editor@poultry.network
THE RSPCA is launching a fresh campaign calling for retailers to move to Better Chicken Commitment (BCC) compliant poultry. It follows a High Court legal challenge which was dismissed last month, which challenged the welfare of conventional breeds of poultry. See...
THE coming month should see a further rise in egg production as more birds come into lay arising from the recovery in pullet placings since November. Over the coming month, the number of birds in their first year of lay is likely to increase by around 400,000, to 32.5...
THE downward trend in broiler production became steeper last month, with no sign yet of a return to confidence by the industry. Chick numbers in April recorded their second-biggest monthly decline throughout the past 12 months. See also: Poultry ration prices drop...
THE UK government has announced a review into the fairness of the egg supply chain following a food security summit hosted by prime minister Rishi Sunak at 10 Downing Street. Leaders in the egg sector have been asking for a review for over a year amid soaring input...
THE British government and Brazil have agreed to adjusted Tariff Rate Quotas (TRQs) for poultrymeat imports into Britain. The deal reflects the volume of Brazilian poultry that entered the UK before Brexit disrupted established supply chains. See also: Defra figures...
SOME of the pressure on egg and poultry producers has eased over recent months after feed costs returned to levels prevailing before the Ukraine conflict. It means that the poultry sector has at least escaped the recent rises in its most significant input cost but...
The shrinking of the UK laying flock has continued into the first quarter of this year, but in more encouraging news, prices paid by packers finally began to make some headway in producers’ favour. Output from UK packing stations reached a new low between...
According to Defra's latest placings figures, broilers numbers were down again in March. That completes a full quarter of declining chick numbers compared with the same period of last year. See also: CIEL report makes avian influenza recommendations The decline in...
FRANCE has become the first European Union member state to place an order for avian influenza vaccine, intending to dose birds from Autumn 2023. The tender for vaccines is subject to final tests having positive outcomes, and further consultation with the French...
IMPROVED communication, earlier detection and continued government support will be needed in the short-term to help farmers tackle bird flu. A new report from the Centre for Innovation in Livestock (CIEL) gives an overview of how avian influenza (AI) is managed in the...
Rations costs took a tumble in the past month, with a substantial drop in UK prices for both soya and feed wheat. By the first week of April, UK feed wheat stood significantly lower than just before the start of the conflict in Ukraine, at £201/t compared with £218/t...
THE hoped-for recovery in the UK laying flock took an early pause in February when day-old pullet placings fell back once again. Total chick numbers in the month dropped by 124,000, or nearly 5%, compared with a year before. See also: Defra poultry welfare grants now...