At what has been described as a 'worthwhile meeting', the NFU, the British Poultry Council and the British Egg Industry Council all called for permit charges and the annual subsistence fee to be waived.

The farmers listened to NFU president Peter Kendall and industry leaders discuss how the regulations would impact on their businesses.

Lord Rooker, the Minister responsible for sustainable farming and food, promised to look into all the issues which have been raised at the meeting.

The IPPC regulation applies to process industry sectors but also poultry and pig farming, and seeks to reduce the impact of emissions from manure and litter, effluent discharges, odour and noise through a series of good practice management techniques.

The Environment Agency’s charging scheme is one area that continues to cause producers the most concern about the future sustainability of their business.

Current IPPC charges are of the order of £3,331 for the application fee and £2,229 to £2,794 (depending on size) for the annual fee.

ThePoultrySite News Desk