A North West pet show has teamed up with a Salford farm to help get more households rearing chickens and producing recession-busting free range eggs from the comfort of their backyard.
Retailers and chicken keepers have revealed that the North West falls foul in the chicken stakes and has the lowest proportion of poultry owned per household.
This is something that The Manchester Pet Show, in conjunction with Olive Mount Farm, hopes to tackle.
Pip Boydell of Olive Mount Farm said: “Keeping chickens comes with negative perceptions of a hard work and costly expense for very little return when the reality is actually the opposite.
“We have launched this campaign to re-educate the North West population on the massive advantages to homing chickens, huge cost savings and ultimately having the freshest of eggs laid on their own land for the family.”
Free range eggs ensure that consumers get an ethical product that tastes great, but generally come with a hefty price tag courtesy of rising supermarket costs.
The Office of National Statistics reveal that a dozen free range eggs costs on average £3.04, a cost that could be significantly reduced, or eradicated, by homing chickens.
Olive Mount Farm, based in Irlam, Manchester, rear poultry on-site and will be at the Manchester Pet Show, which debuts at EventCity on September 7 and 8, to launch the backyard chicken campaign.
Visitors will get the chance to sample their free range eggs and admire young chicks looking for a new home.
Pip added: “Backyard chickens lay the freshest of eggs boasting just a five minute turnaround from coop to cup, and we hope to use the Manchester Pet Show as a platform to further educate families of the North West on the positives to keeping poultry and give our chicks new families to feed.”
Chickens are relatively easy to look after, require minimum maintenance and space and are hugely affordable household pets.
On average, three chickens will lay two or more quality eggs per day and more than a dozen every week.
Managing Director of Manchester Pet Show Carrie Mosely said: “The Manchester Pet Show aims to educate and excite our visitors on a vast array of household pets, none more so than poultry and we hope to see more chicks clucking across the city as a result of our event.”
Picture courtesy of Ward via Flickr, with thanks
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