A Welsh free range egg producer has been handed an 18-month jail sentence for overstocking, although the sentence has been suspended.
John Edward Morgan of Gorse Farm, Llandridod Wells in Powys pleaded guilty to two charges when he appeared before Llandrindod Wells Magistrates Court.
The first was fraud - making false representations that his company was producing free range eggs, when he knew that he was contravening regulations governing egg production as a registered egg producer by exceeding the stocking density of birds under free range status.
This was contrary to Section 2 of the Fraud Act 2006. The second was a regulatory offence committed between September 1, 2013 and May 1, 2015, of failing to keep a record of mortality levels of poultry, contrary to Regulation 24 of the Eggs and Chicks (Wales) Regulations 2010.
Magistrates sent him for sentencing to Swansea Crown Court because of the seriousness of the offences. There, he was sentenced to 18 months in prison, suspended for two years.
John Morgan's son, Joseph Morgan, was fined by Llandrindod Wells magistrates for submitting the incorrect date of lay for the family's eggs.
The date was submitted on transport documents that accompanied his eggs to a packing centre.
He pleaded guilty to a single charge of failing to comply with the Eggs and Chicks (Wales) Regulations 2010, by not recording the laying date of eggs laid from September 1, 2013 to May 1, 2015.
Morgan was ordered to pay nearly £3,000 in total. He was fined £1,800, told to pay a contribution to costs of £1,000 and also a standard victim surcharge of £120.
'Significant discrepancies'
According to details provided by the Welsh Government, the Morgans have two free range hen houses, which have a maximum capacity of 18,000 and 16,000 hens respectively. The eggs produced are sold to Oakland Farm Eggs.
Between 2013 and 2015 a number of inspections were undertaken by egg marketing inspectors, which, the Welsh Government says, revealed significant discrepancies.
The issues included: false declarations about the number of hens placed in the second hen house; significant anomalies surrounding the number of eggs laid on a particular date, leading to ‘forwarding’ of the best before dates of the eggs at Oaklands Farm Eggs; the number of additional birds in the second house exceeded the allowed maximum stocking density permitted by law and the business should not have been marketing the eggs produced from that house as free range.
The Welsh Government is considering a Proceeds of Crime Act application in order to recover the unlawful benefit obtained by the Morgans' actions.
It said it was clear from the sentences imposed that such cases would not be dealt with lightly by the Welsh Government nor by the Courts. It said compliance with regulatory standards should be a priority for all concerned.
Crackdown on overstocking
Government agencies have been involved in a crackdown on overstocking by egg producers.
As many as 200 egg producers are thought to have been involved in Government investigations into suspected overstocking on UK farms.
They have been visiting pullet rearers, seizing documents under threat of police enforcement and have been pursuing legal action against the most serious offenders.
Following the sentencing of Joseph Morgan, the Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA) said that the case should serve as a warning to egg producers that they must comply with the rules.
A spokesperson said: “Consumers rely on honest egg marketing to ensure that the eggs they buy are fresh and safe to eat, and that production methods are correctly described.
“This case should serve as a warning and reminder that APHA enforces egg marketing legislation robustly and that deliberate transgressions result in tough sanctions for those not willing to comply.”
Egg marketing inspections in Wales are conducted on behalf of the Welsh Government by the APHA.
More birds than allowed
Officials at the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) have previously issued warnings to egg producers to avoid the temptation of ordering more birds than allowed under Government rules.
In 2012 the then Animal Health and Veterinary Laboratories Agency (AHVLA) said that farmers breaking the rules could face prosecution if they ignored warnings.
It seems that APHA – the successor to AHVLA – is now getting tough, demanding sales records from pullet rearers and taking legal action.
Sentencing John Morgan, the judge involve in the case at Swansea praised a “very thorough investigation” by officials and the "evident detail" that had gone into the audits of the Morgans’ operation.
