Despite increased demand for chicken in the UK this year, wholesale prices have plummeted since the outbreak of bird flu in continental Europe due to the saturation of the market by cheap imports from France and Italy.

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Charles Bourns, chairman of the Poultry Board of the National Farmers’ Union, said yesterday (1 March) that wholesale prices have dropped from GBP1.10 per kilogram to GBP0.48 per kilogram since the most recent outbreak of avian influenza in France. According to Dow Jones, producers need to get GBP0.80 per kilogram to break even.


“The problem is the UK wholesale market has been flooded with French and Italian chickens,” said Bourns.


It takes between six and eight weeks to produce a chicken crop, Bourns said, and he expects French and Italian producers will restock farms with fewer birds, relieving pressure on the market. 

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