SUMMARY

Poultry production generates a huge volume of wastes from hatchery, poultry farm, processing plant, etc., which carry potential health hazards as they lead to air, water and land pollution. Disposal of these wastes by processing and recycling offers greater scope. Hatchery waste meal contains up to 44.63% of crude protein and 26.46% of crude fat and hence can be profitably used as an animal feed source. Appropriately processed dried poultry manure/litter would help in reducing the dependence on chemical fertilisers. India produces about 38.33 million tonnes of poultry manure annually sufficient to fertilise about 3.56 million hectares of farmland. While composting and combustion of poultry litter have been tried, biogas production could also be a good alternative. Poultry by-product meal (PBPM) obtained by rendering showed very high protein (63.7%) and fat (24.5%) contents and could be a cost-effective feed ingredient for monogastric animals that would also ensure efficiency of production. Biodiesel production from chicken fat by the transesterification process also offers good potential and India is keen on taking advantage by incorporating 5% of biodiesel in diesel to bring down its dependence on crude oil imports. Effective and efficient disposal of poultry waste will ensure sustainability of poultry production in developing countries.