?

,-
a

,*, 3A%,
e
&
@: '#
*
w
w
Z,'' -

.#,
*ry
*
4F

RECENT TRENDS IN

POULTRY
PRODUCTION
S, P.TIWARI O, P.DINANI
Chapter 1

Duck Production: An Overview

A. ]alatudeenl, Ph.D and R. Richard Churchilz, Ph.D
1 Former Director of Academics and Research, Kerala Veterinary and Animal
Sciences University, Pookot, Wayanad, Kerala State, India
2
Professor, Department of Poultry science, Madras veterinary College, Tamil
Nadu veterinaiy and Animal Sciences University, Chennai, Tamil Nadu state,
India

lntroduction
Ducks are important poultry species in many developing countries
by virtue of their hardiness to diseases, long production year, large
sizeci eggs, early morning egg laying character and their habit of
foraging on aquatic plants and snails. They are suitable for integrated
farming systems. They flourish wellin marshy and wet lands. Along
with other scavenging poultry species, ducks play a vital role in meeting
daily protein needs and producing household income of farm families
in the mixed farming systems of many developing countries. It is
considered to be the women's enterprise in small holder farming
systems. Although a number of potential advantages, duck farming is
decreasing year after year in India which could be due to scarce in
scavenging areas and natural feed resources, drying up of natural
water bodies, excessive use of chemicals in crop fields, less Covt.
support, etc. Nomadic duck production is still on a traditional system,
location specific technological interventions are to be carried out to
refine the existing practices (Rahman et nl., 2017). Ducks and other
water fowls are of great importance for food security of mankind in
many parts of the world as elaborated by Pingel (2009).

Breeds of ducks
Asia keeps tremendous variety of duck breeds, such as Shaoxing,
Jingdin, Shanma, Liancheng, Bai and Gaoyou duck in China (Ma and
Zhao, 1998), Tsaiya in Taiwan, Alabio and Tegal ducks in Indonesia,
Itik Jawa in Malaysia, Chara and Chemballi varieties of Kuttanad
2 Recent Trends in Poultry Production

(Jalaludeen,2005), Sythetmet, Nageswari, Arani, Pati and other desi

breeds in India. China also has local breeds for meat as Huabian duck,
Linwu duck and Jianhong Sheldrake.
Production of ducks in Asian countries seems to stress on higher
performance in egg and meat production, keeping pure breeds, such
as Cherry Valley, Khaki Campbell, Pekin and Muscovy. in China, Pekin
duck is the major breed for meat production. Chinese layer duck breeds
like Shaoxing, Jinding, Shanma, Yuxian Sheldrake and Jingjiang which
can lay 280 to 320 eggs with feed - egg ratio of 2.75:1, in 500 days of
age are widely used for egg production. However, the number of
Muscovy duck is increasing in many Provinces of China due to its
preferable meat quality. Muscovy drakes are also used as the sire line
in the production of mule ducklings. The intergeneric hybrid of
Muscovy drake and common duck, mule has been the major meat
duck in Taiwan for many years. Local farmers routinely apply artificial
insemination to obtain the hybrids.
Today, the commercial stocks available for egg production are
pure lines or strain crosses of either Indian Runner or Campbells or
Pekin. Strains of Muscovy as well as hybrids of Muscovy with Pekin
are also available for meat purpose. In India, Vigova Super-M for meat
production and Khaki Campbell for egg production are available from
Central Poultry Development Organization, Hessarghatta, Bangalore.

