Lion Code producers will be required to complete a training course as part of their membership of the Lion Code of Practice, with the requirement coming into force in January 2021.
Lion Training Passport was established by an industry led working group made up of the British Egg Industry Council, Poultec Training and Lantra. The working groups’ main aim was to develop a common standard of training across UK egg production farms, pullet rearing farms and pullet hatcheries, tracked by an online training passport.
The common training standard includes key topics such as welfare, biosecurity and food hygiene, as well as health & safety and manual handling. The training will follow an individual should they move organisation, reducing the need for retraining in the same subjects that the individual has already been trained in. The cost is £20 plus VAT per person per year. Egg producers in the Lion Code are encouraged to familiarise themselves with the new requirements explained on liontrainingpassport.co.uk.
The project is being managed by a working group led by leading egg industry consultant Jeff Vergerson and made up of representatives from the pullet rearing, pullet hatchery, egg production and education sectors.
BEIC chairman Andrew Joret said: “We are continually developing the Lion Code to ensure the highest standards, and the compulsory requirement for Lion registered sites to complete the Lion Training Passport as part of their membership is another positive step towards that.”