By Tom Woolman, poultry industry consultant
The narrative around the River Wye took a new twist last month. Solicitor Leigh Day is proposing to bring a multi-party action against Avara Foods on private nuisance grounds, that the condition of the river is directly linked to the company’s negligence and is impacting on the life, health and safety of the public in the local area.
Although the story was in the news on 19 March, at the time of writing no court proceedings have been issued. It seems likely that the announcement was an attempt to fish for claimants and bring some publicity for Leigh Day, and there is little evidence that the legal case actually has any momentum behind it.
Will the issue go to court? Probably not. Although nobody denies the scale of the challenge in Wye, the situation is a complex web of different actors in different sectors – poultry, cereals, potatoes, grazing, water companies, housing, the Environment Agency, climate change, the list goes on and on and my word count is limited.
While Avara Foods has taken responsibility for its section of the phosphorus supply chain and has sent poultry litter out of the catchment since January, their impact is frequently exaggerated by the press. While Noble Foods has also engaged to an extend on the issue, other poultry companies have pretty much remained silent, despite the fact that eggs and poultry from the region will be heading to processors all over the country.
If a court case was brought, other parties who are responsible for spreading litter to land will also be called into give evidence. You don’t see the makers of posh Herefordshire crisps or maize for biodigesters publicly taking accountability, despite the fact that these operations have a pronounced impact on nutrient run off.
An actual legal proceeding would expose the complexities of the reasons why the Wye is in the condition it is, and I suspect the proposed case against Avara would fall over like a house of cards. Poorly devised and punitive actions like this, which seek to over simplify the problem and create a single villain, do nothing to encourage the cooperation which is so badly needed to improve the river’s health.