Small-scale family poultry production is very important in low-income food-deficit countries. In developing countries these birds usually make up more than 80% of the national poultry flock. They provide income to resource-poor small farmers, especially women, to supply the population with high quality protein. A sector not to be ignored. The growth of the world population, which is expected to increase to 7,286 billion by the year 2015, will take place largely in the low-income food-deficit countries (LIFDCs). In 2000 the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) defined, 84 nations were de-finedas LIFDCs (44 in Africa, 24 in Asia, 8 in Latin America and the Caribbean, 5 in Oceania and 3 in Europe). Most of the 826 million people still suffering from malpnu-trition and approximately 1.2 billion people living on less than US$ 1 a day live in LIFDCs, especially in the arid zones of Africa and Asia.
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