The Poultry Network Podcast

British chicken: imports, independent growers and the fast food boom Tom Woolman and Tom Willings explore the UK chicken market with Mark Rooza, who works with Gafoor, the poultry processor in Preston. Mark contrasts last year’s tight supplies with a more competitive market in 2026, explaining how imports influence prices, buying decisions and demand for growing space. He also describes Gafoor’s growth from processing around 800,000 birds a week after Covid to 1.2 million today, serving customers across food manufacturing, wholesale, meal kits and restaurants. The conversation looks at how Gafoor works with independent growers, why customers outside the supermarket sector still value Red Tractor chicken, and what the expansion of American-style chicken restaurant chains could mean for British poultry producers. In this episode The chicken market in 2026: Mark’s assessment of supply, demand and competition from imports. Stocking densities and the “race for space”: How different customer requirements shape demand for chicken and farm capacity. Working with independent growers: Contracts, farm support and the freedom to make decisions on feed purchasing. Serving different markets: How a broad customer base helps Gafoor manage changing demand and find outlets for different cuts. The growth of chicken restaurants: Opportunities in quick service restaurants, including demand for British and halal chicken. The outlook for producers: Whether pressure for more growing space has eased, and what could change that. After the interview, the Toms discuss what the growth of takeaway and delivery means for consumers’ connection with farming, and why provenance, food assurance and consumer confidence matter across the poultry sector. Sponsored by Evans Vanodine This episode is sponsored by Evans Vanodine, which has been developing products and providing technical support for the poultry industry for more than 40 years. In this week’s sponsor message, Nick Evans introduces the company’s poultry hygiene range, including GPC8 disinfectant and products for water systems, hatcheries and processing facilities. He also explains the practical support available from its poultry specialists, from advice on cleaning and disinfection to farm visits and help with biosecurity programmes. Find out more at evansvanodine.co.uk. Chapters 00:15 – Welcome 03:48 – Introducing Mark Rooza and Gafoor 05:45 – The chicken market in 2026 08:39 – Imports, price and provenance 10:10 – Stocking densities and the race for space 11:52 – Serving different markets 14:46 – Working with independent growers 18:58 – The growth of chicken restaurants 21:33 – Balancing demand for different cuts 22:31 – Opportunities for British chicken 24:05 – The outlook for growing space 25:52 – The Toms reflect on provenance and assurance For more poultry news, market analysis and interviews, visit poultry.network. Subscribe to the Poultry Network Podcast for a new episode each week.

Poultry Network editor Jake Davies joins Tom Willings and Tom Woolman after a visit to the Dutch Pork & Poultry Expo in Hardenberg, reporting on the mood among producers and the innovations on the trade stands. The team discusses the buoyant outlook Jake encountered, how Dutch poultry profitability compares with the UK, and the questions surrounding farm buyouts and future production. Energy was a particularly prominent theme. Jake shares what exhibitors told him about investment in battery storage, making better use of solar power and opportunities for on-farm electric vehicle charging. Could the same trends become more visible at UK poultry events? On bird health, there is a look at Tiergesundheit Emsland’s approach to creating a physical barrier against red mite, alongside a catch-up with Jacco Rubens of Stronger Flocks about its work on keel bone damage. Jake also reports on his conversation with Veetality, which is developing digital poultry houses that use cameras to monitor flock behaviour, with ambitions to connect what happens inside the house with disease risks outside it. Finally, a visit to camera-based poultry weighing business ChiCams provides another opportunity to test the hosts’ chicken knowledge. Jake scored seven out of ten on its stand quiz — can the two Toms do better? Expect questions about colour vision, recognising names and communication before hatch, plus the beginnings of a Christmas poultry pub quiz. In this episode 00:14 — Introductions and Jake’s “chicken holiday” 02:05 — Arriving at the Dutch Pork & Poultry Expo 03:08 — Producer confidence, profitability and farm buyouts 07:02 — Battery storage, solar power and on-farm EV charging 09:11 — A different approach to red mite control 10:40 — Stronger Flocks and keel bone damage 12:32 — Veetality: Digital poultry houses and flock monitoring 15:28 — Looking ahead to EPIC and BFREPA 15:54 — ChiCams and the chicken quiz 18:26 — A Christmas poultry pub quiz? Companies and events mentioned Dutch Pork & Poultry Expo Tiergesundheit Emsland — red mite control Stronger Flocks Veetality ChiCams — camera-based poultry weighing Subscribe to the Poultry Network podcast wherever you listen, and join us again next week.

