By Kerry Maxwell, communications manager, British Poultry Council
This month we’re launching our 2025 Annual Report, and it lands at a moment when food production can’t be taken for granted anymore.
Poultry is half of the meat the nation eats. Behind that are around 35,000 jobs, a GVA contribution of £8.5bn, and supply chains that get safe, affordable protein onto millions of plates every day. None of that happens by accident. It relies on operating conditions that seem to be understood less as time goes on.
Food production isn’t background noise; it’s critical national infrastructure. Treat it as optional and the cracks will show.
Our report focuses on three pressure points that will decide whether the UK keeps a high-volume, high-standard poultry sector: Place, People, and Progress.
Place is the physical space poultry meat production depends on. Right now, planning delays and blockages are slowing down essential room for growth and risk dampening our productivity. We’re calling for planning reform that recognises food production as core economic infrastructure – because it is.
People are at the core of what we do; a sector serving as a backbone of national food production becomes vulnerable when its people aren’t recognised as a national asset. In this report, we outline avenues that enable the sector to train, attract, and retain the workforce it needs.
Progress is about UK-EU trade. Poultry meat is fast-moving and perishable. Friction at the border means slower supply chains, more waste, and reduced competitiveness. If food production is critical national infrastructure, it can’t be constrained by processes that belong to a different era. We are asking for trade that keeps food moving.
Recognising food as critical national infrastructure is the starting point. The real test is whether we create the conditions that allow British poultry meat production to thrive. We stand ready to work with Government to make that happen.
You can find the full report on our website.