3345 Advances in Environmental Biology, 5(10): 3345-3351, 2011 ISSN 1995-0756 This is a refereed journal and all articles are professionally screened and reviewed ORIGINAL ARTICLE Corresponding Author Raga M. Elzaki, Department of Rural Economics and Development, Faculty of Animal Production, University of Gezira, Sudan. E-mail: ragaelzaki@yahoo.co.uk Benefits of Poultry Biotechnology: Respective on Poverty Reduction and Food Security in Rural Sudan 1 Raga M. Elzaki, 2 Shams Eldein H. Ahmed, 3 Azharia A. Elbusha, 4 Amel M. Mubarak and 5 Ghaniem Elzain Salih 1 Department of Rural Economics and Development, Faculty of Animal Production, University of Gezira, Sudan. 2 Department of Agricultural Sciences, College of Natural Resources and Environmental Studies, University of Juba, Sudan. Raga M. Elzaki, Shams Eldein H. Ahmed, Azharia A. Elbusha, Amel M. Mubarak and Ghaniem Elzain Salih: Benefits of Poultry Biotechnology: Respective on Poverty Reduction and Food Security in Rural Sudan. ABSTRACT Sudan as other developing countries is heterogeneous in terms of scientific capabilities, social structures, and economic goals. Most of the poor live in rural areas and depend on agriculture for their livelihoods. The aims of this study are to identify the benefits of poultry biotechnology in relation to household’s health, income, environment and crop production and to explore the use of biotechnology to reduce poverty and achieve food security. The study is covering the irrigated farms in rural Gezira State. The conceptual model necessary for an assessment of biotechnology’s economic benefits are outlined by using GAMS and SPSS software program. The study results demonstrated that, the use of poultry biotechnology reduce the need for chemicals fertilizers, lower production costs, improved soil fertility, increased crops yield and enhanced sustainability. Poultry Biotechnology can help reduce poverty directly by raising the welfare of poor farmers who adopt the technological innovations and indirectly via employment creation for landless workers and the rural non- agricultural and urban poor. Potential benefits can be through increased production for home consumption, more nutritious foods, higher gross revenues from sales, lower exposure to risks and improved natural resource management. Key words: Biotechnology, Poultry, Poverty, Food Security. Introduction Biotechnology, broadly defined, includes any technique that uses living organisms, or parts of such organisms, to make or modify products to improve plants or animals, or to develop microorganisms for specific use [3,15,14]. It ranges from traditional biotechnology to the most advanced modern biotechnology. During the past decade there has been rapid progress in the application of modern biotechnology in developed countries. Starvation, malnutrition and food insecurity continue to haunt Africa and poverty remains to be the script of much of the continent [5]. The livelihoods of most rural and low-income farmers in Sudan are to a large extent based on agriculture and face food insecurity. In country recently the agricultural production is now increasingly being characterized by the use of modern Technology. Agricultural biotechnology is a collection of scientific techniques, including conventional hybridization, that are used to modify or improve plants, animals and micro-organisms. Agricultural biotechnology is a loosely-used term that includes a wide range of processes that change raw material into something edible or longer-lasting [4]. Livestock is becoming increasingly important to economic growth in developing countries and the application of biotechnology is largely dictated by commercial considerations and socio-economic goals [17]. Most foods today come from plants or animals that farmers have genetically modified (GM) through centuries of conventional breeding [13]. Food derived from GM livestock and poultry are far from commercial use, it is increased egg production in poultry by creating two active ovaries [23]. The application of new poultry biotechnologies, such as improved egg breaking machines, better dryers, etc., guide to a variety of new egg products.