New tunnel-ventilated pen project to expand local poultry production

Several tunnel-ventilated poultry pens constructed at Mon Repos, East Coast Demerara, were commissioned on Wednesday and are expected to help with the expansion of local production.

The project carries a $1 billion price tag and comprises five state-of-the-art poultry facilities located at Mon Repos, Cornelia Ida, and Onverwagt. This initiative is part of President Irfaan Ali’s flagship Agriculture Innovation and Entrepreneurship Programme (AIEP), which is meant to encourage youth to embrace technology-driven agriculture.

According to Agriculture Minister Zulfikar Mustapha, each tunnel-ventilated pen accommodates between 20,000 and 45,000 birds, with broilers reaching market weight in just five to six weeks. The facilities utilise controlled-environment technology that enhances production efficiency while improving flock health and overall performance.

“Guyana is transitioning from a country that grows food to a nation that designs and manages modern agricultural ecosystems. We are positioning our livestock sector to be efficient, sustainable, and scalable to levels never before seen in CARICOM,” Minister Mustapha said.

With these pens, alongside others to be commissioned in regions Two and Six later this year, poultry production in Guyana should ramp up significantly.

According to Prime Minister, Brigadier (Ret’d) Mark Phillips, Guyana’s poultry production this year should be almost 100,000 tonnes. Already, this subsector has seen significant growth with production moving from 43,726 tonnes in 2020 to 91,382 tonnes in 2025.