African Journal of Agriculture, Technology and Environment 2012 Vol.

1(1): 9-13 December 2012

ISSN: 2315-8042
Full Length Research Paper

An assessment of the awareness level of occupational and environmental hazards among poultry farmers in Rivers State, Nigeria
*

Akinola, A.F. and Ironkwe, M.O.

Department of Animal Science and Fisheries, Faculty of Agriculture, University of Port Harcourt, P.M.B 5323 Port Harcourt, Rivers State, Nigeria *letorn_akinola@yahoo.com or letorn.akinola@uniport.edu.ng
Received: 16 September, 2012 Accepted: 7 October, 2012

ABSTRACT This study assessed the level of awareness of occupational and environmental hazards among poultry farmers in Rivers State, Nigeria. Relevant information was obtained from 80 poultry farmers using a set structured questionnaire. The data collected were analysed using descriptive statistics. The result indicated that adults between the ages of 41-50 years were more involved in poultry production. Most of the farmers had secondary education (43.7%) and operated small farms (50.0%). The respondents showed high level of awareness of most of the common occupational and environmental hazards in poultry production. They agreed that some of the possible ways of reducing occupational and environmental hazards in the poultry industry were by ensuring safety practices and training of employees. Key words: occupational hazards, environmental hazards, poultry farmers, Rivers State INTRODUCTION Over the years, the poultry industry in Nigeria had undergone phenomenal growth. This had been made possible by the continuous dedication of the individuals working in different segments of the industry, including farms, processing plants, hatcheries, feed mills etc. According to Ajetomobi et al.(2010) poultry activities cover any combination of the following duties: removing chicks from shipping cartons and placing them in brooders houses, cages and nests, spreading bedding materials, clearing droppings from the floor, filling the feeders and water troughs, vaccinating birds, debeaking, removing sick and dead birds from the flock etc. Thus, poultry farmers are prone to back pain and other musculoskeletal problems resulting from exertion and wrong posture during lifting and moving of animals, feed bags and removal of wastes (ILO/CIS, 1999). Occupational and environmental hazards have therefore become a set-back to poultry production in Nigeria. Some people have been prevented from engaging in poultry production, yet some farmers may not be aware of the existence of these hazards in the industry. According to International Labour Organization (ILO, 1983) health hazards in poultry working environment are categorized into accidental, physical, chemical and biological hazards. Report by Ajetomobi et al. (2010) showed that out of the 70 farmers interviewed in Osun State, Nigeria, 93% of them complained of encountering physical hazards, 91% complained of accident hazards and 86% complained of chemical hazards when allowance was given for multiple responses. Tomoda (2011) indicated that workers in deboning room of an abattoir were subjected to noise (physical hazard) of 96 decibel (dB) which was higher than the maximum 85 dB that is allowable. An

excerpt from Newsletter Bilaga (1991) revealed how poultry workers worked in cold rooms and even in freezers while ILO (1983) reported that some workers who worked near ovens, smoke houses and cooking areas where temperatures become unbearably high usually have heat burns, rash, exhaustion and stroke. Those who live near poultry farms, hatcheries and processing plants can also be exposed to environmental hazards through air, water and soil (Yegani, 2010). Poultry producers are usually more concerned with the health and productivity of their flock than the hazards that the production process causes them, their employee and the environment. This study was therefore designed to assess the awareness level of occupational and environmental hazards among poultry farmers in Rivers State, Nigeria. METHODOLOGY This study was carried out in Rivers State, Nigeria. Rivers State is located within longitude 6o50o E 7o50 o E and latitude 5o05 o N 5o06 o N. The state occupies the
Characteristics Sex distribution Male Female Age (years) < 30 31 - 40 41-50 >50 Level of education Primary Secondary Tertiary Farm size Small Medium Large Financial Status Low income High income Frequency 51 29 7 10 43 20 20 35 25 40 32 8 68 12

