Poultry production in the Republic of Croatia: current state and future expectations

Compared to 2009, total poultry population in 2016 decreased by 8.63% in Croatia. In this period, the number of hens decreased by 42.50%, turkeys by 12.31%, geese by 66.23%, ducks by 51.06%, and the number of other poultry species decreased by 90.92%. Consumption of poultry meat in all European Union countries combined is estimated at 22 kg per capita per year, which is 59.10% more than in Croatia, where poultry meat is consumed at an average level of 9 kg per capita. A similar pattern relates to the consumption of table eggs, which is 20.67% lower in Croatia than the average yearly consumption of 12.1 kg of eggs per capita in all European Union countries combined. Croatia produces 661 million eggs per year. Out of the total number of table egg producers, most of them use extensive production systems and have less than 4,999 birds at their farms, and only three producers have production capacity which exceeds 100,000 birds. The management of laying hens is mostly by using enriched caged systems. In future, the production of indigenous breeds (Zagorje turkey and Hrvatica hen) is anticipated to have an important role in Croatian poultry production, as these breeds are resistant and endurable, and have the potential to assure self-sustainability of small poultry producers.