Distribution of Ducks
As per FAO statistics, duck population in India in the year 2000
was 30.40 million, which reduced to 28.80 million in 2005 and 25.30
million in 2010. Duck population in India further reduced to 22.70
million in 201.3, 19.96 million in 201-6 and 18.51 million in 2017. It
clearly shows that the situation is alarming in India. As per BAHFS
(2017), duck egg production in India is 1089.3 million.
Globally, ducks are concentrated mostly in Asian countries with
top four duck producing countries in the world viz., China, Vietnam,
Bangladesh and Indonesia are located in this continent. Asian countries
keep a large portion of ducks (88.1%) followed by Europe (7.7%),
Americas (2.3%), Africa (1.7%) and Oceania (0.1%) in the year 2017.
The other significant contributing countries of world duck population
are \4yanmar, India, Thailand and Malaysia of Asia, Russian
Federation and France of Europe. The domination of Asia in duck
production is mainly due to the food habits of the people. For
Duck Production: An Overview J

communities of China, Hong Kong, Japan, Korea and South-East Asia,

duck is an important item in their food. Duck egg is also an essential
protein source in some Asian countries. In India, Indonesia and
Phitippines ducks are mainly kept for egg production and not for meat
supply. France is an important country in Europe that has a sizeable
tlrr*b"t of ducks since long time. Ducks occupy an important place in
French cuisines as special products like Eoiegrass and Fnttened Breast
Muscle are a delicacy.
The total duck meat produced in the world as pel the latest data
available in the FAO for the year 2017 is 4460.23 million kilograms. Of
this,84.18 % (3754.42mi11ion kilograms) was produced in Asia. China
is the key producer of duck meat in the world. with more 1han3112.67
kilograms, China contributes a major share of 69.78 % duck meat
production in the world and contributes 82.91 % to the Asia's duck
meat production. France occupied second place in duck meat
production in 2017. Ducks in France and in other European countries
are reared specifically for meat purpose and hence, they are heavier
breeds.

Systems of [Vanagement
Ducks can be reared under different systems of management. They
include:
1,. Free range or Extensive
2. Semi-intensive
3. Intensive
4. Integrated farming system

Free range system

In this system, ducks are kept enclosed at night only. During
daytime, they are allowed to roam outside in search of feed. They are
tamed to come back to their home/shelter at dusk. This behaviour can
be inculcated by providing some feed after return. This system of
management is suited to small and marginal farmers with limited
resources. The flock size is usually 5 to 20 birds. The hatching and
brooding is practiced using broody ducks or hens. During first 2 to 3
weeks, the ducklings are kept totally indoor and later, allowed slowly
to the grazing area. Bamboo or other baskets are also used to keep the
ducklings in confinement. In extreme climates electric bulb or kerosene
4 Recent Trends in Poultryr Production

lamp is used for brooding. During the initial days in confinement,

ducklings are fed boiled rice, rice bran and kitchen waste. Later, they
are allowed outdoor for scavenging with increasing duration day-by-
day. This system is mainly based on utilization of cheap scavengeable
feed resource bases in small scale farms/households. Though the
performance may be less than the intensive production systems, the
low input cost offsets this disadvantage.
Some large farmers with flock size ranging from few hundreds to
few thousands also rear ducks under free range system. During night
hours ducks are housed in nylon enclosures with boundaries of one
meter height. Some farmers use fish nets or any other locally available
material. Intermittent bamboo sticks are used for support. Ducks show
general tendency of laying eggs nearer to the net circle. In order to
protect the ducks from predators, farmers make use of double net
enclosures in such a way that one encircles the other. Some farmers
use sheds for providing night shelter. The ducks will be allowed to
search their foods in harvested paddy field, river and other water bodies
during daytime. The ducks are handfed only in the lean season.
A third variation of this system is traditionally seasonal and
nomadic type. In this system, farmers along with their flock of birds
migrate to different areas (even to neighbouring states) in search of
foraging fields. Not only ducks, but land owners are also benefitted
from manuring. The foraging centres are pre and post-harvested paddy
fields and water bodies (tanks, ponds, lakes, reservoirs, canals, water
channels, etc). Duck flocks of around 1000 numbers are taken through
the post-harvested paddy fields escorted by two or three herdsmen.
This may take four months or longer to complete one journey. The
eggs are sold on the way and few eggs are exchanged to the paddy
field owners as rent. During the night, the birds are confined in'duck
stay', makeshift structure which is made of materials like fishnet on
the paddy field or any cultivable land. The ducks fertllize the land
where they are confined. During the journey, if the grazing field is
exhausted in one locality, ducks are transported using trucks to another
locality. They travel to a distance of 50-500 km. Finally, they dispose
off ali their birds in the local market at the end of their journey and
return home with their earnings.

