Rabbit meat as a preferred animal protein source in Ekpeye Kingdom of Rivers State, Nigeria

摘要

Structuredquestionnaireswereadministeredto200respondentstoelicitconsumers#8217;preferenceforrabbitmeatvis-à-visitsproductionandproteinintakeinselectedruralcommunitiesofEkpeyeKingdom,AhoadaEastlocalgovernmentarea(LGA)ofRiversState,Nigeria.nbsp;DatawereanalysedusingsimplestatisticsandChi-squaretest(X2)analysis.nbsp;nbsp;Thepreferencerankingofanimalproteinsourcesinthestudyareagavegrasscutterbushfowlrabbitcattlegoatsheep,withanassessedavailabilityof28.8%,24.6%and22.0%respectivelyforgrasscutter,bushfowlandrabbit.nbsp;Also,71.7%ofrespondentsagreed(X2cal=16.60;X2tab(0.05;4)=9.49),thatrabbitmeatwaspopular,availableforsaleandacheapsourceofanimalprotein.Theorderofreasonsstatedinfavourofrabbitweretasteavailabilitycheapnesstendernessanyotherreason.nbsp;Otherattributesincludeeasymanagementlowlabourrequirementlesscapitalinvestmentcommonnesslessharmfulordestructive.nbsp;nbsp;Effortstargetedatimprovingpeople#8217;spreferenceforrabbitproductionandconsumptionbyexploitingitsotherindustrialuseshaveveryhighpromisetoincreasetheproteinintakeofthefarmingpopulation,eradicateruralpovertyandenhancesustainablerurallivelihood.nbsp;Scaling-upsuchapproachthroughgovernmentalagenciesandnon-governmentalorcommunity-basedorganisationswouldcreateemploymentopportunitiesforwomenandyouthswhocomprisethebulkofruraldwellers.