Two houses for up to 32,000 hens proposed

HENS could be numbers to an Carmarthenshire.

Planning permission has been sought for two poultry houses for up to 32,000 chickens at a farm northwest of Llanboidy.

They would have daytime access to outside ranging areas and be part of an operation which met RSPCA Freedom Food Standards, according to a planning statement submitted on behalf of the farming applicants.

The ventilated poultry houses would be 68m long, 20m wide and have a ridge height of just over six metres.

The free-range eggs would be collected mornings and evenings, and heading isolated in large spot in manure removed every four days.

The planning statement said the applicants wanted to diversify their cattle and sheep farm and were keen to ensure the business remained viable for their children.

The proposed poultry houses were, it said, a considerable investment.

“It has been researched thoroughly and the business is adamant that the enterprise will be successful,” it said.

Feed for the hens would be kept in four large external bins, with the eggs taken away by lorry.

The planning statement added that the poultry houses would be surrounded by hedgerow boundaries, and that some new trees would be planted.

Any dead birds would be gathered up by an approved contractor and their bodies frozen, prior to being moved to a secure metal container to await collection.

Ammonia, odour, dust and highway reports have been submitted with the application.

Perimeter lighting hasn’t been proposed, said the planning statement, because the birds “shall be trained to find their own way back to the building prior to darkness”.

Carmarthenshire Council officers are considering the application, which would create one full-time and one part-time job.