Semi- intensive system

This system has a roofed house and an open run. The ducks stay
in the same place. Outside run makes it easier to give the ducks access
Duck Production: An Overview 5

to water as a shallow pond which can be made in this area. The pond
of 10 feet wide and 20 feet long is sufficient for 50 ducks. Snails may
be grown in the pond, as they are liked much by the ducks and
nutritious for them. The nutrient requirements of ducks under this
system are to be carefully met, as the birds can find only limited
scavenged feed resource from the run. The advantage of this system is
that the feeding is not so rigid but al1ow the usage of usually available
fish waste, aquatic plants, cereal waste, oilseed waste, kitchen waste,
etc. as feed. The ducks can be given chopped tender grass, alfalfa leaves
and legumes as additional feed.

lntensive system
The indoor system is suitable for large scale operations. This system
requires more investment in terms of housing. The birds should be fed
with a compounded feed. The houses should have provision for
drinking water. Water for swimming is not essential for any stage of
duck rearing. Even though swimming facility is not mandatory for
the ducks under this system, water in shallow containers to dip their
heads is alone sufficient.
Traditional raising models have been transformed rapidly into
indoor racing models far away from waters during the recent decade.
Indoor mesh bed and thick cushion grass models have been well
received by the farmers due to rapid development of industrialization
and increasing awareness of environment protection. Duck mesh bed
with fermentation bed and duck cage raising models are undergoing
rapid development, the purpose of which is to transform wastes into
organic fertilizers in the aerobic fermentation conditions and therefore,
to reduce environmental pollutions (Adapted from Hou,201,6).
In countries like Ftance, ducks are sometimes housed in fully
enclosed houses where climate is controlled. The ducks can be raised
on slatted, mesh wire or synthetic weave floors located over pits which
can be drained. A mixture of slatted (30%) and straw (70%) from 1.4
days to slaughter is also comrnon. An all - slatted floor is not permitted
under EU regulations. Foot lesions can occur on mesh wire floors.
Mesh wire size will change with body size. Good ventilation is
important to keep ammonia concentration below 15 ppm. Comfort
zone of mature ducks is about B to 26o C. In commercial practice after
21 days of age,21n C is recorunended. Fan ventilation may be necessary
to reduce shed temperature and ammonia levels in enclosed housing
systems.
6 Recent Trends in Poultryr Production

lntegrated farming system

It is the system where different forms of production complement
with each other and the farmer will have better production and more
profit.
Mainly four major integrated duck farming systems are
practiced:
1,. Duck-rice integrated farming system
2. Duck- fish integrated farming system
3. Duck-rice-fish integrated farming system
4. Duck-rice-fish- azolla integrated farming system

Duck-rice integrated farmi ng system

In Japan and many South-East Asian countries, integrated rice
and duck farming is practiced extensively. This is carried out by
enclosing the paddy field with a bamboo fence, a net, an electric fence
or other available materials to protect the ducks from predators and
to prevent them from escaping. One to two weeks after transplanting
of the rice seedlings, small ducklings that are about one to two weeks
o1d are released into the paddy field in a proportion of 20 to 30
ducklings per 10 are in Vietnam and 45 to 60 ducks per are in Japan.
The stocking density varies with countries. The ducklings are kept in
the paddy fields both day and night until rice ears are formed. Once
the rice ears develop ducks will eat them, until then they will hardly
eat any rice ieaves. In Asian countries, ducks are released in the paddy
fields in the daytime and taken out at night, whereas in Japan, birds
are kept in the paddy field both at day and night. The ducklings will
swim a1l around in the paddy field, eating the weeds, insects, frogs,
tadpoles and mud in the paddy field. The rice plants will branch out
and grow vigorously utilizing the nutrients in the duck manure. Native
ducks are best suited for integrated rice and duck farming. Muscovy
ducks are weak to water so that they are not suitable. Even though,
geese are water fowls, they are not considered for integrated rice and
duck farming since they eat the leaves of the rice plant. Ducks are
supplemented with some quantity of feed depending upon the
availability of feed resources in paddy fields. In order to feed the ducks,
some farmers grow the azolia, nitrogen fixing water plant, as a fodder
crop.
Duck Production: An Overview 7