lowland area of the Niger Delta with dense and thick tropical rainforest vegetation. It is characterized by high atmospheric (ambient) temperature of 27.50C and high relative humidity with an average annual rainfall of about 2500mm. A structured questionnaire was designed to obtain relevant information from 80 poultry farmers randomly selected from 10 Local Government Areas (LGAs) in the State. Thus, 8 poultry farmers were sampled in each of the following LGAs: Khana, Gokana, Tai, Oyigbo, Okirika, Degema, Abua/Odua, Ahoda West, Etche and Obio/Akpor. The data collected were analysed using descriptive statistics. RESULTS The result from the study (Table 1) indicated that more males (63.8%) were involved in poultry production. Most of the farmers age ranged from 41 to 50 years. A higher number of poultry farmers attained secondary education (43.7%). Most of the farmers operated small-sized farm (50.0%) and had low income (85 %).

Table1: Demographic characteristics of the poultry farmers

Percentages (%) 63.8 36.2 8.8 12.5 53.7 25.0 25.0 43.7 31.3 50.0 40.0 10.0 85.0 15.0

The responses of the poultry farmers who were aware of occupational and

environmental hazards are shown in Table 2. Respondents were more aware (62.5%)

of sprains and strains from slips and falls when carrying heavy load when compared with eye and skin irritations (20.0%) and burns from hot surfaces (17.5%). Respondents were also more aware (37.5%) of the physical hazard of exposing workers to high levels of noise and the exposure to heat and cold (36.3%) than the occurrence of musculoskeletal problems (26.2%). Farmers were more aware (35.0%) of the exposure to dust in poultry

as a type of hazard (chemical) than the awareness of respiratory irritations (20%), exposure to chemicals (17.5%) and occurrence of immunological disease, such as asthma ( 27.5%). The awareness level of back pain was high (85.0%) as a hazard compared with zoonotic infections (15 %). They were also more aware of air borne infections (72.5%) compared with the infections from water and soil (27.5%). occupational and environmental Frequency 50 16 14 30 29 21 16 28 14 22 12 68 58 22 Percentages (%) 62.5 20.0 17.5 37.5 36.3 26.2 20.0 35.0 17.5 27.5 15.0 85.0 72.5 27.5

Table 2: Responses of farmers on the awareness of hazards in poultry production Items Accident hazards Sprains and strains from slips/falls with heavy load Eye and skin irritation Burns from hot surfaces Physical hazards Exposure to high levels of noise Exposure to heat and cold Musculoskeletal problems Chemical hazards Respiratory irritations Exposure to dust Exposure to chemicals (disinfectants, detergents etc) Occurrence of immunological diseases (e.g asthma) Biological hazards Zoonotic infections Ergonomic/psychosocial factors (back pain) Environmental hazards Air-borne infections Infections from water and soil Results in Table 3 showed the possible ways of reducing occupational and environmental hazards identified by the respondents. Respondents were more aware of the use of nose covers (30 %), followed by medical insurance (20 %) as safety practices compared with the others. Farmers recognized safety orientation for new employees as a major way of reducing occupational and environmental hazards among poultry farmers. Regular re-training of staff (33.7 %) and regular jingles on poultry safety practices (30 %) were other training and sensitization techniques identified by the respondents.

DISCUSSION The result from the study in Table 1 which indicated that more males (63.8%) were involved in poultry production supported the finding by Ajetomobi et al. (2010). This result which showed that most of the respondents were within the ages of 41-50 years agreed with the report of Yakubu and Yakubu (2008), and Akinola and George (2009) gave reasons for this. The higher number of poultry farmers who attained secondary education (43.7%) in this report supported the finding by Akinola and

