potential, genetic erosion of the birds as a result of indiscriminate crossbreeding, poor nutrition, health, and housing, limited technical know-how on the part of the farmers, and vagaries of climatic factors. There is therefore a need for innovative and technological ways to address this teething problem to scale up production through improved performance of the birds. Recent advances in SPPS development include the application of genetics and genomics to identify several key health, adaptive, and productivity traits, the development of more productive birds through improved genetics and nutrition, production of specific vaccines for SPPS for disease prevention (e.g. Newcastle disease (ND)), and conservation of poultry genetic resources.
In this second volume, we aim to build on the knowledge acquired in the first one, focussing on articles that cover poultry species including but not limited to chickens, guinea fowls, turkeys, ducks, geese, ostriches, pheasants, and pigeons. In this collection of Frontiers in Genetics (IF: 4.772), original high-quality research and review papers are solicited from authors in the following areas:
1. Phenotypic and molecular characterization;
2. Quantitative and population genetics;
3. Genetic/Genomic/Proteomic evaluation;
4. Analyzing genomes to improve disease control in poultry;
5. Animal genomics and infectious disease resistance;
6. Application of classical phenotyping methods such as biomarkers, machine learning algorithms, etc. to health, nutrition, production, and reproduction including interactions between the environment and poultry species;
7. Poultry waste management methods as well as agricultural and environmental issues; and
8. Climate-smart approaches to poultry genetic improvement and development.