Duck- fish integrated farming system

Duck and fish farming have symbiotic relationship when they
both are combined. Ducks grow and produce more when allowed in
water to get more scavenged feed. The manure of the ducks fertilizes
the pond and increases fish feed like algae and plankton. The presence
of ducks in the fish ponds prevents the growth of the aquatic weeds
and increases the biological productivity of the ponds. Because of the
paddling by the ducks during swimrning, the amount of oxygen in the
ponds gets increased. Ducks eat the weeds, insects, larvae, worms,
etc. present in the pond and there is no need of additional feed. In
duck-cum-fish culture, fishes with 10 cm length are only to be stocked.
Fishes less than this length may be eaten by the ducks. They can be
stocked at the rate of 10,000 fishes per hectare. Depending upon the
nature of the fish pond and the availability of the fish seeds, the stocking
density may vary. For fertilizing t ha pond, 200 ducks are su{ficient.
Ducks get their natural food from the pond itself. The domestic waste,
rice brary broken rice and pulses, if available may be supplemented to
them.

Duck-rice-fish lntegrated Farming system

In this system of farming traditional varieties of glutinous rice
seedlings are used and the fish is also bred in the terrace fields. When
the fish grow upto 10 cm 1ong, the ducklings are put into the terrace
field to be raised. The glutinous rice of the system provides shade and
organic food for the fish, ducks and other aquatic animals. "Rice-Fish-
Duck Symbiotic System" of Dong people, as one part of China's
traditional knowledge and agricultural culture, has become the
protection pilot of FAO Globally Important Agriculturai Heritage. This
system has strong practical significance and promotional value for
solving the problems of the world's agricultural ecological
environmentai deterioration, farmland and water pollution,
agricultural products safety.

Du ck-rice-fis h - azolla i nte g rated farm i n g syste m

The Japanese farmer and entrepreneur Dr Takao Furuno has
developed rice-duck-Azolla-loach cultivation as an integrated bio-
system which eliminates the need for fertllizers, herbicides, and
pesticides by incorporating duck-raising into organic rice cultivation.
The approach is now being replicated with substantial success all over
8 Recent Trends in Poultry Production

South-East Asia as an effective way to boost farmers' incomes, reduce

environmental impact and improve food security.

Feeding of Ducks
Laying ducks are capable of not only producing equal number of
eggs compared to high producing chicken strains, but also they produce
eggs 30% more in weight. Improved meat producing duck hybrids
can grow even faster than commercial broilers. To support their
production potential, ducks require proper environment, a
fundamental component of which is proper nutrition. In this context
energy, protein for the supply of amino acids, minerals and vitamins
must be supplied in the diet in adequate amounts and in appropriate
ratio. The nutrient requirements vary with change in genetic base,
husbandry practices and the micro and macro environments. The
nutrients should be just adequate and anv excess is wasteful, while
deficiency of any one nutrient may comPromise production.
Unbalanced diet can also affect product quality. An excess energy
diet will tend to deposit fat in the carcass.
Ducks may be grown on dry mash, a combination of dry and wet
mash or pel1ets. Ducks prefer wet mash due to difficulties in swallowing
dry mash. Ducks should be fed wet mash, if pellets are not available to
reduce wastage. For wet mash preparation, about 350m1 of water is
added to 1 kg of feed. Prepare fresh wet mash each time, to prevent
feed spoilage. Wash and sun dry feeders daily to prevent caking. In
ducks fed mash feed, growth performance will be reduced up to 10%
in comparison to those fed pelleted feed. Feed wastage will also be
more with mash feeding of ducks. Moreover, unlike chicken, ducks
prefer pellet feed. Apart from the difficulty in swallowing dry mash
also tends to gum up in the bills of ducks particuiarly of young
ducklings. The pellets are partially cooked while processing and
therefore, feed efficiency is high and has less bacterial load. Higher
feed intake has added advantage in meat type ducks. High quality
pelleted feed is important to maximize the growth rate and feed
efficiency of ducks. Performance will decrease as the amount of fines
in a pelleted feed increases. Commercial pellet binders are often used
to limit fines and improve pellet integrity. Starter duck pellet is of
3.18mm (1/B inch) diameter and grower diets are on 4.76 mn (3/1,6
inch) diameter.
During first eight weeks, ducks should always have access to feed
but later ory they may be fed twice a day at morning and afternoon.
 Duck Production: An Overview 9