Tom Woolman and Tom Willings mark World Egg Day with a discussion of poultry catching, animal welfare and the week’s news. The Netherlands’ move towards upright catching prompts a look at what changing practices could mean for UK broiler and egg producers. Tom Willings shares his experience of trialling the method, including the practical challenges in multi-tier laying houses, while the pair consider the implications for labour, costs and the potential role of mechanical catching. They also discuss the first bird-flu outbreak of the 2026/27 season on the Isle of Lewis, lessons from Tom Willings’ animal welfare officers’ course, and whether chicken belongs on the breakfast menu as Tom Woolman gives his verdict on McDonald’s chicken and egg McMuffin. Along the way, there’s home butchery, an impromptu poultry quiz and news of the podcast’s unsuccessful bid for an award at the British Guild of Agricultural Journalists’ Harvest lunch. In this episode 00:16 — Welcome, kitchen aprons and home butchery 02:03 — Animal welfare training and lessons from the abattoir 05:17 — A poultry quiz for World Egg Day 07:04 — Upright catching: welfare, costs and practical challenges 10:07 — Bird flu on the Isle of Lewis 11:20 — Chicken for breakfast: the McMuffin verdict 13:18 — Agricultural journalism and the podcast awards 16:04 — Subscribe and keep in touch Follow or subscribe to the Poultry Network Podcast on your usual podcast app to hear each new episode. For poultry industry news and our weekly newsletter, visit poultry.network.

Knowing how your flock compares with other farms is one thing. Understanding why it performs differently — and what to change — is another. Tom Willings and Tom Woolman are joined by Patrick Snodgrass and Iain Campbell from AgriFarm Data to explore how broiler growers can make better use of the information collected in their sheds. Patrick explains how frustration with benchmarking that showed differences without explaining them led to the development of the business. From environmental controls and feed records to flock performance, the discussion looks at bringing information together, reducing paperwork and comparing results through anonymised benchmarking. Who owns that data, and how should farmers share it with vets, consultants and the wider supply chain? There is also a closer look at recent performance trends, including increased mortality recorded among growers using the platform. The guests explain why these observations need further investigation rather than immediate conclusions about chick quality or the effects of summer temperatures. And does better technical performance always mean better profits? Patrick discusses the influence of processor payment models, energy costs and the risk of chasing performance while losing control of expenditure. Looking ahead, the team considers how predictive analysis could help growers tailor management to their chicks, feed and shed infrastructure. In this episode 05:04 — Why AgriFarm Data was created 07:37 — Bringing shed, feed and flock information together 10:22 — Farmer ownership of data and relationships with processors 16:14 — How anonymised benchmarking and permission-based sharing work 18:11 — Growth, feed conversion and recent mortality trends 21:23 — Technical performance versus financial returns 23:56 — Predictive analysis and the next steps for farm data 28:41 — The hosts’ reflections: interpreting results and understanding the limits of a dataset Stay connected Enjoyed the episode? Follow or subscribe to the Poultry Network Podcast in your usual podcast app. You can also sign up to the Poultry Network newsletter for updates from across the sector, delivered to your inbox every Friday. This episode is sponsored by LANXESS Biosecurity Solutions Wayne Olbison shares practical reminders for autumn and winter cleaning and disinfection: clean thoroughly at turnaround, check that products work at the temperatures you will be using them in, and follow instructions on compatibility, application rates and contact time. For coccidiosis control, he encourages growers to ask suppliers for specific efficacy evidence and compare the cost of treating the whole house — not just the price of the drum. Always follow the product label and safety instructions.

Tom Woolman and Tom Willings are joined by Dr Pablo Alarcon and Dr Mat Hennessey from the Royal Veterinary College to discuss the pressures shaping poultry’s response to avian influenza — and why some of the biggest challenges cannot be addressed through farm biosecurity alone. As part of the Flu Trailmap project, the researchers have mapped poultry supply chains and spoken to people across the industry about their experiences. They explain what this work reveals about the connections between farms, hatcheries, processors and egg packers, and how disruption in one part of the system can affect businesses elsewhere. Insurance is a major part of the conversation, from the difficulty of obtaining cover to whether premiums could better reflect disease risk and biosecurity. The guests also explore an idea raised by interviewees: a levy supported by government and industry to help share the financial risk of outbreaks. They discuss the questions this would raise, including who should contribute, rather than advocating a particular scheme. On planning, the discussion turns to a fundamental question: where will the extra poultry housing come from? Lower broiler stocking densities and the move away from enriched colony cages require more space to maintain domestic production, yet interviewees repeatedly described difficulties securing permission to build or extend. The researchers consider how local planning decisions and national priorities could be brought together more effectively. Finally, they discuss the case for a longer-term poultry strategy, bringing government and industry together to consider where production takes place, how it is financed and how the sector can be better prepared for future disease outbreaks.