Eighty per cent of Ireland’s egg producers say they wouldn’t recommend that future generations continue production due to concerns about their future, according to the IFA.

IFA poultry committee vice chair Brendan Soden described the result of a survey conducted with egg-producing IFA members in light of rising input costs and stagnant prices.

The IFA said poultry growers are also “caught in a classic cost-price squeeze that has to be addressed urgently”.

Cost inflation

Poultry chair Andy Boylan said: “Family farms that produce Bord Bia Quality Assured chicken and eggs have seen their costs of production increase at an unprecedented rate in the past year.

“European Commission data shows that the price of chicken has remained stagnant since 2017, while farm costs such as labour, electricity, water, insurance and maintenance are up over 60% on this time last year.”

Boylan warned that costs such as “detergents, disinfectants, washing and bedding material” are up as much as 20% on 2020 levels for broiler farmers.

Unsustainable

The IFA highlighted European Commission data which shows the EU average price for an egg has increased by 13.2% this year.

“However, Ireland is one of only two member states where the price has decreased by 8.4% in the past 12 months, while feed costs are up 36% on last year. This is simply unsustainable.”

Boylan said growers are suffering and losing money.

“Without an immediate increase in the wholesale retail price, to be passed back to egg and chicken producers, the entire sector is in jeopardy.

“We produce top-quality, Bord Bia Quality Assured produce at prices which are not sustainable.”

He said the IFA has written to retailers, requesting that producers’ costs be recovered and passed back to farmers to secure the survival of the sector.

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