POULTRY PRODUCTION IN THE REPUBLIC OF SERBIA - CURRENT SITUATION AND PERSPECTIVES

Abstract

Over the last decades, poultry production has grown from a secondary activity in rural households into a highly specialized industrial branch of livestock production that has great potential for the development of the economy of many countries. A total of 21.6 million poultry are currently raised in the Republic of Serbia, of which 12.5 million are broilers and 7.5 million are laying hens. In comparison with the results of the Census of Agriculture 2018, there is a noticeable decrease in the total number of poultry by 7.3%, i.e. by as much as 23.25% compared to the results from 2012. Egg production is at the level of slightly more than 1.5 billion pieces, which represents the minimum recorded level of egg production during the previous ten years. On the other hand, during 2023, the production of poultry meat was 127,000 t, i.e. at a 10% higher level compared to the previous year and 13.6% more compared to the five-year average. Serious efforts are necessary in the structural reform of this sector of agriculture, but also of rural areas, in terms of strengthening their economic efficiency and competitiveness.