George (2012). This implied that the farmers can easily adopt new innovations, Table 3: Possible ways of reducing occupational and environmental hazards Items Frequency Percentages (%) Safety practices Use of quality drugs 12 15.0 Use of gloves 14 17.5 Use of nose covers 24 30.0 Availability of first aid 14 17.5 Medical insurance 16 20.0 Training and sensitization Safety orientation for new employees 29 36.3 Regular re-training of staff on safety practices 27 33.7 Regular jingles on poultry safety practices 24 30.0 skills and safety measures with little guidance/explanation. The small-sized farm (50.0%) operated by most of the farmers may have simply reflected their financial status. The result in Table 2 showed that the respondents had more awareness (62.5%) of sprains and strains from slip and falls when carrying heavy load compared with eye and skin irritations (20.0%) and burns from hot surfaces (17.5%) may be as a result of congestion or slippery floors soiled with excreta. The burns from hot surfaces supported earlier reports by ILO (1983) that workers who worked near ovens, smoke houses and cooking areas were exposed to high temperature which can cause burns, heat rashes, heat exhaustion and heat stroke. The high response of respondents to noise (37.5%) and heat and cold (36.3 %) as a physical hazard confirmed the report of Tomoda (2011) who found that workers in deboning rooms of abattoir were subjected to high levels of noise. The low awareness of the occurrence of musculoskeletal problems (26.2%) compared with noise may be because the respondents may not perceive musculoskeletal problems to be as immediate problem resulting from poultry production. The higher number of farmers (35.0%) who were aware of the exposure to dust in poultry as a type of hazard (chemical) compared with respiratory problems, exposure to chemicals and occurrence of immunological disease, such as asthma, may be because dust is a common problem in poultry. The high awareness level of back pain (85.0%) among the respondents as a hazard indicated that more of the farmers may have experienced back pains during poultry production. This confirmed earlier report by ILO/CIS (1999). The greater awareness of air borne infection (72.5%) by respondents can be attributed to the peculiar foul smell usually experienced in poultry environment. Infections from water and soil (27.5%) seemed not to be too popular to the respondents. The possible ways of reducing occupational and environmental hazards identified by the respondents included the use of quality drugs, gloves, nose covers, availability of first aid and medical insurance. The training, re-training and sensitization of new employees and staff in the poultry sector along with regular jingles on poultry safety practices were other possible solutions. The poultry farmers (respondents) showed high level of awareness of most of the common occupational and environmental hazards in poultry production. They were more aware of sprains, noise, dust, back pain and air borne infections but seemed not to be too aware of other hazards in the

industry.They strongly believed that the use of safety practices and trainings were possible ways of reducing occupational and environmental hazards in the industry. REFERENCES Ajetomobi, J.O. Ajagbe, F.A. and Adewoy, J.O., 2010. Occupational hazards and productivity of poultry farmers in Osun State of Nigeria. Intl. J. of Poultry Science. 9(4): pp.330333. Akinola, L.A.F. and George, O.S., 2009. Profitability of small-scale family poultry production in Khana Local Government Area of Rivers State, Nigeria. In. Proceedings of the 3rd Nigerian International Poultry Summit. 22-26th February 2009. Abeokuta, Nigeria. pp.99-204. ILO., 1983: Encyclopedia of Occupational Health and Safety, 3rd edition. National Safety Council. Vol. 1. ILO/CIS., 1999. International Labour Organization, International Hazards Datasheet on Occupation.[online]

Available at www.ilo.org/legacy/english/protection /safework/cis/.../riveter.htm Newsletter Bilaga., 1991. An excerpt from Newsletter Bilaga 4, a quarterly Review of the Swedish Board of Occupational Safety and Health,provided for ILOs Food and Drink Industries Committee Tomoda, S., 2011. Safety and health of meat, poultry and fish processing workers. ILO, Available at mhtml:file://c:/users/ACER/Document s/occuHazard_ safety and health of meat, poultry Yakubu, L.L and Yakubu, S.D., 2008. Profitability of backyard poultry business in Samaru, Zaria, Sabon Gari Local Government Area of Kaduna State, Nigeria. In: Proceedings of 13th Annual Conference. of ASAN. ABU, Zaria Nigeria. pp.716-719. Yegani, M., 2010. Health Hazards: Safety always comes first.[online] Available at www.worldpoultry.net/chickens/m.