UK rules on free-range eggs could be relaxed in line with EU bird flu outbreaks

The rules on eggs from free-range hens in the UK could be relaxed in response to the European Union's preparations for an overhaul of regulations after the biggest outbreak of bird flu ever recorded.

It appears ministers are considering a change to the rules which would mean eggs laid by hens kept in barns for months could be classified as open air.

Currently, eggs cannot be graded outdoors if the birds have been indoors for more than 16 weeks. Farmers benefit from this grace period in the EU and UK, which means eggs can still be labeled as free-range if a government-issued housing order for the birds is in place until 'at 16 weeks.

Thereafter, labels must be added to the packages clearly indicating that these are now classified as barn eggs.

< p class="dcr-1b64dqh">Sources in Whitehall have told The Daily Telegraph that the Department for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) is considering changing regulations to keep farmers competitive with the Europe.

In 2022 the UK experienced its biggest outbreak of bird flu and experts have warned that infections could rise even further over the winter . The outbreak has led to the death of 97 million birds worldwide and 3.8 million in the UK, according to government data in November.

En October, poultry producers in the north while the Norwegian islands of Svalbard in southern Portugal have collectively reported almost 2,500 outbreaks of the disease since last year.

If proposed changes to EU regulations are passed, farmers in the bloc will be able to continue labeling free-range eggs during bird flu outbreaks, even if chickens have been kept indoors for longer. of 16 weeks.

The European Commission presented a proposal in September , which stated that "where temporary restrictions have been imposed on the basis of EU legislation, eggs may be marketed as "free-range" notwithstanding this restriction iction".

The proposal, which is pending approval by the European Parliament, means that eggs could be graded outdoors even if the hens are intended to have had to spend months indoors due to government decisions.

In September, UK egg farmers said it was essential the government follows suit to prevent UK suppliers from being undermined by EU imports.

Robert Gooch, chief executive of the British Free Range Egg Producers Association, said at the time: 'There is a great need for the UK to aligns with the EU, otherwise retailers will import eggs labeled as free range from hens housed in the EU in the event of an AI outbreak while there is none on the UK market."

In recent years outbreaks of bird flu have declined with warmer weather and the end of the migration of wild birds in the fall and winter months. But outbreaks have continued in the UK and elsewhere in Europe for much longer this year.

Last year almost two-thirds of the 11.3 billion eggs produced in the UK were free range. . Around 70% of eggs sold in UK supermarkets are free range, according to market research firm Kantar, almost double the level in 2014.

Defra has been contacted for comment.< /p>