This British chicken farming and public information service is about British chicken meat production in the United Kingdom. Details on how British chicken is produced, animal welfare, avian influenza, or bird flu and a wide range of British chicken industry related topic's.
To form a platform from where independent chicken growers can inform the public accurately on the chicken products that are sold in the UK.
We wish to make everyone aware that British chicken is produced to the highest standards; and to highlight the escalating use of imported chicken within the food service industry.
Our Profile & the chicken industry.
Britishchicken.com was placed on the web by Alan Simpson, an independent chicken grower, whose farm currently produces 2.1 million chicken a year for the UK market. It is his contribution to chicken awareness and over time it is hoped to extend and improve on these pages to provide more information for everyone.
The chicken industry is ever changing and we farmers are constantly changing with it. Where the changes are beneficial for animal welfare and the industry, then I and my colleagues will give them our utmost support.
Where such changes encroach upon animal welfare, then these pages will inform the public as too why this is happening. It is in the farmers interest that British chicken is grown in conditions that are as animal welfare friendly as possible, for this I believe, is where the future of our chicken industry lies.
Some may argue that the Supermarkets have become too powerful. Certainly there is some justification in this comment, but at the same time they can also do good. They all for instance, have strong welfare codes, but in my view the time has come for super markets to take even more responsibility over issues like bird welfare and put this before their profit. This never ending quest to have us produce low cost chicken meat should never be to the determent of the bird.
British growers are under pressure to supply chicken that is only just within the accepted guide lines of animal welfare standards to sustain a reasonable living. It would be far better for the bird and the farmer if supermarkets paid slightly more for our product. The end result would be a happier bird through lower stocking, a contented farmer and the public seeing that Supermarkets DO look at the whole picture and not just profit!
Lower stocked houses are good for the bird, good for our image and certainly good for public opinion.
Supermarkets, it's about time you demanded much lower stocking densities, ("if you can demand a visitors signing book, you can demand lower stocking rates"). An extra 5p a kilo is a small price to pay to the farmer (not the processor) for what would unquestionable be the best movement any responsible body has made to furthering the needs of animal welfare.
Managers, shop assistants, lorry drivers warehouse persons, farmers or factory managers, please let us know of any UK outlet, chicken processor, super market, airline service or fast food outlet, etc, are found selling, repacking or re-branding chicken meat without making the public aware of it's origin.
Knowingly selling chicken as British, when it is of foreign origin is something that we are very keen to expose.