Rabobank: poultry industry inefficient

The UK poultry industry needs to urgently improve its efficiency if it is to compete effectively with other EU countries, Rabobank has warned.

At present, UK poultry companies were less efficient than equivalents in countries such as the Netherlands and Germany, the bank said.

If they wanted to improve their fortunes, they would have to avoid over-supply and look beyond UK borders to the north-western European market. Further consolidation was also necessary to keep pace with UK retail consolidation.

“The current structure is not sufficiently effective, especially not when it comes to competing with powerful British supermarkets,” Rabobank said.