RSPCA Assured standards for laying hens – latest update

When RSPCA Assured announced a new set of standards for laying hens just over a year ago, the NFU began meetings with the assurance body and the RSPCA to represent the concerns of members and ensure the best outcome for egg producers and bird welfare.

During this time and following extensive discussion and feedback, a number of concessions and amendments have been achieved, which shows the value of collaborative working. While pressure has been mounting from the NFU alongside other poultry sector organisations, we have been asking for poultry producers to be at the heart of standard development and for assurances that any new standards are based on sound scientific evidence.

We are pleased to see that some of our concerns have been addressed and are encouraged by the renewed engagement plans from RSPCA Assured, which include both a progress and producer group which the NFU is inputting into. There are some areas that continue to need further attention and we are committed to representing our members’ views in any ongoing discussions.

Our ask has always been for a pause to be made on any new standards until proper consultation has taken place, which includes the need for relevant science and evidence to demonstrate a benefit to bird welfare and, where appropriate, for UK-based commercial scale trials to be carried out.

The poultry sector is currently working on a project plan for appropriate research to take place specifically addressing the point on natural daylight and the hope is for the RSPCA and RSPCA Assured to come fully on board with this to ensure relevant scientific evidence forms the baseline for standards development which will help deliver a true welfare benefit to hens.

The main changes were set out in a letter from RSPCA Assured to scheme members and can be read at: RSPCA Assured | Amends to RSPCA Welfare Standards for Laying Hens

Since the announcement from RSPCA Assured on their new standards, the NFU, together with other sector stakeholders, have been encouraging them to review their plans.

We have asked them to properly consult with producers before implementing any new standards and to provide relevant science and evidence to demonstrate any benefit to bird welfare which, where appropriate, includes UK-based commercial scale trials.

It is crucial to ensure that genuine and meaningful outcomes are achieved from any engagement with the supply chain and we welcomed the introduction by RSPCA Assured of a producer group which includes representatives from each of the UK farming unions, BFREPA (British Free Range Egg Producers Association) and the RSPCA’s laying hen STAG (Standards Technical Advisory Group).

The latter was an addition to the group that the NFU and NFU Cymru supported to help promote collaboration and avoid duplication. Furthermore, to ensure that moving forwards the poultry sector has a joined-up approach on how standards are developed.

The producer group will also assess the challenges faced with meeting the standards, which following agreement to postpone the implementation date by RSPCA Assured, are now due to come in from February 2025.

Alongside the producer group, the NFU and NFU Cymru sit on the RSPCA Assured’s progress group which is looking more strategically across problem solving, processes and communication.

Member feedback is crucial

At the first producer group meeting at the end of June, representatives were asked to collect feedback from other producers about the standards and identify areas that would be challenging to implement which can then be considered for further review.

To help our producer representatives we set up an online survey and have also held webinars and meetings.

We are grateful to members who have shared their views and these are now being collated and shared with our producer representatives who will feed back to the next RSPCA Assured producer group meeting on 21 August.

The NFU has obtained clarification from RSPCA and RSPCA Assured on its natural daylight standard for laying hens, following ongoing engagement and queries from members. The information covers the requirements and calculations for this standard

We're keen to understand the scale of the impact of this standard and are encouraging members to use the information and feed back your calculations to the NFU poultry team. This will allow us to continue to represent members' best interests during future engagement with the RSPCA and RSPCA Assured.

Read: RSPCA Assured clarifies natural daylight standard

The NFU has launched a new survey seeking views from egg producers on the new RSPCA Assured standards.

Following the NFU’s ask for better engagement with egg producers, RSPCA Assured has formed a producer group to gather feedback from laying hen producers on its new and revised assurance standards.

Feedback gathered by the NFU will be fed back to RSPCA Assured via representatives of the producer groups.

This survey is now closed. 

RSPCA Assured have announced that they will pause the roll out of its new laying hen standards for nine months.

What’s in this latest announcement

• New laying hen standards will not be implemented until the 1 February 2025*, meaning that until then RSPCA Assured laying hen scheme members can continue using the current version of the standards published in 2017
• A commitment from RSPCA Assured to enact a robust engagement plan, with intentions to consult with NFU members via a series of meetings
• The implementation of a new standards project team
• A commitment to holding UK-based trials for the new requirement of natural daylight in laying hen housing

*The standards do not require natural daylight to be implemented until 1 January 2031.

Read more at: RSPCA Assured | Amends to RSPCA welfare standards for laying hens

A welcome pause

NFU Poultry Board chair James Mottershead said:

“We welcome news that RSPCA Assured has announced a review of its new laying hen standards in response to our concerns.

“In particular, we recognise that the extended pause on implementation of these standards to nine months will allow for proper engagement and much-needed consultation with the poultry sector, especially egg producers - a point we have always said is absolutely vital to ensure that the standards are practical and workable and deliver a true benefit for welfare outcome measures.

Further clarity needed

“We acknowledge that a number of other positive moves have been made such as a commitment to carry out UK on-farm trials and the introduction of a dedicated project team.

“However, there are still questions to be answered regarding resources such as funding and how RSPCA Assured intends to act upon the feedback from the poultry sector to inform meaningful changes where required to their standards.

“The NFU will continue to engage further with RSPCA Assured to ensure the right outcomes for UK egg producers, ensuring that science and evidence underpins any decision in order to deliver an actual improvement in bird welfare which must be at the heart of any new standards.”

RSPCA Assured has released a statement outlining a pause in the implementation of new laying hen standards.

The RSPCA Assured statement reads as follows:

“After careful consideration of the concerns raised by members and the wider industry about implementing the new laying hen standards, we have decided to pause the implementation date for three months.

“The three-month pause means members can continue to use the current 2017 version of the RSPCA laying hen welfare standards until 1 August 2024.”

In response to this latest announcement, then NFU Poultry Board vice chair Phill Crawley said:

“We acknowledge that RSPCA Assured has listened to the NFU’s call to pause the introduction of any new laying hen standards.

Ongoing concerns

“However, it is currently uncertain how they will use this three month period to conduct proper and much needed consultation with producers – which we have been clear is absolutely vital.

“It is particularly concerning that RPSCA Assured has stated that the standards will not be undergoing any further amendments.

“If RSPCA Assured is committed to standards that are embedded in science and evidence and deliver demonstratable benefits to hen welfare, we need urgent clarity on how it will collect and use feedback from the poultry sector to inform its plans.

“The NFU is ready to engage further to ensure the right outcomes for egg producers, and ultimately bird welfare.”

The NFU will be meeting with other industry stakeholders and RSPCA Assured at the end of March to discuss next steps and we will endeavour to keep members informed as dialogue over this issue continues.

The NFU has again met with the RSPCA and RSPCA Assured to follow up on discussions that took place between the organisations in November 2023.

The NFU ensured that active egg producing members were present at that meeting to voice their continued concerns.

In an online article published to coincide with the meeting, which took place on 22 January, RSPCA Assured announced that the new standards have been revised to remove an implementation date for verandas for free range producers.

The RSPCA and RSPCA Assured announced that they will jointly engage with the poultry sector to conduct an in-depth review of installing verandas on free-range systems before any future requirement for verandas is considered appropriate.

The veranda requirement remains for all barn producers with a deadline of implementation set for 1 January 2030.

On the provision of natural daylight, the original timeline has been extended giving RSPCA Assured laying hen members seven years to implement the new standards in their entirety, which they state gives time needed to “allow increased engagement with industry and members”.

Way forward must be discussed with producers

NFU Poultry Board chair James Mottershead said:

“It’s right that RSPCA Assured is amending its new standards for laying hens after initially introducing them without sector consultation.

“British poultry farmers are always striving for high standards of bird welfare on farm. For that to happen, any proposed changes to standards must be made in collaboration with producers to ensure that they are practical and workable and, critically, that they are backed by relevant and robust scientific evidence to deliver an actual improvement in bird welfare.

“We are strongly urging RSPCA Assured to pause the introduction of new standards until appropriate trials have taken place on UK farms. This is particularly important for standards that require a significant level of investment as UK producers are still recovering from crippling production costs which led to a shortage of British eggs last year, resulting in imported eggs filling the gap on some supermarket shelves.

“The NFU has been working with the RSPCA and RSPCA Assured since they announced these new standards in November and we welcome their intention to build back trust and engagement with the egg sector. This must now be followed up with a clear engagement plan, including a genuine two-way discussion with producers.”

The NFU believes in a core set of principles for farm assurance when developing new standards. Central to this is that all standards should be developed in collaboration with the wider industry, with producers at the heart of this development phase.

A lack of consultation with the poultry sector could lead to impractical standards being imposed upon farm businesses and it is crucial that RSPCA Assured brings the poultry sector together, including producers, to discuss a way forward, because new standards are no use if producers can’t afford to deliver them.

The NFU remains focused on ensuring that any new standards are properly consulted on before introduction and must have a demonstrable benefit to bird welfare which is supported by relevant science and evidence.

Following a letter from the four UK Farming Unions, the NFU met with senior representatives from RSPCA and RSPCA Assured to express the significant concerns that members have with their new standards for laying hens.

Due to the strength of feeling, the NFU ensured that there was producer representation at the meeting, with egg producers from various regions as well as different scales and sizes present at the meeting alongside representatives from the poultry sector.

This meeting provided an important opportunity for the RSPCA and RSPCA Assured to hear directly from producers about the impacts that their standards will have on farm.

Representatives present from the RSPCA and RSPCA Assured said that they appreciated being able to convene around a table with poultry sector representatives and that they were in “listening mode”.

They were taking on board the points raised at the meeting and would be considering next steps before coming back to the group with any decisions.

The NFU remains focused on ensuring that any new standards are properly consulted on and have a demonstrable benefit to bird welfare which is supported by relevant science and evidence and we endeavour to keep members informed as our dialogue over this issue continues.

Members of the RSPCA Assured scheme have been informed on a new set of standards which require egg producers to ensure the provision of natural daylight for birds and the addition of verandas on poultry sheds.

An accompanying explanatory note stated that the new requirements are expected to be implemented across various timeframes, dependent on if you are an existing or future scheme member, and whether you are a barn or free range producer.

NFU intervention

The NFU immediately raised concerns about the new standards and opened engagement with RSPCA and RSPCA Assured.

NFU members who are part of the RSPCA Assured scheme have been principal to all discussions and we have ensured that active producer members have been included in meetings with the assurance body.

NFU Poultry Board chair James Mottershead said:

“The British poultry sector is always striving to improve and to meet the high standards consumers have rightly come to expect from us.

“While standards can and will evolve, changes must be taken in consultation with producers and the wider sector to avoid impractical standards are imposed on farm businesses and egg availability. This is particularly important now as producers are struggling to recover from crippling production costs which led to egg shortages this time last year.

“It’s crucial that RSPCA Assured brings the poultry sector together, including producers, to discuss a way forward, because new standards are no use whatsoever if producers can’t afford to deliver them.

“As part of this, the NFU welcomes further discussion with the RSPCA to ensure that any changes are embedded in science and evidence with demonstratable benefits to hen welfare.”

Critical engagement

Involvement in this engagement is crucial as it is producers that are expected to implement standards on farm. We believe that alongside relevant scientific evidence, farmers are best placed to understand what measures can improve bird welfare.

The NFU believes in a core set of principles for farm assurance when developing new standards. Central to this is that all standards should be developed in collaboration with the wider industry, with producers at the heart of this development phase.

Lacking in evidence

The new standards also lack evidence of a clear cost-benefit analysis and transparent justifications based on relevant scientific evidence. Other areas that the NFU has identified that require further discussion include practicality, benefit to bird welfare, cost and proposed timeframe limitations.

Despite a number of meetings that initially took place between the RSPCA, RSPCA Assured and the NFU and its egg producer members, as well as amendments to the standards, the NFU remains concerned that the new standards lack sound scientific backing and that no clear engagement plan is in place to continue improving bird welfare on farm.