Board round-up: June 2026

Published on : 18 Jun 2026

BFREPA's Board of Directors met at the Voco Hotel, Telford, on 16 June, with a packed boardroom working through a full agenda covering the issues facing free-range producers.

The Chairman opened with a report from the World Egg Organisation conference in Warsaw, where avian influenza again dominated proceedings. The message on vaccination was a familiar one - still some years off - while a cautionary note came from the United States, where rapid restocking has tipped the market into oversupply and sent prices tumbling. With expansion underway here, the Board urged producers to value properly aligned, branded contracts over speculative growth.

On membership, numbers continue to increase, and the move to direct debit continues to bed in, bringing genuine applications and steadier cash flow. The finance report showed a sound position: reserves remain strong and the Association closed the year broadly in balance, with a new, clearer reporting format welcomed around the table.

The carbon calculator continues to gain ground, with more than 100 applications now live. The Board was keen to encourage members onto the BFREPA calculator, the point being that the figures carry real weight only when the industry pulls in the same direction, rather than everyone using a different tool.

Jason Gittings of ADAS presented progress on the white-bird cost-of-production work. The detail is not yet ready to share - the figures are still being sense-checked with the industry - but the work is advancing and will be reported in due course.

The BEIC gave a presentation on the Lion scheme and the current review of the Code of Practice. Again, the detail will follow as the review takes shape; the Board's clear steer was that the Code must remain practical and farmer-administered.

Policy and environmental updates came from Gary Ford, ranging from the forthcoming organic alignment with EU rules and what it could mean for producers, through to the environmental guidance the Association is preparing to help members stay the right side of the regulations. Co-opted producers also gave presentations on the technical issues of the day, including vaccination and organics - the latter raising real concern about how EU alignment could affect the organic sector in the years ahead.

Elsewhere, the ForFarmers-sponsored Poultry Layers Academy has proved hugely popular, heavily oversubscribed in its first year, and the Board is looking at how to accommodate the interest. Northern Ireland was also a focus: the Board welcomed Cathy, representing Northern Irish producers, along with a representative of the Northern Irish farming union, and agreed on the need to get in front of producers there and show them what the Association actually does for them. There will be more news to share on that engagement once the organisation of it is complete.

The pullet sector reported a difficult spell - a hard AI season, a salmonella setback and a major fire among rearers - all feeding through into cost. Hatcheries have moved to raise chick prices, with an increase of 30p signalled from October, and rearers are passing this through: pullet prices are rising, and surcharges are being applied to invoices to cover the additional cost. On events, the Pig & Poultry Fair was a notable success for recruitment, and bookings for BFREPA Live on 26 November are now open and going well.