Feeder space required per cluck is one inch (2.5cm) during first three
weeks. Afterwards, this has to be gradually increased to 2 inches (5
i cm). It is necessary to ensure that there is no crowding around the
feed hoppers at any stage. Growers and layers of breeder stock under
restricted feeding should be allowed feecling space of about 4 inches
(10 cm) of linear space per duck, so that all birds can eat together
during feeding time.
The feed consumption of egg type duck during first couple of days
is about 10g per day. It gradually goes up to reach daily intake of
around 1009 in as early as 5u'week. The feed consumption remains
almost constant thereafter until the birds near maturity. Khaki
Campbell ducks consume about 12.5 kg feed upto 20 weeks of age.
The feed consumption increases again at around 21't week to reach a
level of 120 to 140 g in adults depending on the intensify of production.
Feed consumption remains almost constant thereafter during entire
egg production period.
The meat type Pekin ducks grow very fast during first two weeks
of age to reach a body weight of around 750 g, which is almost double
to that of any fast growing commercial broiler chicken today. The
feed efficiency is less than 1.3 at this stage. The daily feed intake is
around 15 g during the initial days, which increases very fast to reach
50 g on seventh day, to about 150 g on day 14. The alimentary tract
develops much faster in ducklings compared to chicks during first
two weeks to support this rapid growth. It is highly essential to ensure
that, ducklings receive a high protein diet of 24 % CP with balanced
amino acids during this period. The daily feed consumption steadily
increases to reach a level of 250 g at seventh week of age. At eighth
week, they weigh more than 3.5 kg with a cumulative feed intake of
around 10 kg with feed efficiency of 2.85. In Indian conditions, Vigova
Super - M meat type hybrids consume around 5.08 kg broiler feed up
to six weeks of age to reach a body weight of 2.8 to 3 kg with feed
efficiency of 2.5.
Ducks are attainingT1 '/, of the adult body weight at eight weeks
of age itself as against 40 to 50% in chicken, which makes it more
suitable for broiler production. The meat type common ducks reaches
marketing age at six to seven weeks of age. However, Muscovy ducks
require more time to reach market age. Meat type common ducks
having genetic background of Pekin and Aylesbury breeds grow very
fast during first two weeks of age.
10 Recent Trenfu in Pouttry Production

The alimentary system also develops much faster than chicken in

first two weeks. This period is a very critical one and any imbalance or
deficiency of nutrients will cost overall performance. Therefore, meat
type ducks are fed nutrients dense starter feed during first two to three
weeks period and later fed on finisher feed till they are marketed at six
to seven weeks of age. The starter ration is usually provided as a i

