Planning application PA/SCR/2025/2

Dear Ms Ashworth:

We are writing in relation to the planning application PA/SCR/2025/2, which seeks permission for the erection of a poultry farm and all associated works. Together, the two buildings would hold as many as 73,000 chickens at a time – equating to around 550,000 chickens per year. We object to this proposal for the following reasons:

• Operations on the farm – as well as the chickens’ waste and the bodies of dead birds – would likely produce strong odours, disturbing residents and impacting their quality of life. Please note that the proposal would fall into the “most offensive” and “moderately offensive” categories, as it involves “decaying animals” and “intensive livestock rearing.”
• Ammonia from chickens’ waste would be emitted from the farm into the surrounding area, likely harming air quality and potentially having a detrimental effect on human health, wildlife, and the environment.
• Due to various farm operations, the site would require visits from an additional 502 or more heavy goods vehicles annually. The enormous increase in vehicle movements to and from the farm would likely intensify traffic on nearby routes. This may cause residents frustration and could lead to an increase in traffic accidents. The emissions from the vehicles would also create air pollution.
• The site would be visible from a public footpath and other surrounding areas, reducing the attractiveness of the rural landscape and spoiling natural vistas.
• The proposed facility would not be eco-friendly. Animal agriculture is a leading cause of the climate catastrophe, and to address it, a transition away from animal farming is imperative. Accordingly, new animal farms should not be green-lighted.
• The facility would only create two full-time jobs and would unlikely positively impact the local economy.
• Run-off from the farm may contaminate local water sources. The UK is currently experiencing a water pollution crisis. The River Wye, for example, is often described as the colour of “pea soup” due to becoming contaminated with waste from surrounding chicken farms.
• The proposed site is located on ‘Grade 3a’ arable land, and the North Lincolnshire Local Plan (2003) Policy states that use of agricultural land will only be permitted where this would not result in the loss of the best and most versatile land Grades 1, 2 and 3a. The land’s excellent soil quality should be used for crops. The UK does not need another chicken farm. Animal-free diets are on the rise – the number of vegans quadrupled between 2014 and 2019. Yet the BBC has confirmed that just 17% of fruit and 55% of vegetables consumed in the UK are grown by our farmers.
• The facility would be a breeding ground for disease. The UK is amid the worst outbreak of bird flu to date. We must prevent the development of new facilities that pose such risks to public health.
• The site is considered to have some archaeological potential, which the construction of the proposed facility could impact.
• The proposal contains disingenuous language and humane-washing labels. The “Better Chicken Commitment” is a sham that does nothing to improve the lives of birds. Time and again, farms certified by schemes – like Red Tractor and RSPCA Assured – have been exposed for egregious cruelty to animals. Recent investigations into RSPCA-Assured farms found chickens who had died from dehydration and starvation. The 73,000 chickens imprisoned on this farm at a time would have space only slightly larger than their body size, around the size of an A4 piece of paper. The Animal Welfare (Sentience) Act 2022 recognises that animals are living, feeling beings with the capacity to experience a range of emotions, whose welfare should be considered accordingly. We urge you to consider the suffering that millions of chickens would endure on the proposed farm. Bred to grow unnaturally large and heavy upper bodies extremely quickly, they would suffer from severe health problems, including difficulty breathing and heart failure, and after a couple of weeks, some would starve as a result of the crushing weight of their bodies leaving them unable to walk to reach food or even stand. The sheds would only be cleaned out between flocks, forcing birds who cannot stand to sit in their excrement for most of their lives. The acrid litter would burn the chickens’ legs and feet, leaving them in constant pain. Chickens naturally live for up to 11 years, but those raised on this farm would be killed at around 40 days old by being gassed or electrocuted at an abattoir before workers slit their throats – sometimes while they’re still conscious.

We hope you will consider our objections and residents' comments when deciding on this application.

Yours sincerely,