United Kingdom (UK) Poultry Feed Market Overview, 2029

The history of poultry in the United Kingdom, as well as elsewhere in Europe, dates back to prehistoric times when Southeast Asia domesticated chickens. The 19th century was more the expanding period of poultry farming and was really accelerated through the developments in agriculture and specialization breeds because of the urbanization and greater food requirements. After the second world war, UK still moved to high 'maximum efficiency in production through commercial poultry farming and concentrated feed formulation, showing tremendous boosts in meat and egg production. Later decades saw the rise of compound feeds, which was a mixture of different ingredients into nutritionally balanced diets for birds, gradually changing the poultry feed landscape into what we are seeing today. Poultry feed covers chickens, turkeys, ducks, and geese, among those farm products, these contribute significantly to the UK food supply chain, feeding back with the requirement of feed for good food quality and safety. The technological development drives the changes in the UK poultry feed market; engaging technologies mainly involve feed efficiency and sustainability. Such innovations include feed formulations that become more effective in optimizing growth rates and feed conversion ratios when applying additives such as enzymes and probiotics. The trend is obvious in the increase toward more environmentally conscious feed and farming practices, such as sourcing alternate protein feed from insects like insect meal. Organic and non-GMO poultry feed is also in increasing demand because consumers are health-conscious. Digital technology has also started to be introduced into feed formulation and poultry management, enhancing productivity and health generally. There are sourcing challenges related to ingredients since UK producers are shifting focus towards sourcing locally for sustainability and due to even stricter regulations than would have been stipulated by agencies like the Food Standards Agency and Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs.

According to the research report "UK poultry feed Market Overview, 2029," published by Bonafide Research, the UK poultry feed market is anticipated to grow at more than 3% CAGR from 2024 to 2029.The UK poultry feed market is moving toward sustainable production in its efforts to cut down the carbon footprint and enhance welfare for animals. Effort is going into decreasing reliance on imports feeds, and improving feed from local resources, which also helps achieve the vision of the UK government to become net-zero by 2050. Animal welfare has gained a central position, nudging the industry toward the practices of health without the addition of antibiotics and synthetic additives. The circle economy is embraced and recycling agricultural by-products in making poultry feed thereby reducing waste and saving resources. An upsurge in consumer demand for poultry meat and eggs, that can be attributed to reasons such as it being cost-effective, nutritional, and versatile, is one of the major causes of growth in poultry feed market. High-quality poultry products are on high demand as the health-conscious consumers look for lean sources of protein. Outbreaks of avian influenza and salmonella may change poultry health and production in ways that lead to decreased demand for feed. Farmers are often held to a higher standard, and there could be increased costs in biosecurity efforts designed to prevent outbreaks. The implementation of circular economy practices is becoming the norm; feed manufacturers have come to realize ways and means through recycling agricultural by-products in poultry feeds. This not only reduces waste but also lowers the environmental footprint of feed production. BAFSAM is the British Association of Feed Supplement and Additive Manufacturers, a trade association representing manufacturers and processors of animal feed additives, speciality feed ingredients, premixtures and feed supplement products in the UK and Ireland.

The ingredients for the UK poultry feed market are varied, but the most important in these are cereal or grain, oilseed meal, fishmeal, and bone meal. Grains-Cereals like wheat and maize are the most important constituents in poultry diets. They provide necessary carbohydrates and are the most important energy source, meeting the needs for growth and egg-laying. In addition to providing more digestibility’s, grains are thus very important for high conversion on poultry farms and keeping cost low. Oilseed meals, for example, soybean meal is a product that contains proteins and amino acids, which are crucial for the poultry's growth. The oilseed meals provide a balanced nutrient profile in addition to supporting muscle development and overall health. In addition, it enhances better feed efficiency together with lowering feed costs due to high protein content. Fish meal is a high protein UK poultry feed ingredient, containing some of the highest levels of a number of essential amino acids including lysine and methionine. Inclusion of fish meal has stimulated growth rates and improved feed conversion efficiency (FCE) and work indicates as much as 4% improvement in FCE can be achieved when fish meal is included in diets at around 4 to 8%. Besides, fishmeal has been associated with having a health-enhancing effect on poultry in the form of increased disease resistance, given that it contains anti-inflammatory properties. An intake of over 81,000 tonnes of fishmeal is utilized each year in UK poultry rations to determine the requirement for its use. Bone meal is yet another critical ingredient providing crucial minerals, such as calcium and phosphorus, which play an important role in the development of bones and overall health in poultry. It acts as a natural source of nutrients that support skeletal integrity in layers while maximizing their egg production. Its assimilation is not as widely practiced as fish meal, but its role in enhancing the mineral content of poultry diets is significant.