crumble and the grower/finisher ration is provided as a pellet. Meat

type Muscovy ducks and Mule ducks grow comparatively slow during
the initial period but have steady increase in body weight upto ten
weeks of age. Therefore, they are fed starter feed upto four weeks and
later kept on finisher feed till marketing. Layer type ducks are
originated from either Indian runner or Khaki Campbell breed. The
three phases in layer duck feeding are duckling (upto eight weeks),
grower (nine to twenty weeks) and layer ducks (above twenty weeks).
The nutrient requirements for laying ducks are almost similar to that
of layer chicken. The breeding ducks are fed breeder feed during laying,
which is layer duck feed fortified with vitamins and minerals.
It is ideal to use feeds specially prepared for ducks. However, the
availability of commercial duck feed is a major problem in India. As
an alternative, commercial feed prepared as per BIS specification for
chicken can successfully be used for ducks provided ensuring adequate
niacin and devoid of aflatoxin. The standards for nutrient requirements
for meat type and breeding ducks were published by NRC. The nutrient
levels prescribed in NRC standards were based on the published
findings of research conducted on Muscovy and Pekin ducks long back.
Tangible genetic improvements were achieved io and meat type
ducks since then. The values of NRC are questionable "gg since the
commercial stocks available today are high producing and fast
growing than those on which these requirements were established.
Recent sfudies showed that these standards need to re-evaluated to
adapt to modern genotypes. The two global duck breeding companies
viz., Cherry Valley Farms Ltd. In the UK and Groupe Grimaud Feres
in France, recornmend nutrient requirements for their stock.
The energy and crude protein levels for starter broiler chicken
recornmended by BIS seem to be sufficient for starter meat type ducks
also. However, finisher ducks require only less protein but require more
energ-y. The CP requirements for duckling, grower and layer stages of
egg laying ducks are less when compared to BIS specifications for layer
type chicken. However, the ME requirement for ducks is high in all
the three stages.
Duck Production: An Overview 11

Laying ducks deposit around 3.5g calcium in one egg, therefore,

a minimum of 4 % calcium is required in the feed and the laying ducks
are susceptible to phosphorus deficiency also. The results of experiments
conducted at Kerala Agricultural University, ducks require 4% calcium
and 0.6% available phosphorus for optimum performance. Tt was also
observed that ducks can tolerate higher crude fibre level of 12% in the
diet without affecting production. It has also been demonstrated that
the use of phytase enzyme considerably reduces the requirement of
available phosphorous in the feed. other major and trace mineral
requirements are almost similar to that of chicken.
In most duck feed formulations, methionine, lysine, threonine and
tryptophan are likely to be the most limiting amino acids. In diets
formulated with corn and soyabeans as the main sources of energy
and protein, methionine is likely to be the first limiting amino acid. In
additioru adequate amounts of cysteine must be provided in the diets
to efficiently meet the total sulfur amino acids needs of the ducks and
spare the use of methionine for the stynthesis of cysteine. The first two
weeks are critical and any imbalance in amino acid combination will
affect the growth and production. The vitamin A, Vitamin D. and K
are the limiting fat soluble vitamins, the levels of those should also be
ascertained in duck feeds. Among the water soluble vitamins, ducks
require high level of thiamine and nicotinic acid or niacin.

Duck Diseases
Ducks are comparatively hardy and more resistant to diseases
than chickens and hence, they have fewer disease outbreaks. Ranikhet
disease, endemic in poultry, is rarely seen in ducks. Highly pathogenic
Avian Influenza does not seem to affect ducks. However, they are
silent carriers of the virulent virus, so ducks can infect other poultry.
This has led to major changes in management of village ducks reared
under traditional system in the warm, humid tropics (Farrell, 2014).
Duck plague and duck viral hepatitis are the two important viral
diseases of ducks. Escherichin coli isby far the most common disease in
ducks. Poor farm hygiene is a common cause. Infections withPnsteurella
multocida nre also common. Ducks are highly susceptible to mycotoxins
especially aflatoxin.
Among poultry, duck is the most susceptible species for aflatoxin
because of higher production of hepatic microsomal enzymes that
metabolize aflatoxin in to harmful products leading to acute toxicity.
L2 Recent Trends in Poultry Production

