SUSTAINABILITY ASSESSMENT OF POULTRY PRODUCTION USING ECONOMIC AND ENVIRONMENTAL INDICATORS: EVIDENCE FROM BARIND TRACT, BANGLADESH

Background: Poultry farming is simultaneously a driver of rural economic transformation and a source of environmental pressure, a tension that is especially acute in Bangladeshs Barind Tract, a drought-prone region where groundwater levels have fallen by up to 47 m over three decades. Existing research has examined the economic and environmental dimensions of poultry sustainability separately and has rarely focused on this specific agro-ecological zone. Methods: A cross-sectional survey of 121 commercial and semi-commercial poultry farming households was conducted across the Rajshahi and Joypurhat districts of the Barind Tract using a two-stage, stratified sampling design. Data on socio-economic characteristics, production costs, environmental management practices, and operational constraints were analysed using descriptive statistics, the Relative Importance Index (RII), multiple linear and binary logistic regression, chi-square tests with Cramers V, and the Friedman and Kruskal-Wallis tests.