Flockdown frustration: Farmer calls bird flu rules a 'pain in the neck' but Christmas Turkey is safe

The UK remains in an Avian Influenza Prevention Zone (AIPZ): a set of nationwide biosecurity rules requiring poultry keepers to follow strict hygiene and housing rules to limit the spread of bird flu, as part of efforts to manage the ongoing avian influenza outbreak.

It means that anyone owning more than 50 birds must keep them inside.

Graeme Matravers, who runs Manor Organic Farm in Long Whatton in Leicestershire, told LBC that mandatory housing requirements are becoming a heavy burden for many producers: “It is honestly a complete pain in the neck,” Matravers said, noting that turkeys used to being free-range outdoors are suddenly confined indoors for long periods once bird flu risk rises.

He explained that housing birds inside increases workload and costs, with farmers needing more straw bedding and extra enrichment to keep birds mentally stimulated: “There’s more straw, you’ve got to cut leaves, apples and ivy… from the bird’s point of view, it’s a complete shock to their system, and they’re used to being out,” he said.

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Matravers also described practical welfare challenges inside housing, including boredom-related behaviours like feather pecking, which do not occur when turkeys can forage outdoors: “If they’re bored, they then peck each other and that's when you have major welfare issues because they're all feather pecking or vent pecking, and I mean, they can kill each other very, very quickly, and once there's a tiny bit of blood, they see that, and everything goes for that particular bird.”

As well as welfare issues, farmers are bracing for increased costs. Matravers pointed to sharply higher straw prices following this year’s drought, saying that bought-in straw, needed to bed down indoor flocks, is a significant expense for farms that do not grow their own.

He also warned that already expensive organic food is eaten more quickly and wasted more in indoor conditions: “Organic feed is hugely expensive… any few ounces wasted is a few quid down the drain,” Matravers said.

The farmer argued that the repeated pattern of sheltering birds each winter is unsustainable and that the industry should explore alternative approaches to managing bird flu risk: “You can’t expect farmers to shut free-range poultry away every winter. We have to come up with a better strategy,” he said.

He suggested examining the concentration of intensive poultry units in certain areas, which he believes may contribute to the spread of disease, but acknowledged he is not an expert on solutions.

Bird flu, particularly highly pathogenic avian influenza (H5N1), continues to circulate in poultry and wild birds in the UK, with confirmed cases requiring stringent control measures. Under government rules, controls such as protection and surveillance zones are imposed around infected sites, and all birds on premises with confirmed cases are culled to stop transmission.

Farmers are legally required to report suspected cases to authorities, who will test and, if necessary, intervene. If birds show signs like coughing, lethargy or sudden deaths, farmers notify DEFRA, and the authorities handle testing and culling.

Despite the challenges faced by producers this season, Matravers told LBC that he does not expect bird flu to significantly disrupt turkey supplies for Christmas. “I don’t think it’s going to be a problem. I think your turkey dinner is quite safe,” he said, adding that the overall number of turkeys in the country remains high.

A Defra spokesperson said: “We continue to closely monitor the avian influenza outbreak and any effects it may have on poultry producers. "We urge bird keepers to comply with the new housing measures in place to protect flocks across the country.”