Origin and development of the british poultry industry: The first hundred years

Abstract

1. Poultry keeping in the UK hardly existed as an industry of any sort prior to the 1890s. Annual consumption per capita was 100 eggs and around 1000 M eggs were imported from countries all over the world.

2. The Utility Poultry Club was formed in 1897 and shortly afterwards the first laying trial was held near Northallerton.

3. Until 1920 little was done in the way of giving advice or training to poultry keepers or farmers, but in that year the National Institute of Poultry Husbandry was set up at Harper Adams College.

4. Egg marketing was a haphazard affair until in 1929 a National Mark Scheme was devised in an attempt to streamline distribution, so that UK eggs could compete with foreign imports, some of which were marketed here fresh, clean and graded. This could not be said for the bulk of home produced eggs until that time.

5. With the practical application of the science of genetics to poultry breeding the concept of the simple laying trial gave way to progeny test trials. By 1986 these have become international rather than national—a reflection of the international nature of the breeding industry.

6. The pattern of poultry diseases has changed radically in the 40 years since 1945. The growth of intensive and controlled environment housing produced its own problems, which the industry has largely learned to control.

7. The pre‐war table poultry industry was largely based on a premium product specially bred from such birds as Light Sussex, Dorkings and Faverolles and, at the lower end of the market, surplus cockerels from the commercial layer trade were used. The broiler industry was born around 1954 with the end of feedings tuff rationing.

8. The illustrations trace the development of extensive housing and also some early cage units which, until the early 1950s, were always single bird cages.

9. A brief paragraph is included on the history and development of the turkey industry; it is included to demonstrate its parallel development with the broiler industry, but would merit a paper of its own.