Consumers' Preference for “Bicycle Poultry” in Bénin: implication for designing breeding schemes

Abstract Text:

Village poultry, also termed "bicycle poultry" because it is produced in scavenging farming systems, has preferred juicy meat with low fat content and constitutes an important source of meat in many African countries. This study aims to understand reasons underlying consumers’ preferences for physical traits of these birds in Bénin. For this purpose, we applied the hedonic price method on field data collected at retailers’ level in four urban and five rural markets. Results showed that consumers’ preference for bicycle poultry is much more a traditional perception of their organoleptic and dietetic qualities, and their cultural values. Consumers are also more interested in meatier birds that are aged between six and twelve months, and with white plumage. Efforts to improve local poultry breeds should include those traits preferred by consumers into the breeding goal.

Keywords:

Village poultry, consumers’ preference, breeding traits, willingness to pay