A Newark farming company has been fined £2,000 for the irresponsible disposal of around 10,000 chicken carcasses on woodland near Knapthorpe in Nottinghamshire.
Germany Farms, of Lodge Farm in Norwell, pleaded guilty to two offences against the Animal By Products Regulations 2011 at Nottinghamshire Magistrates Court this week.
The court heard that the company buried the broiler chickens on 13 September last year against strict regulations on the processing, use and disposal of animal by products to prevent the risk of the spread of disease.
Nottinghamshire County Council’s Trading Standards team and the Environment Agency attended the burial site on 26 September and shortly afterwards the carcasses were exhumed and disposed of in a lawful manner.
Animal by products cannot be buried on land unless it is an authorised site and the material has been pressure sterilised, and there is a requirement for the disposer to hold documentation for the transport of such by products, which the company failed to have.
Nicola Schofield, Trading Standards Manager at Nottinghamshire County Council, said: “This company has been producing poultry for 25 years so should have been fully aware of the requirements to dispose of dead livestock and failed to take steps to address the issue before they were instructed to do so by the County Council.
“The scale of dead carcasses could have led to a massive risk to public health and wildlife so it is important the company receives a fine as punishment for their actions.”