The sight of a few hens or ducks pecking around in the garden and producing a regular supply of eggs for their owners is irresistible for millions of UK residents. This small scale keeping of poultry has spawned a huge industry that caters for the supply of poultry food, chicken houses, egg incubators, cages and dozens of other pieces of equipment. Also including domesticated geese, quails and turkeys, poultry is the world’s second most eaten meat after pork.
Specialist poultry food includes different mixes of mash, grit, crumb and corn, some supplied in uniform sized pellets. Suppliers such as the Fancy Feed Company, Small Holder and Natures Grub are just three out of dozens of manufacturers that cater for this growing market. Much of this poultry food is supplied by small independent garden centres, although many owners prefer to make their purchases online from an increasing number of internet-savvy retailers.
With hundreds of breeds of chickens to choose from, amateur hen owners often opt for varieties such as Leghorn or Rhode Island Red that are proven successful layers. Others are bred purely for showing, and have given rise to examples with spectacular plumage and impressive colour schemes. Poultry supplies as well as live birds can be purchased from a large number of outlets all over the UK.
