Egg prices - keep chickens?

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wellygary

8200 posts

Uber Geek

#3033405 8-Feb-2023 12:10

MikeAqua:

Which means you wouldn't invest your capital in upgrading your farm to colony systems. You would either wind up the business or go directly to barn or free range systems.

its the ones who have wound up that are causing the shortage of supply

The problem was that many had already gone down the colony cage system...

The Govt ban on Battery cages happened in 2012... with a 2022 deadline, (but allowed Colony cages)

https://www.beehive.govt.nz/release/amendments-layer-hens-code-welfare

Many egg producers started moving to Colony Cages,

BUT in 2019 the supermarkets came out and said that from 2025/2027 we wont take Colony cage eggs,

https://www.1news.co.nz/2019/07/13/egg-producers-warn-consumers-of-supply-shortages-high-prices-as-nz-goes-cage-free/

At which point many egg producers threw up their hands and said "bugger this" and closed up shop....

+ then came COVID and building costs and resource consents to build more shed to allow them move to barn raised eggs,

In 2019 egg producers said there would be shortages...

COVID presumably knocked back consumption (Hosp and Tourism hotels closed etc) , but now things are back operating, their promises are coming true...

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deadlyllama

1258 posts

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#3033413 8-Feb-2023 12:45

Going back on topic...

We got hens recently - just before the supply issues. Simply because we were again living somewhere where we could keep chooks - this is the third time I've had them, first time with a dog in the mix though.

Hens are scarce. MPI rules mean our old supplier can't sell both eggs and chooks. So instead of getting free range pullets from a local (Whanganui) farm, I have to get them from a lady in the wilds near Sanson, 45 minutes drive away.

We got six hens so we could be generous with the surplus, and that's turned out to be a good idea! Although 3 are off the lay at the moment, probably due to the hot weather :(

There are costs involved and you always learn new things about chook keeping. My standard fencing isn't good enough to keep the dog out. The flat pack hen houses I usually buy ... finally found out that their design encourages the chooks to poo where they lay, so next project is to build my own. Every time I find a better way to feed and water them.

We didn't just get them for the eggs. They're also great at weeding, if you fence them off. They love to scratch at the ground and eat the bugs they find, and wandering willy has lots of those underneath.

So - the politics suck, but the hens are great!

surfisup1000

5288 posts

Uber Geek

#3034868 11-Feb-2023 08:36

UK authorities may ban free range chickens due to a dangerous bird flu outbreak. This bird flu is quite worrying, the mortality rate could be far higher than covid if it jumps to humans -- which it does from time to time.

Presumably this could occur in NZ too. Then there will be virtually no eggs.

jimbob79

673 posts

Ultimate Geek

#3040809 23-Feb-2023 11:15

Wellington region. Let me know if anyone wants to buy day old Hyline Chickens (vaccinated), as we are getting about 100 in the next week.

Eva888

2350 posts

Uber Geek

Lifetime subscriber

#3040824 23-Feb-2023 11:43

deadlyllama:
Going back on topic...

We got hens recently - just before the supply issues. Simply because we were again living somewhere where we could keep chooks - this is the third time I've had them, first time with a dog in the mix though.

Hens are scarce. MPI rules mean our old supplier can't sell both eggs and chooks. So instead of getting free range pullets from a local (Whanganui) farm, I have to get them from a lady in the wilds near Sanson, 45 minutes drive away.

We got six hens so we could be generous with the surplus, and that's turned out to be a good idea! Although 3 are off the lay at the moment, probably due to the hot weather :(

There are costs involved and you always learn new things about chook keeping. My standard fencing isn't good enough to keep the dog out. The flat pack hen houses I usually buy ... finally found out that their design encourages the chooks to poo where they lay, so next project is to build my own. Every time I find a better way to feed and water them.

We didn't just get them for the eggs. They're also great at weeding, if you fence them off. They love to scratch at the ground and eat the bugs they find, and wandering willy has lots of those underneath.

So - the politics suck, but the hens are great!

Can they fly away over a fence? I am dying to get some but a bit nervous about encouraging vermin as we live next to town belt. Also do they smell? I don’t like keeping animals caged all the time, so can they roam free and then go to sleep in their pen at night or do you have to usher them home each night. We get a lot of cold winds in winter so wonder if climate makes a difference to their laying.

CYaBro

4530 posts

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#3040828 23-Feb-2023 11:58

We've got a couple of dozen brown shavers and they are great layers.
Wife sells the eggs for $8 a dozen and we usually keep any that look weird or might get cracked for ourselves. :)

We can't keep up with the demand now and are looking at getting more chickens.

Local supermarkets in Oamaru (New World & Countdown) have had basically no eggs available the last few times we've been in.

Opinions are my own and not the views of my employer.

Batman

Mad Scientist
29685 posts

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#3040835 23-Feb-2023 12:06

surfisup1000:

UK authorities may ban free range chickens due to a dangerous bird flu outbreak. This bird flu is quite worrying, the mortality rate could be far higher than covid if it jumps to humans -- which it does from time to time.

Presumably this could occur in NZ too. Then there will be virtually no eggs.

we'd need to invent a new phrase to replace the commonly used "teaching one to suck eggs"

as our kids won't know what eggs are when they grow up

only drink packet liquid breakfast and eat fast food. presumably KFC will be no more so mcdonald's will dominate.

MadEngineer

4220 posts

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Trusted

#3040853 23-Feb-2023 12:48

Eva888:
deadlyllama:

Going back on topic...

Can they fly away over a fence? I am dying to get some but a bit nervous about encouraging vermin as we live next to town belt. Also do they smell? I don’t like keeping animals caged all the time, so can they roam free and then go to sleep in their pen at night or do you have to usher them home each night. We get a lot of cold winds in winter so wonder if climate makes a difference to their laying.

They can but tend not to unless spooked by something or aren't looked after. Also you can trim their flight feathers. See if you can double-fence them where their pen has a fence but is inside your fenced section. Escaping into your backyard would provide enough distraction for them to wander further

Their smell is very localised and doesn't travel much further than a few meters. After that it's hardly noticeable. You'll want to restrict them to an area of your section which includes a pen - they'll turn that area to mud and dirt with any scrap of greenery pecked and scratched at. At night they'll retreat to their straw lined pen. You can then top that area with wiremesh to stop them escaping if needed

You're not on Atlantis anymore, Duncan Idaho.

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