New planning rules needed for egg production: NFU

No comments

Chickens in a hen house on a farm in Somerset, England

Source: Getty Images

If the trend continues, egg production could struggle to keep pace with rising demand for affordable protein, the NFU warned

The UK egg sector urgently needs better planning and supply chain fairness to enable growth, a new poll from the NFU has revealed.

The NFU has called for a more workable planning regime and a fair, functioning supply chain to unlock investment in modern, efficient housing and support a resilient egg sector.

This comes in light of a new poll from the union which reveals egg production could struggle to keep pace with demand, due to the sector’s reliance on ageing infrastructure and it facing a sharp slowdown in new buildings.

It has shown one-fifth of laying hen sheds are more than 25 years old, with the average shed age being 17 years old and pullet and breeding sheds significantly older still.

The NFU also found there has been a sharp fall in shed building, with 120 sheds built in the period 2020–2025, down 40% on the 206 erected between 2016 and 2020.

“This survey gives us the clearest picture yet of the state of the UK’s egg production infrastructure – and it shows a sector that needs the right tools and confidence to invest,” said NFU poultry board chair Will Raw. “British egg producers have weathered an exceptionally difficult few years, and while demand for British eggs continues to grow, the slowdown in new housing development is a warning sign we cannot ignore.”

Broken down by system, the average ages of pullet rearing sheds, breeding sheds, enriched colony sheds, flat deck systems and a multitier systems were 38, 37, 27, 22, and 12, respectively.

Conducted between May and June last year, when Defra estimated the UK laying flock was at around 43 million hens, the survey captured data from 1,271 sheds with a combined capacity of 23 million birds across laying, rearing and breeding sites.

Nationally, the average age of UK laying hen sheds was 17 years old. Regionally, the average shed ages were nine years in Wales, 12 years in Scotland, 18 years in Northern Ireland and 19 in England.

Raw continued: “Farmers want to modernise, expand and future-proof their businesses, but they need a planning system that works and a supply chain that delivers fair, sustainable returns.

“This data strengthens our case for both, and we support responsible expansion in the sector which helps meet the public’s growing desire for affordable, versatile and nutritious source of protein which eggs provide.”