Single hen

[margotthechicken]

Can any of my fellow poultry keepers tell me what are the regulations for selling your delicious, free range eggs. I read somewhere in an old dusty book, that Defra have to inspect your flock, no matter how small, if you want to sell the eggs. I've read articles on Omlet's website about the pricing of 'home grown' eggs, but couldn't find anything pertaining to selling them. I doubt we will give Goldenlay a headache, as only Margot has started to lay, and we only have six girls, but Ellie wants to put the money aside to make life better for our girls, which is lovely, aside from the fact that OH buys and cooks pasta and rice for them, so they will never pay for themselves, I too am guilty of buying them bags of mixed salad leaves, cucumbers and bananas.

 

Any help you can give me will be gratefully accepted!!

[kitchens]

You can sell eggs at your 'garden gate', to friends and family and no checks need to be made. You cannot sell your eggs to someone who will sell them on, or to a person who might use them in a commercial food outfit, restaurant, tea shop etc etc.

 

Your flock needs to be registered with DEFRA once you get to 50 chickens OR if you have a small flock but want to supply to a restaurant, tea shop etc etc.

 

But as I say you are perfectly entitled to sell on. I sell my surplus and have never had any problems.

 

Hope that makes sense.

 

Good luck.

[margotthechicken]

Thank you. Like I say, I doubt we will give any commercial supplier a headache! But once all my girls start laying regularly, then I may have to 'move some eggs on'. Having said that, if we don't kurb our habit of feeding them treats we won't get many eggs anyway!

 

Thanks again,

 

Margot.

[..lay a little egg for me]

Just wanted to say that if you sell them "at the garden gate" you are not allowed to sort them by size (you know, sell boxes of large or medium or small eggs); they have to be "as they come". Weird I know, but there you go.

[margotthechicken]

Hi, thanks again for your help. That is good, as I would have to invent a new category, the 'small, perfectly formed, yet with a REALLY hard shell' egg. I have some friends interested in my eggs, and they are the sort of (lovely) people that wouldn't dream of taking eggs on a regular basis without payment. Ellie is pleased I know such lovely people!

[Ygerna]

I found this (http://www.poultry.allotment.org.uk/Chicken_a/Chicken_Egg_Excess/farm-gate-egg-sales.php) a usefull source of information when I decided to sell my extra eggs.

 

 

(mods, sorry if the link is not allowed, please remove if it breaks any rules)

[pinkmagic]

Can remember reading somewhere you can't sell eggs laid by hens which have been fed household s"Ooops, word censored!"s, not sure if this is the case though.

[chooklady]

Can remember reading somewhere you can't sell eggs laid by hens which have been fed household s"Ooops, word censored!"s, not sure if this is the case though.

 

Is that not more about s"Ooops, word censored!"s from your plate, ie it might contain meat than veg peelings etc, just wondering if that's right.

[margotthechicken]

Hi, my girls get the peelings etc, but nothing that has been 'on the table' so to speak. Am I right in thinking that they have to be sold in plain new boxes too? I said this to my mother and she disagreed as she buys hers from a local farmer and thay come in all sorts of old boxes, but I pointed out that the use by dates will not mean anything, anyone know anything about this particular issue? Sorry, I keep asking these daft questions, but I am grateful for any replies.

 

Many thanks to all, again!

[Falkor]

Found this

 

http://www.poultry.allotment.org.uk/Chicken_a/Chicken_Egg_Excess/farm-gate-egg-sales.php

[margotthechicken]

Brilliant, thankyou. All I need now is a surplus of eggs!

[Falkor]

All I need is some eggs.....any eggs will do. COME ON GIRLS!!!

[margotthechicken]

I know, we are getting one egg, every other day! It's like waiting for the sixth ball in the lottery, not that I ever get five balls, or four for that matter..............