Young ducklings are particularly sensitive to aflatoxin. Ducks are ten

times more sensitive to aflatoxin than chicken. The maximum allowable
level of aflatoxin in duck feeds is Zppb. Ground nut cake, often contains
high level of aflatoxin, is generally not used in duck feeds. It should
also be ensured that the rtaize used for feeding ducks should be free
of aflatoxin. Symptoms include decrease in feed intake and poor
growth, lameness and purple discolouration of the feet and legs. In
young ducklings, there are convulsions, often characterized by
opisthotonus, spasm of the neck muscles and death with the legs
stretched backwards. Drastic reduction in hatchability with very high
number of dead-in-shell is encountered in aflatoxicosis.
Ducks are also sensitive to the deficiency of vitamin niacin or
nicotinic acid. They are less efficient in converting tryptophan to niacin
due to high picolinic carboxylase activity, which limits the conversion
pathway. Duck feed should have the niacin level of at least S5mg/kg.
Hock disorders, in{lamrnation of mouth and poor feathering are the
signs of niacin deficiency. Enlargement of hock joint or
chondrodystrophy and bowing of legs are the main lesions of nicotinic
acid deficiency in ducks. The difference between chondrodystrophy
of niacin defiency and that of manganese or choline deficiency is that
achillis tendon rarely slips from its condyles in former but is corrunon
in later. Deficiency of niacin rarely occurs in free range birds, as green
leaves are good source of it.

lnteruentions Needed
Duck production in India is still in an unorganized form. More
than91% of the ducks reared in India are under free range or extensive
system. Problems on quality ducklings, high cost of feed inputs, threats
of diseases and shrinking agricultural lands are the most important
concerns that need attention from government and private sectors.
Traditional nomadic duck production system needs location specific
interventions to refine the existing practices. It is imperative to make
available the vaccines at village level and awareness creation on method
and importance of vaccination among farmers to whom this system
of farming provides livelihood. Duck genetic resources face extinction
in many part of the world including India. The duck germplasm
conservation needs to be given priority for those loca1 ducks facing
extinction. Due emphasis needs to be given for duck meat production.
The substantial and gradual decline in duck population in India is of
great concern and should be an eye opener to the policy-makers. It is
Duck Production: An Overview 13

high time to establish a Network Project on ducks for intensifying

reJearch on management, nutrition, breeding, processing technology
and bio-security *"u.rr"r. A National Centre on ducks as the nodal
agency for identification of thrust areas in duck research, in monitoring
aid evolving strategies with state level units will help to revive duck
production in India.

Summary
Ducks and other water fowls have been an important food soulce
providing eggs as well as meat. Asia contributes a major share of world
duck poprlutio.t. Among Asian countries, ducks are concentrated
mainly in chlna. Asia keeps tremendous breeds of ducks including
many indigenous varieties. A gradual decline in duck population in
India since past three decades is of great concern. Urgent steps needs
to be taken to revive duck farming in India, as they are important for
providing food and livelihood security of a large section of rural people.

References
BAHFS. 2017.BasicAnimal Husbandry and Fisheries statistics, AHS series-15,
Ministry of Agriculture, Department of Animal Husbandry Dairying and
Fisheries, Krishi Bhawan, New Delhi, India.
Farrell, D.I .2}L4.Sma1l-scaie duck production: the way ahead. |ournal of Animal
Husbandry, Science and Technology (IAHST), No 8; 73-80.
Hou, S. 2016. Duck production in China. Proceedings of XXV World's Poultry
Congress, 5-9 September, Beijing, China pp. 209 -212.

Jalaludeen, A. 2005. Duck Rearing enterprise in the changed

- A promising
global scenario. Proceedings of Annual Conference and National
symposium of Indian Poultry science Association, 2-4 February,
Hyderabad, lndia.
Ma, C. and Zhao, Q. 1998. China's waterfowl production takes off. World's
Poultry Science Journal. 14: 40-41.
Pingel, H.}OO}.Waterfowl production for food security. Proceedings of IV World
Waterfowl Conference. 11-13 November. Kerala, India, pp' 3-15'
Rahman, S.M., Fouzder, K.S. and Sarkar, N.R. 2017. Nomadic herded duck
production as a livelihood tool in some selected areas of Bangladesh: A
case study, IosR Journal of Agriculture and veterinary science. 10:16-20.

DEtr