Defra defends poultry stats amid claims 25m birds ‘missing’

Defra has played down claims that its records of the UK poultry population are “misleading and inaccurate”, insisting its numbers are fit for purpose.

The claims are made in a new report from the Wildlife Trusts Counting Chickens: An analysis of UK poultry numbers (opens as PDF), which compares the datasets for poultry held by Defra, the Environment Agency (EA) and the Animal and Plant Health Agency (Apha).

See also: 8 ways to prepare for tighter rules on water quality

According to the report, “at least 25m birds are currently missing” from data being used by Defra in the four counties of Lincolnshire, Norfolk, Shropshire and Herefordshire, equivalent to 67m when scaled up for the whole country.

For example, it says that Defra’s estimate (of 48m birds across the four counties) is 121% lower than the EA’s permitting data, and more than 150% lower than Apha’s poultry register data.

The Wildlife Trusts suggests that, by underestimating the numbers of birds kept in sheds across the country, Defra may be devising inadequate polices for pollution control and planning regulation.

Vicki Hird, strategic lead on agriculture at the Wildlife Trusts said: “The evidence is clear – government decisions on poultry permits, and subsequent land use and pollution impacts, are based on misleading data.

“These inaccuracies could mean an undercounting of poultry by at least a third, with huge impacts on our natural world, as well as on the health of the rivers and waterways we all enjoy for bathing and drinking water.”

Rejection

However, Defra has rejected the notion that millions of birds are “missing”, stressing that the datasets for poultry “are collected for different reasons, gathering wide-ranging evidence of trends and fluctuations in the sector”.

For example, Defra explains that its own figures are derived from the annual June agricultural survey, which aims to capture the numbers of birds managed by a farmer at a particular point in time, rather than shed capacities, so is susceptible in stocking fluctuations on the day.

The Apha dataset, however, includes anyone owning poultry or other captive birds as part of the agency’s disease control efforts. Inevitably, this will generate a higher number of registered birds.

Meanwhile, the EA’s poultry data reflects the number of bird places available on larger sites that require environmental permits to operate (more than 40,000 capacity in the case of poultry).

“What matters is the action taken to tackle pollution, with the Environment Agency conducting on-farm inspections and working closely with the agriculture sector to reduce pollution,” said a Defra spokesman.

In particular, the updated guidance on the Farming Rules for Water ensure good uptake of nutrients by growing plants and a minimal risk of run-off into waterways from spreading manures, says Defra.

Review

Despite this, the Wildlife Trusts is calling for a review of all poultry policies and regulations “including any growth plans and planning rules”, using correct figures to “ensure harms are avoided”.

It also wants reform of environmental permitting regimes and government support to help poultry farmers transition to “a less polluting and more integrated poultry system”.