The River Wye

The situation in the Wye is complex and any serious conversation about its return to health must include solutions to various challenges, including excess nutrients, chemical pollution, biodiversity loss and the impact of climate change on water temperature and flow.

From January 2024 all the manure from our supply chain that would have been sold as fertiliser within the catchment is being exported elsewhere in the UK.  By doing this, the majority of the manure generated from farms that supply us has been removed from the catchment, without closing a farm or disrupting the supply of food.  However, this does not affect nutrient demand within the catchment, nor any of the other root causes of the river's decline.

Manure is not stored, spread or in any other way disposed of on poultry farms that supply Avara: they are sealed houses that stand on concrete.  Manure is bought and sold as a valuable fertiliser, for use on other farmland and its use is subject to regulation.

Poultry manure is a fertiliser that’s highly valued, and widely used, by arable farmers, who pay for it if they don’t produce it themselves.  The majority of land in the catchment is used for agriculture, so there is a significant demand for fertiliser, regardless of where it comes from.

Avara Foods does not store, spread or in any other way apply manure to land in the catchment.  If manure is used as fertiliser in the catchment, it does not happen on poultry farms or within the Avara supply chain.

Poultry manure is a widely used fertiliser.  If it were no longer available, the health of the Wye would still depend on the careful use of whatever fertiliser replaces it.  If that fertiliser is applied in excess of crop need, nutrient levels would grow.

Removing poultry manure would also not account for other ways in which phosphates enter the river, including through water treatment and sewage overflows, and other forms of livestock manure.  It would also fail to addressthe other root causes of the river's decline, including chemical pollution, biodiversity loss and the impact of climate change on water temperature and flow.

The situation in the River Wye Catchment Area is complex and cannot be accurately simplified to a single root cause or solution.

Reports from Cardiff University and the Environment Agency suggest that climate change is a potentially more significant factor in the deterioration than nutrient pollution alone.

Data from Lancaster University suggests that the increase in excess phosphorus peaked in the late 1970's / early 1980's, before the growth of intensive poultry farming in the region.  Since then the level of excess has reduced.

Since 2015 there has been a further significant increase in the number of poultry farms, but many of these are in Powys, in the Upper Wye, where there are very few farms that supply Avara.

Finally, indoor IPUs (farms that house over 40,000 birds) keep the manure separated from the land, so there is no run-off nor leaching through soil.  The application of poultry manure to the land only happens outside of our supply chain. To address excess phosphorus in the catchment, both current and legacy, improved soil management and better enforcement of standards is essential. 

Soya comprises less than 25% of our birds' diets and represents a small proportion of the phosphorus in the diet.  Our feed is made from a variety of UK cereals, including wheat, as well as amino acids and other nutrients that are needed to support healthy growth and development.

We were the first business in the catchment to publish accurate data about our supply chain and a clear roadmap for action.  We have been working with local knowledge experts, including the Wye and Usk Foundation.

From January 2024, any manure generated on farms that supply us and would have been sold as fertiliser in the catchment is being exported.  In addition, the small number of farmers that supply us, and also retain manure for fertiliser on their other farmland, agreed to pilot new soil assurance standards under Red Tractor.