The Accidental Smallholder Forum
Livestock => Poultry & Waterfowl => Topic started by: WishfulThinker21 on July 01, 2021, 08:38:39 pm
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Hello everyone,
I've recently managed to secure some land to rent and I'm considering a small scale broiler setup. Perhaps 250 birds in the first year increasing the stock as I grow in confidence.
I'm really struggling trying to understand the regulations and I'm anticipating the reception I will get here as I likely already know the answer after spending some time researching.
To save on the cost of processing the birds I am considering outsourcing the ''one bad day'' to a contractor. My research seems to suggest that these mobile slaughterhouses exist for poultry, but it's mostly information from the US and not here in the UK. What I have read from UK small farm poultry keepers is generally negative.
In a hope to gain clarity on this issue will you guys please be kind enough to explain in layman's terms whether mobile poultry processors are legal in the UK or not ?
Many thanks,
Wishful
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I don't think it's as much their legality, as their existence, TBH!
Why does it have to be mobile? We used to take ours to a local poultry processing plant (now sadly shut, but it worked for a while).
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Hey Womble, for the reason you mentioned; small abattoirs are few and far between.
In fact I can't actually find any!
A DIY slaughterhouse on-farm is not a cost I would want but it looks unavoidable, not to mention the red tape
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I heard a lot of people talking about mobile Abbotskerswell, but I don't think there are any in the UK at all!
However, you are allowed to slaughter "small" amount of poultry on farm - actually its upto 10,000 (TEN THOUSAND) per year. I don't think you are planning to do more than that at the moment ;)
And this rule applies to people who want to sell their poultry, which was raised, slaughtered and processed on the same farm.
Google Richard Perkins (or YouTube) for advice on small scale poultry slaughter house. He has one, albeit in Sweden. However the rules are not much different here either.
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Hi Mac, thanks for the information.
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I know someone who produces free range broilers for sale (and very good they are too). Slightly larger scale but she ended up getting her own license to slaughter as she was having to spend the day carting them to wherever to get it done. I have no idea how much etc it cost them but its a good business with birds sold out well in advance and she's supplying butchers and some restaurants in the area. Might be worth looking into?
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I know someone who produces free range broilers for sale (and very good they are too). Slightly larger scale but she ended up getting her own license to slaughter as she was having to spend the day carting them to wherever to get it done. I have no idea how much etc it cost them but its a good business with birds sold out well in advance and she's supplying butchers and some restaurants in the area. Might be worth looking into?
Hello, I've sent you a private message :thumbsup: