More free range egg farms needed to meet demand

A huge opportunity exists in Australia for more free range egg farms to be established. Figures show there is an annual shortfall of around 100 million dozen free range eggs. Figures from Australian Eggs and the market research group Ibis World show that free range demand is about 40% of the total 400 million eggs sold in Australia each year – that’s a need for 160 million dozen free range eggs but there currently are less than 100 free range egg farms. So, Anne and Phil Westwood of Freeranger Eggs in South Gippsland hope to achieve a crowd funding target to develop webinars encouraging more free range farms to be established. Everyone can help to establish more genuine, small scale free range eggs farms by supporting a programme of webinars demonstrating all the processes involved. The webinars will encourage hundreds more farms to be established around Australia. Ideally farms can be set up close to townships all over the country to supply local demand.Free range eggs can provide an excellent additional income source for existing farms or smallholdings. Freeranger Eggs has run workshops in the past, but the webinars will reach far more potential egg farmers. An eBook on starting a free range farm is also available through the Freeranger website. Once the target is reached, the webinars will be free and all participants will receive a copy of our eBook.The Crowd Funding appeal is at:https://www.gofundme.com/2tar52c

Colouring additives in poultry feed cause allergic reactions for some people eating eggs

All major egg producers and many small ones - even those which claim to be free range and organic - use colouring additives in the feed they give their hens. Their use is completely unnecessary in a free range flock, as hens running on quality pasture and at low stocking densities will obtain enough carotenoids from the green feed in the paddock to maintain good yolk colour. The colour will vary – depending on the time of year and what each hen has been eating – but many egg producers want to con consumers by using additives to provide consistent, bright yolk colour. Many of those additives are synthetic - adding to the chemical cocktail mix in food. But even those which are claimed to be 'natural' are manufactured in factories – often in China. What the manufacturers mean by using the word 'natural' is that the additives may be derived from natural products but are processed and concentrated into a powder or liquid. Three of the most widely used egg yolk pigmenters are: Canthaxanin or Canthaxanthin which appears to be an unsafe additive. It can cause diarrhoea, nausea, stomach cramps, dry and itchy skin, hives, orange or red body secretions, and other side effects. Do not use canthaxanthin if you experience breathing problems; tightness in the chest; swelling of the mouth, tongue or throat; a skin rash or hives; you are pregnant or breast-feeding or you are allergic to vitamin A or carotenoids. Capsicum Allergic reactions to capsicum may occur. Stop eating eggs with capsicum-based colouring and seek emergency medical attention if you experience symptoms of a serious allergic reaction including difficulty breathing; closing of the throat; swelling of the lips, tongue, or face; or hives. Other less serious side effects have also been reported. Talk to your doctor, pharmacist, or health care provider if you experience upset stomach; heartburn; diarrhoea; migraine attacks or burning sensation in the mouth or throat. Use of Capsicum is not recommended if you are pregnant. If you are or will be breast-feeding while eating food containing Capsicum, check with your doctor or pharmacist to discuss the risks to your baby. Capsicum colourings can bring on anaphylactic shock. See details about which plants generate these problems on this site at the University of Maryland: http://www.umm.edu/altmed/articles/anaphylaxis-000008.htm Marigold Some people experience breathing problems, tightness in the chest, swelling of the mouth, tongue or throat. A skin rash or hives may occur. We use no colouring additives and no chemicals on the farm. We use natural methods to control pests such as mites - such as putting aromatic herbs in nest boxes and using diatomaceous earth. More information on the Freeranger website.

Where to buy Freeranger eggs

A full range of eggs is available at the farm in Stanley Road, Grantville- 950 gram packs of Meggas, 600g, 700g, 750g or 840g in dozens. We also sell eggs on trays if needed. There is a big yellow cool box inside the front gate which can be accessed anytime. Our eggs are also available from the Grantville Pantry, Corinella General Store and Angels Health Foods, Cowes.When setting up a free range farm it's important to organise sales outlets.Our eBook is a valuable tool. For info Check out our website.

Freeranger Eggs - a niche market in a boutique segment of the egg industry Have your say on egg farm sustainability

With a very low stocking density on our 80 hectare farm - just 15 - 40 hens per hectare instead of the intensive 10,000 hens per hectare on most so-called free range farms, our operation is fully sustainable. We invite readers to visit our website to see how we do things. Very few farms operate in this way, most 'free range' producers are intensive operations with tens of thousands of hens confined in small areas. They may not be in cages but they are not able to range freely on pasture.Everyone has a chance to have a say on what they think of the sustainability of egg farms. The CSIRO’s social and economic systems research division is developing a community engagement proposal to collect comments from the community. Australian Eggs will then use that information to concoct a sustainability framework to guide the industry. The information could relate to any impacts the egg industry is having across areas such as the lives of people, animal welfare, environmental impacts and economic viability. Have your say on egg farm sustainability

Freeranger Eggs is all about producing genuine free range eggs as well as educating consumers and other farmers

Freeranger Eggs is a multi- platform business. Our main activity is operating a sustainable farm producing free range eggs for customers in our local area. We use our website, blog and facebook page as educational tools to provide clear information to consumers – and also to encourage the establishment of other low density farms, Free range eggs are a niche market in a boutique industry and industrial-scale producers should not use the term ‘free range’. Our eBook on setting up a free range farm is available through our website and we are preparing a series of webinars to reach as many people as possible.

Sustainable Agriculture Initiative

CSIRO’s social and economic systems division is developing a community engagement project proposal for a sustainable agriculture Initiative and Australian Eggs says it will consider public release of its farm Sustainability Framework in April. Australian Eggs' idea of sustainability is likely to be underwhelming, so we propose to try to push the agenda with something like this:Farmland, the environment, consumers and poultry are being put at risk by new free range egg production standards allowing chickens to be run at stocking densities of 10,000 hens per hectare. Each adult hen produces half a cubic metre of manure a year, so at that density, each hectare of land will be covered by 5000 cubic metres of poultry manure every year - an unsustainable nutrient load which politicians are encouraging. When the most recent version of the Code was approved by the Primary Industries Ministerial Council and printed in 2002, it was a development of an earlier version. There has been no science or research behind high density free range proposals (other than the certainty of increased profits). No scientific review of production processes has been undertaken to demonstrate that the standards contained within the current voluntary Model Code are no longer applicable to the industry. The stocking density of 1500 hens per hectare for free range hens was developed by applying well established principles of agronomy. The issue of the upper limit on the long term stocking rate was debated strongly at the time, following pressure from local Councils and the EPA about how some farms were operating. Experience was taken into account of people who had farmed free range layers in the 1950’s and 60's, when all egg production was based on free range principles. Hens were often run under citrus trees It was recognised that for an operation to be sustainable, the stocking rate had to be low - less than 300 birds/acre (750/hectare). It was agreed that such a system should be regarded as Free Range egg production and the hens were to have access to the range during daylight hours. There was some dispute by new entrants to the industry who believed that they could design pasture rotation systems around their sheds that would allow higher rates. So it was decided to take an empirical approach and work out what the maximum stocking rate could be to avoid the measurable negative impacts of nutrient run off and soil degradation and still be theoretically possible to maintain pasture cover and avoid the issue of dust. Some argued that as most hens were in sheds at night and may be locked in for part of the day so that only a portion of the hens actually entered the range area at any one time, the impact was lessened. The dairy industry was very big at that time and local agronomists had data on the effects of applying very high rates of poultry manure on irrigated pasture. The agronomists studied the data on the maximum nutrient uptake a well maintained irrigated pasture could support and also avoid the problems of salinity build up observed in the dairy pastures. The stocking rate was calculated and a stocking density of up to 600 birds/acre (1500/hectare) was regarded as the maximum possible for long term sustainability. Those currently involved in free range egg production agree that the fundamental elements of the Model Code, or other regulations introduced by Governments should be: a maximum stocking density of 1500 hens per hectare; stocking density must be reduced in conditions where pasture or other vegetative cover cannot be maintained at the maximum stocking density; no beak trimming of hens is permitted except when other methods of controlling outbreaks of severe feather pecking or cannibalism have been tried and failed (using the same criteria in the current Model Code); and pullets must be allowed to range freely once they are fully feathered (about six weeks old). Phil Westwood is an environmental auditor, a former auditor for the National Egg Quality Assurance Program and a former President of the Free Range Egg and Poultry Association of Australia.

The environment, consumers, farmland and poultry at risk from new 'free range' standards

Consumers, poultry and the environment are being put at risk by new free range egg production standards allowing chickens to be run at stocking densities of 10,000 hens per hectare. Each adult hen produces half a cubic metre of manure a year, so at that density, each hectare of land will be covered by 5000 cubic metres of poultry manure every year - - an unsustainable nutrient load. It’s not only Australia where intensive production is causing concern. In Wales,even though stocking densities are far less than the Australian standard, the nutrient levels are creating widespread concerns because of the potential impact on rivers and wildlife. Wales Online reports that particular concerns have been expressed for mammals like otters and dormice as well as for fish like eels and brown trout. Wildlife officials say “We have a number of concerns, mainly around the sheer number of these units that have been operating, new ones that have been given consent and applications that are in the pipeline. “Whilst nobody objects to farmers wanting to diversify and increase their profitability, there is a worry that the amount of phosphate that comes from chicken manure is damaging to the river system”. Consumers and farmers need to put pressure on politicians to set more realistic standard s in Australia to ensure land sustainability, animal welfare and food safety.

New production standards may destroy consumer confidence in egg industry

New labelling requirements and standards for free range egg production are likely to destroy any remaining consumer confidence in the Australian egg industry. The standard allows intensive production systems to be classified as free range and protects intensive producers from prosecution under Australian Consumer Law. The new standard allows unscrupulous producers to continue to mislead customers. Ministers have regulated that an outdoor stocking density of 10,000 hens per hectare is classified as free range . Phil with Raphael, one of our Maremmas

Crowd Funding appeal for free range webinars

It’s slow-going, but we still hope to achieve our crowd funding target to develop webinars encouraging more free range farms to be established. Everyone can help to establish more genuine, small scale free range eggs farms by supporting a programme of webinars demonstrating all the processes involved. The webinars will encourage hundreds more farms to be established all over Australia and other parts of the world. Freeranger Eggs in South Gippsland and the Freeranger Club have run workshops in the past, but the webinars will reach far more potential egg farmers. An eBook on starting a free range farm is also available through the Freeranger website. Once the target is reached, the webinars will be free and all participants will receive a copy of our eBook.The Crowd Funding appeal is at: https://www.gofundme.com/2tar52c

D-Day for free range egg labels April 26

The new information standard on free range eggs adopted by Ministers for Consumer Affairs comes into effect on April 26 even though it is meaningless and contrary to the interests of the industry, and consumers. The standard allows intensive production systems to be classified as free range and protects intensive producers from prosecution under Australian Consumer Law. The new standard simply allows unscrupulous producers to continue to mislead customers. Ministers have regulated that an outdoor stocking density of 10,000 hens per hectare is classified as free range and from April 26 all egg cartons must carry a stocking density even thought the cartons are already overcrowded with meaningless information which baffles consumers. Loopholes in the standard ensure that almost any excuse can be given for keeping hens locked up. There is no mechanism for checking each operation – so it would have been more effective to leave things as they were and let the ACCC launch prosecutions. Adopting the Model Code of Practice for the Welfare of Animals (Domestic Poultry) would have been a more realistic standard. Intensive egg producers will simply divide the amount of land they have by the number of birds to come up with a completely misleading stocking density – but which meets legal requirements. The business may have a million hens in various sheds but because it operates on a large property it will be able meet the absurd standard. In our case we have a modest 80 hectare property – which means that the law allows us to have 800,000 chickens. We currently run about 400 and during periods of peak demand we increase numbers to 1000 or 1200 birds. This gives us a current stocking density of 5 hens per hectare and maximum stocking rate of 15 per hectare. Why should we be forced to put that on our cartons and do we have to keep amending it when a new flock is brought in? This problem would not arise if politicians had done their jobs and produced an effective free range standard. Free range would be the only words needed if a proper standard had been adopted.

Balancing egg production and demand

On a small free range farm, it can often be difficult to maintain a balance between demand and production. The are so many variables - including the weather and the number of daylight hours, which both have a dramatic impact on production. But it's not just the number of eggs laid. One factor which many people don't appreciate is the size of eggs. Production may be terrific (as it is right now) but we currently have a large number of small 50 - 55 gram eggs ( which are described as large in stupidmarkets). Most of our customers want larger eggs. Some restaurants will only take 70 gram eggs which can make it difficult to maintain supplies to them. Our gate sales are an important part of our business, but many customers have a preference for big eggs. We can only supply what our hens lay - unlike many egg farmers, we don't buy in eggs from other suppliers to meet a shortfall.

Allergic reactions may be caused by colouring additives rather than eggs

All major egg producers and many small ones - even those which claim to be free range and organic - use colouring additives in the feed they give their hens. Their use is completely unnecessary in a free range flock, as hens running on quality pasture and at low stocking densities will obtain enough carotenoids from the green feed in the paddock to maintain good yolk colour. The colour will vary – depending on the time of year and what each hen has been eating – but many egg producers want to con consumers by using additives to provide consistent, bright yolk colour. Many of those additives are synthetic - adding to the chemical cocktail mix in food. But even those which are claimed to be 'natural' are manufactured in factories – often in China. What the manufacturers mean by using the word 'natural' is that the additives may be derived from natural products but are processed and concentrated into a powder or liquid. Three of the most widely used egg yolk pigmenters are: Canthaxanin or Canthaxanthin which appears to be an unsafe additive. It can cause diarrhoea, nausea, stomach cramps, dry and itchy skin, hives, orange or red body secretions, and other side effects. Do not use canthaxanthin if you experience breathing problems; tightness in the chest; swelling of the mouth, tongue or throat; a skin rash or hives; you are pregnant or breast-feeding or you are allergic to vitamin A or carotenoids. Allergic reactions to capsicum may occur. Stop eating eggs with capsicum-based colouring and seek emergency medical attention if you experience symptoms of a serious allergic reaction including difficulty breathing; closing of the throat; swelling of the lips, tongue, or face; or hives. Other less serious side effects have also been reported. Talk to your doctor, pharmacist, or health care provider if you experience upset stomach; heartburn; diarrhoea; migraine attacks or burning sensation in the mouth or throat. Use of Capsicum is not recommended if you are pregnant. If you are or will be breast-feeding while eating food containing Capsicum, check with your doctor or pharmacist to discuss the risks to your baby. Capsicum colourings can bring on anaphylactic shock. See details about which plants generate these problems on this site at the University of Maryland: http://www.umm.edu/altmed/articles/anaphylaxis-000008.htm Marigold Some people experience breathing problems, tightness in the chest, swelling of the mouth, tongue or throat. A skin rash or hives may occur.