Draft Free-Range Poultrymeat Marketing Standards (Amendment) (England) Regulations 2025
(4 weeks ago)
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The Minister for Food Security and Rural Affairs (Daniel Zeichner)
I beg to move,
That the Committee has considered the draft Free-Range Poultrymeat Marketing Standards (Amendment) (England) Regulations 2025.
It is a pleasure to serve with you in the Chair, Sir Jeremy. I warmly welcome everyone back, and hope they had a good break.
This statutory instrument has been laid to amend existing legislation governing poultry meat marketing standards, to enable free-range poultry meat to be marketed as such for the duration of mandatory housing measures introduced during disease outbreaks—such as avian influenza—that restrict access of birds to open-air runs. All other criteria on which the free-range marketing term relies, such as stocking density, age at slaughter, feed formula and poultry house pop-holes, must continue to be met.
Sadly, outbreaks of avian influenza usually occur during the winter months, as was the case in 2021-22, 2022-23 and 2024-25, resulting in the introduction of mandatory housing measures for poultry, which in all cases have lasted longer than the 12-week labelling derogation period. That was for an additional 10 weeks in 2021-22, 11 weeks in 2022-23 and, most recently, eight weeks in 2024-25, so it will be important for the industry that the statutory instrument is in place for the upcoming winter period and beyond, in the event that we experience another avian influenza outbreak.
Currently, when free-range birds are placed under mandatory housing measures due to disease outbreaks such as avian influenza, the poultrymeat marketing standards regulations allow poultry meat to continue to be labelled as free range for a maximum period of 12 weeks, known as the 12-week derogation period. After that, poultry meat from those birds has to be marketed as indoor-reared.
In 2024, the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs held a joint consultation on these proposed changes, working together with the Scottish Government. Of the respondents, 79% supported the removal of the derogation. A separate consultation was conducted by the Welsh Government. The European Commission also consulted on plans to remove the 12-week derogation period from its legislation. In line with the Windsor framework, any changes to EU legislation, when introduced, will also apply to Northern Ireland.
The current requirement for poultry meat producers and processors to downgrade free-range poultry meat once the derogation period is exceeded represents a financial burden, primarily related to the need to incur the higher operating costs of maintaining their free-range system, with the additional cost of having to ensure that birds are also temporarily housed indoors, combined with the loss of income from the premium price that free-range products attract.
The statutory instrument will remove the 12-week derogation period, so that free-range poultry meat producers and processors can market poultry meat as free range for the duration of a mandatory housing measure, however long that may last. With the EU introducing a similar change to its legislation, the introduction of the statutory instrument will enable English free-range producers and processors to continue to operate on a level playing field commercially with producers in the EU and Northern Ireland. As broiler chickens are generally slaughtered before reaching 12 weeks of age, the removal of the derogation will apply primarily to higher-value free-range birds with longer production cycles, such as turkeys, ducks and geese.
We are working closely with devolved Governments to align the introduction of the planned changes. A statutory instrument will be laid in the Scottish Parliament in early September 2025 to amend their domestic regulations in relation to the removal of the 12-week derogation period. We anticipate the Welsh Government will make an announcement shortly regarding the removal of the 12-week derogation period within their legislation.
The change to be introduced by this statutory instrument will safeguard our British poultry meat industry by reducing costs, continuing to ensure it is competitive against imports, and by protecting the value of its products without compromising our high welfare and food safety standards, rightly expected by UK consumers and our trading partners.
Robbie Moore (Keighley and Ilkley) (Con)
We should all be extremely proud of our animal welfare and food quality regulations. As a nation, we have a proud history of ensuring that food is as safe and high in quality as possible, and that it has not come at the unnecessary distress or harm of any animal. It is important too that our labelling laws are accurate and properly reflect the product being purchased. Free-range poultry is a key requirement for many consumers, and they should expect a minimum standard of freedom for poultry sold as such.
We must, however, recognise that the value consumers place on free-range poultry is primarily due to concerns for the welfare of the animal. It is therefore logical that should a bird have to be kept indoors for its own welfare and to prevent the spread of disease, no welfare violation has taken place. Given a choice between a bird being kept indoors and its contracting avian influenza, we in the Opposition are confident that consumers would rather see the bird’s welfare protected, even if the bird is nominally free range and would be so under normal circumstances, as was laid out by the Minister. It is noted that the statutory instrument will also ensure that poultry producers are not left at a competitive disadvantage. We therefore support the Government’s decision to amend the existing regulations.
Question put and agreed to.