The UK poultry feed market is lively, which offers various forms, such as pellets, mash, crumbles, and many other specialized feeds. In commercial poultry, pellets are applied because they are convenient, have high nutritional value, and thus make feeding effective and reduce loss. They are processed based on the requirements of poultry alone for ideal growth and health. Mash feed has the advantage of being a ground form of feed, often more economical than getting it mixed because better mixing is possible with mash feeds. This feed is usually used in operations where the size of the operation is small or where there are particular breeds that have specific feeding requirement systems. Mash feed can be easily used on layers and on broilers due to its flexibility. Crumbles are an intermediate product between pellets and mash, serving as an easy meal while still retaining some level of nutrient density. It is mainly served to the young chick since it helps in the transition for most chicks from mash to pellets with the assurance of substantial nutrient uptake. Besides, there are complete feeds and premixes which allow farmers to adjust their diets depending on specific production goals or health requirements. The demand for these products is driven by increased consumer awareness regarding meat quality and safety and also an growing inclination toward organic and specialty feeds.

The market is also likely to grow steadily indicating strong demand for broiler, layer and other poultry feeds. The production of the broiler feed has been on an upsurge with a marginal increase in the recent past though recently has recorded a slight year-on-year growth. However, overall production remains much lower than the five-year average due to several factors such as the high cost of production and health issues like Avian Flu, which compress the margins. Broilers drive the feed requirements for capturing the demand generated by the need for an affordable animal meat. The layer feed segment has grown more remarkably, with the production, which has grown a lot year-over-year. This is because of sustained demand for eggs and the demands for high-quality feed as a means of increasing the efficiency in egg production. Considering that consumers continue seeking healthier sources of protein, the market for layer feed will also keep growing. Other Poultry Feeds are feeds for turkeys and other birds, which have seen tremendous increases in production. The increase shows consumers' behavior changes and a growing trend towards the different poultry products. Influencing the UK poultry feed market were factors of up-and-down fluctuating raw material costs, now stabilizing after a period in inflation; high percentages of cereals and oil cakes also comprised feed composition, thereby making the market sensitive to agricultural trends and commodity prices.




Considered in this report
• Historic year: 2018
• Base year: 2023
• Estimated year: 2024
• Forecast year: 2029

Aspects covered in this report
• Poultry Feed market Outlook with its value and forecast along with its segments
• Various drivers and challenges
• On-going trends and developments
• Top profiled companies
• Strategic recommendation

By Ingredients
• Cereal/Grain
• Oilseed Meal
• Fish Meal & Bone Meal
• Others

By Form
• Pallet
• Mash
• Crumbles
• Others

By Livestock
• Broiler
• Layers
• Others

The approach of the report:
This report consists of a combined approach of primary and secondary research. Initially, secondary research was used to get an understanding of the market and list the companies that are present in it. The secondary research consists of third-party sources such as press releases, annual reports of companies, and government-generated reports and databases. After gathering the data from secondary sources, primary research was conducted by conducting telephone interviews with the leading players about how the market is functioning and then conducting trade calls with dealers and distributors of the market. Post this; we have started making primary calls to consumers by equally segmenting them in regional aspects, tier aspects, age group, and gender. Once we have primary data with us, we can start verifying the details obtained from secondary sources.

Intended audience
This report can be useful to industry consultants, manufacturers, suppliers, associations, and organizations related to the Poultry Feed industry, government bodies, and other stakeholders to align their market-centric strategies. In addition to marketing and presentations, it will also increase competitive knowledge about the industry.