By Charlie Reeve
UK poultry meat production ramped up towards the end of 2025, with monthly volumes surpassing 180,000 tonnes.
October volumes were up on both the previous month and the same month last year, with a greater number of birds coming forward.
Heavier birds at point of slaughter also played a role with average birds coming in at 2.4kg, up by 3% on year earlier levels.
The total number of poultry birds in the UK lifted in 2025 for the first time in four years.
Figures published by Defra in December showed the total number of poultry at 183 million birds as at 1 June 2025, an annual increase of 4.1%.
Broilers, which accounted for 66% of all poultry birds, increased by 7.6% year on year to 121 million birds.
Laying hens and pullets were up by 2% on the year at 43 million birds and accounted for almost 80% of total breeding and laying fowl.
Meanwhile, the UK breeding flock decreased by 12% to 11 million birds.
Chick Placings
Broiler chick placings increased marginally during October but remained just shy of the 100 million bird threshold.
This indicates broadly stable flock numbers and may offer some confidence to poultry processors looking for future supply; however, feed and housing costs may also have an influence on future production.
Commercial layer chick placings also increased slightly, while broiler breeder numbers were down significantly.
Defra are due to publish the latest UK monthly poultry slaughtering data for November and December on 15 January after Poultry Business goes to press.
Egg prices and production
Farmgate egg prices in the UK lifted by almost 2% on year earlier levels to average148 pence per dozen during the third quarter of 2025.
Total UK egg production increased by almost a fifth to 17,000 tonnes during the same period.