The Daily Telegraph - Saturday - Money
How keeping chickens can really fowl up your finances
With some owners reporting costs of up to £5 per egg, it can be a question of what came first – the profit or the loss? Joe Wright reports
It may look simple and idyllic but keeping chickens can be a costly “addiction”. Owners can drown in an abundance of eggs, get by with a steady daily supply or scratch their heads at a barren nest box.
But regardless of the egg count, the upkeep of looking after a backyard flock can rack up.
YOU CAN SAVE £24 A WEEK Jane Howarth, founder of the Devon-based British Hen Welfare Trust, estimates that egg-loving families can save a sizeable chunk of cash each week by having a backyard flock.
“In terms of keeping a small flock, of say six hens, if you took rescue hens from a charity like ours, you’d get roughly 21 eggs a week,” she says.
“If you bought brand new pullet chickens, you could be getting 40 eggs a week. You could be saving up to £24 a week on eggs.
“If you go for higher welfare companies like the Happy Egg or Clarence Court, you can be looking at just under £4 or £6 for 10 eggs, so you’re really making a saving.”
Caring for feathered friends grew in popularity in the early 2000s when TV chefs Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall and Jamie Oliver encouraged people to be mindful of our food’s origins.
Chicken-keeping then surged to new heights in lockdown as farms sold unprecedented levels of hens, and the number of thefts shot up.
While the increase in hen owners (most recently David Beckham) may seem hefty, only 1.3pc of UK households owned chickens last year – putting them behind lizards, snakes and tortoises in the popularity stakes.
But as egg prices at the supermarket rise, having your own supply can be tempting.
In the first quarter of 2023, the price of an egg was up 39pc annually.
Over in the US, costs jumped nearly 8.6pc in a week in late November amid a surge in bird flu, while in
Russia eggs are being sold individually due to a shortage.
Lisa Ingram, who first got chickens 15 years ago after swapping London for Hampshire, says there are savings to be had: “They’ll have saved us a lot over the years in terms of buying eggs, although the cost of keeping them probably evens that out.”
“It’s always a bit galling in the winter when we have to start buying them again in the supermarket, as chickens don’t lay as often in the winter, especially as they get older, it’s to do with less light.”
NOT EVERYONE WILL SAVE While you can make a tidy profit if you have multiple hens regularly laying, there is the danger chickens can peck away at your finances.
Joanne Swali, who looks after three hens with her family, says: “My husband has joked quite a lot that it would have been cheaper if I asked for some diamond earrings.
“I would say that a few years in, if you factored in all our expenditure to date, our cost per box of six eggs would probably be in the region of £30.
“Over time that will probably come down but they are expensive to keep.
“Like owning any pet, though, we don’t do it for the return. For me, the eggs are just a bonus.”
One of Swali’s trio is Petal, a Swedish Flower chicken – a rare species that is on the endangered list.
“She’s lovely, and is our pet who loves a cuddle – but you can see why she’s endangered, as she virtually never lays an egg. We probably only get about 20 or 30 eggs a year from her and they are tiny. She doesn’t help our returns on investment,” Swali says.
CAN I SELL MY CHICKEN EGGS? Currently, only owners of 350 or more birds have to register them, and as long as you are not selling eggs on a commercial scale, you can do so without being a registered producer. You can trade
Says eggs are just a bonus them as a “farm gate seller” to your neighbours, friends or passers-by. You could also sell them door- to- door in your local area.
When selling on this small scale, you should not use official labelling such as free range or organic. If you have more than 50 hens and want to sell eggs at market, you will need to be registered.
Under separate legislation covering disease controls, if you have 50 or more birds, you will need to be on the Great Britain Poultry Register. Those on the register are automatically contacted in the case of nearby disease outbreaks.
UPKEEP COSTS CAN ADD UP
A good hen house for a few chickens will set you back at least £ 200, and you’ll need bedding and nest boxes.
Cat Thomson says keeping chickens is “an addiction” but “not one of the wisest financial decisions I’ve ever made”.
“I have just paid £ 76 to have the unfortunately named Lucky, put to sleep at the vet’s last week,” she said.
“I know of devoted owners who pay hundreds if not thousands of pounds on vet bills, paying for hormone implants to stop their hens from egg-laying issues caused by egg yolk peritonitis.
“In terms of food, mash and mixed corn it costs around £15 a month to feed them. I like to pull the wool over my eyes and say they pay for themselves as their delicious eggs are in- demand by the neighbours.”
Long-term chicken owner Jennifer Jane says: “If you had three beds and an average size coop and run, you’d probably break even what you would spend in eggs over the first year and start saving money after that”.
CUT THE COST OF DINING OUT The quality of the feed you purchase will play a key role in determining the quality and regularity of eggs you get.
Howarth, whose charity has now rehomed more than one million chickens says you can reap the rewards of having truly organic eggs by using them to make good meals.
“In the cost of living crisis, more people are electing to eat at home rather than go out,” she explains.
“Eggs are one of the most versatile ingredients, so in terms of home cooking, you’re making cost savings by having chickens.
“You can’t get fresher eggs than those from your own garden, you just can’t beat it. No matter what you buy, nothing’s going to taste better than your own.”
Howarth also stresses that hen owners could save money by ditching a gym membership and getting outside and exercising by tending a flock.
Admits keeping hens is ‘not one of my wisest financial decisions’ ‘I know of devoted owners who pay thousands of pounds on vet bills’
BEYOND THE FINANCES
All in all, whether or not your clucky birds bring you financial rewards is unlikely to be top of your agenda.
Chicken keepers are often ordinary types who simply enjoy a different kind of pet, love giving their flocks a better life, and wish to teach children about where eggs come from.
Haworth adds: “The wellbeing impact is priceless. It’s a massive cost benefit, whether you’re looking at people enduring PTSD, addiction, not being able to afford a holiday, the benefits of keeping hens as pets is huge.”