Free range producer Nigel Smith says he hopes to see better returns for his eggs by joining a new egg farming group established by the Co-op.
Producer prices have been falling this year as supplies have started to outstrip demand, but Nigel, who has a 10,000-bird free range unit on a small farm in North Yorkshire, says membership of the new Co-op group will, hopefully, improve the bottom line for him and his wife, Sue.
Producers in the group will receive premium payments for achieving targets set by the Co-op.
The new egg group is the sixth farming group established by the Co-op. It has been created together with its main supplier, Noble Foods.
It will cover a total of 17 flocks across northern England and Scotland and a quarter of a million hens.
The Co-op says it will further strengthen relationships with farmers, provide shoppers with a more transparent supply chain and maintain and develop strict animal welfare standards.
"Hope number one is to have a monetary benefit – pence per dozen," said Nigel, although he said that there would probably be other benefits of joining the group, which has been established by the Co-op in partnership with its main supplier, Noble Foods.
"Obviously the Co-op scheme is relatively new. We have some clear plans of where they want to start; where we end up nobody yet knows for certain.
"I think audits have benefits – yes they are a pain to us all but they definitely have benefits in helping you produce a better product, a better egg and, hopefully, by extension better profit," said Nigel.
What the retailers wants
He said that, by working with a dedicated supermarket, he should be able to find out exactly what the retailer wanted and be better able to provide it.
The Co-op has long been committed to free range egg production. The company is a past winner of the prestigious Retailer of the Year Award presented by the British Free Range Egg Producers Association (BFREPA).
It was one of the first retailers in the United Kingdom to move to 100 per cent free range eggs in its own brand products.
That was in 2007; and since 2010 all of the eggs as ingredients in the Co-op’s own brand products have also been free range.
"That is something we are all very proud of at the Co-op," said Catherine Bennett, Co-op poultry agriculture manager.
The retailer already has a number of dedicated producer groups creating much closer contact with its farmers - the egg farming group represents the Co-op’s sixth farming group within its fresh, British meat, poultry and dairy ranges and Catherine Bennett says it will have a number of benefits for the company.
"The idea behind it is that we have a secure supply chain that we know and trust, we are supporting British agriculture and British farming and we have close working relationships with those farmers that are producing high quality food to put on our shelves."
'Greater confidence in the provenance of food'
The Co-op says that the farming groups are proving hugely successful in providing its customers and members with greater confidence in the provenance of food, as well as benefiting the farmers involved.
"The farmers will meet regularly throughout the year," said Catherine. "It’s all about exchanging knowledge, and we will work on a number of research and development projects.
"There is also an opportunity for younger members in the farming group to join our young farmers programme that we offer – called Co-op Farming Pioneers."
Producers in the group will have a number of targets that will enable them to improve returns if they meet them.
Increased premiums will be paid for farmers demonstrating various aspects of farm business management, such as quality, welfare or environmental factors.
"They will have a financial incentive to be a part of the programme," said Catherine.
"This is where they will work to our five pillars – the five pillar model that we offer at Co-op.
"They will be audited by a third party auditor and awarded a bronze silver or gold status dependant on how they fulfil those pillars."
Showing the public how food is produced
She said: "There are a number of elements. Some of these will be welfare data that we will receive from the supplier."
Producers would also work together with the Co-op to help show the public how their food was produced.
"We had Rob and Sian Penty recently take part in our meet the producer video which is on our web site. This is all about educating the customer about how eggs are produced.
"There are other benefits of being in the group, such as improving efficiencies.
"As a group we will work together, share knowledge, carry out a number of research and development projects to try to increase efficiencies for the group," said Catherine.
The new egg farming group will cover a total of 17 flocks across northern England and Scotland and a quarter of a million hens.
The Co-op says it is committed to supporting British farmers and free range eggs.
It says the egg farming group will further strengthen relationships with farmers, provide shoppers with a more transparent supply chain and maintain and develop strict animal welfare standards.
Nigel and Sue Smith's free range farm
Nigel and Sue Smith have been producing free range eggs for six years. Nigel joked that they got involved in free range production just as prices began to fall.
They own 90 acres of land near Bedale in North Yorkshire, where they also have some breeding sheep and grow some arable crops.
He said that, when they were considering something different to do, he ruled out large livestock because he had had a hip replacement. “Poultry ticked all the boxes,” he said.
Asked whether he would need to make any changes to the way he ran the unit as a result of joining the Co-op group, he said: "The auditing in the egg industry is no great shock.
"We all have audits; we look to what they require and what they can provide. I hope we can provide most of what they wanted. There are some extras.
"There will be a few changes. But, basically, the standard of production you have got to do that right in the first place," said Nigel.
Veli Moluluo, managing director of Noble Foods, has described the new egg group as a very positive step forward for consumers, suppliers and the poultry sector as a whole.
