Egg producers facing difficult market conditions

I wonder if packers are recruiting producers to artificially keep the price low.

Supermarkets have ruined this industry and their short sightedness will damage this industry for good.

I compained during a recent roadshow about the egg price. Funnily enough my eggs are now being downgraded to seconds more often than before. Coincidence or what!

the supermarkets are chargeing twice what the packer receives. also the welsh aid has helped the over supply of egg. the cost of raw materials is progressive , what chance has the free range producer

The packer is selling on the wholesale market at £1.40 on average. We as producers need more of a voice, BFREPA have been nothing short of a complete flop, with no accurate figures of bird numbers or where the industry actually is currently, Mr Retson continues to drift on issues, with a distinct lack of personality and gusto... packers recruiting continually behind the scenes, pullet placings suggest a possible repeat of what we have seen already. We as producers must take the same business approach as the retailers and refuse to produce in this unsustainable market. My advice to all is "If you haven't the borrowing shut the doors". We continue foolishly to line the pockets of pullet hatcheries/rearers and feed companies, who have treated us like kings up until now, attitudes are already changing, we are no longer kings and if we continue to produce eggs we will be on the streets... Shut the doors if you can.... and watch them squirm without the egg.

Interesting Mr Retson obviously burying his head. Mr Retsons perspective would be good. Possibly looking at cancelled pullet orders...!

BFREPA are not the problem and have little power other than lobbying the supermarkets and the packers. The real problem here is what has happened to all the reductions in prices. The supermarkets price has not dropped and as far as I am aware there has been no request from the supermarkets for a drop in producer price. Therefore the people who caused the egg crash with their massive over enthusiastic projection of egg numbers have kept the money.

One of the leading packers are looking for new producers, in spite of massive surplusses of egg. This is highly irresponsible and damaging to the whole egg market.

The baffling aspect of this to me is why would any producer enter the market faced with substantial losses. There is only two answers. Either they are expecting the market to improve significantly or they are being offered more money to enter the market than those producers who are already in.

One thing new producers have to realise is that with a new shed you get better production. Soon as that shed has had two or three flocks production starts to drop. Egg numbers per bird makes a massive difference to your profit margin.

So lets get off BFREPA back and start getting at the real root of the problem. Which this time is not the 'evil supermarkets' they have too much egg, why would you buy egg at £1.00 per dozen when people are offering you it at 30p per dozen on the wholesale market. No, Lets look at the industry that has seen a massive over expansion and the packers who have encouraged it.

I suspect the packers are better off with a deflated market than not. But they are looking at the short term view. A market where producers are making no money will soon turn into no market at all. Verrrrry Quickly.

I think its time we understood the packers and retailers costs as they do with ours....!

BFREPA need to represent their members or lose them. I agree I will not place birds this crop until it is profitable. The returns we are recieving are nothing short of ridiculous. Egg Cheque minus Feed equals zero, with good production. What is the point, in continuing with this charade. My pullet rep quoting £3.68 today. I will shut my doors and let them all do without.