Assessment of Cooperatives in the Poultry Industry - 2013.pdf - Seda

Research Report: Addressing the Needs, Opportunities and Challenges of Cooperatives
and Collectively Owned Enterprises in the Poultry and Related Industries
Figure 4-18: Main Cooperative Challenges at Present
Lack of equipment
Financial assistance required
16%
16%
Infrastructure upgrades required
14%
Training required
9%
Lack of transport
8%
Financial management
Theft
Input costs
7%
7%
7%
Other
16%
0% 2% 4% 6% 8% 10% 12% 14% 16% 18%
Source: Urban-Econ Survey, 2013
Without proper training, however, even the best chicken houses are not successful. Some 9% of
cooperatives interviewed stated that they lack training.
The category of “other” above included inappropriate premises, too many competitors, high
mortality rates of birds, and a lack of electricity and water. The challenges seen above re-iterate
what has been shown in the background and financial management sections above. The greatest
concerns perceived by cooperatives are overwhelmingly; equipment, financial assistance, training
programs, and transport vehicles.
Cooperatives were asked whether they believe
their business is successful or not. While this is a
highly subjective question, the responses provide
some insights into the cooperatives’ own
perception on whether they are sustainable. Some
40% of cooperatives
consider their business to
be successful
40% of cooperatives consider their business to be successful. They consider the business to be
successful mainly due to the following three factors: a strong customer base, high levels of sales and
good quality products. Interestingly, when looking at the positive features of their business,
cooperatives mention demand side factors i.e. sales and product quality. However, where
cooperatives view their business as unsuccessful, they attribute the failure to internal features.
Figure 4-19 below identifies the factors cooperatives believe are contributing towards an
unsuccessful business. The three categories identified are infrastructural deficiencies, operational
deficiencies and declining profits.
63 | P a g e U r b a n - E c o n : D e v e l o p m e n t E c o n o m i s t s