Agricultural ventilation company Hydor is urging the poultry sector to prioritise preparing poultry sheds for high temperatures that can pose a risk to life with the use of evaporative cooling systems.
With summer heatwaves becoming an increasingly common and intense occurrence, the risk of heat stress in poultry is significantly elevated. Hydor has warned it is more important than ever that farmers put effective solutions in place early to protect their flocks, as the UK saw a record-breaking 40.3°C heat recorded last year.
Evaporative cooling systems work by pumping high pressure atomised water into the area in a fine mist form, which is then evaporated by surrounding hot air, cooling it in the process. On hot, dry days, systems can bring shed temperatures down by 6-7 degrees and help safeguard chicken flocks throughout the hottest days.
“Without effective cooling solutions, poultry are put at serious risk of heat stress which can lead to panting and congregating together and in serious cases, fatality,” said John Lack, business development manager at Hydor. “If weather conditions mirror last year, mechanical forced ventilation will struggle to reduce temperatures to the required level within the building.
“An additional cooling system will be required to further cool indoor climates, but farmers must plan ahead and act now to get such solutions installed ahead of the high temperatures expected.”