Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment she has made of the impact on poultry prices in winter 2022-23 of the decision to cull birds following the outbreak of avian flu on 27 October 2021.

The British poultry sector is highly resilient and plays a significant role in the production of high quality chicken, turkey, duck and geese.

The United Kingdom is currently experiencing an unprecedented outbreak of Avian Influenza (AI) with over 240 cases confirmed across the country in poultry and other captive birds since October 2021. During the period 1^st– 31^st October 2022, around 1.5 million chickens, 822,000 turkeys, 330,000 ducks, and 19,000 geese alone have died or been culled because of AI.

We recognise that these outbreaks are very distressing for the individual poultry farmers and businesses that are affected. However, the overall impact on food supply is relatively small, with approximately 1.1 billion chickens and 11 million turkeys alone usually sold in Great Britain each year.

Defra’s objective in tackling any outbreak of AI is to eradicate the disease as quickly as possible. Our approach considers the latest ornithological, epidemiological, veterinary and other scientific advice. Where necessary, we are also able to introduce Avian Influenza Prevention Zones (AIPZ) and mandatory housing measures within AIPZs to prevent the spread of the disease. A national housing order in England was announced on 31^st October and will come into force on 7^th November.

The price increases that the poultry industry has seen this last year are largely a result of rising input costs such as feed and energy; partly caused by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.