By Charlie Reeve
UK poultry meat production dropped by almost 30,000 tonnes on the previous month to 162,900 tonnes, according to the latest figures from Defra, however remained 5.9% higher than the same month last year.
During the first five months of 2024, UK poultry meat production totalled 856,300 tonnes, up by 34,000 tonnes on the same period last year, with broiler meat production accounting for roughly 92% of this.
Boiling fowl production declined to 4,100 tonnes in May, down by 300 tonnes on the previous month.
The number of UK broilers slaughtered in May fell by 18.5 million birds compared with April to total 91m birds, however this was still marginally ahead of the same month last year. Meanwhile, the number of boiling fowl, including spent hens and spent breeders, has continued to hold at 2.8 million birds consistently each month for the last six months. Turkey slaughterings dropped back from 700,000 birds in April to 500,000 birds in May.
Broiler chick placings in the UK were up by 3.3% on the year in April at 94.7 million chicks. Meanwhile, commercial layer chick placings declined by 2.4% in April compared to the same month last year, totalling 2.9 million chicks.
Average liveweights per bird at point of slaughter in England & Wales held again at 2.3kg for broilers. Turkey chick placings were down by 11% on the year at 0.4 million chicks, but back slightly on the previous month.