Manor Farm to cut throughput by 70,000 birds per week

Chicken processor Manor Farm is reducing throughput at its Shercock, Co Cavan, plant by 70,000 birds per week, due to labour shortages and higher costs.

The Swedish-owned firm is to move from a three-cycle to a two-cycle shift system because of ongoing difficulties in securing workers.

This will result in throughput at the country’s largest poultry processing plant reducing from 970,000 birds per week to 900,000.

A Manor Farm spokesman said the company did not comment on “operational matters” when contacted by the Irish Farmers Journal regarding recent developments.

However, increased feed and energy costs, as well as tighter labour availability since the COVID-19 pandemic, are believed to be the primary reasons for the changes.

Labour shortages are a continuing problem for the poultry industry

It is understood that the company will increase the hours worked in the new two-cycle shift system to alleviate the impact of losing the third shift.

But throughput at the Shercock site will still be reduced by around 7% as a consequence of the changes.

Labour shortages are a continuing problem for the poultry industry, like other meat businesses, with experienced staff difficult to source.

This is the case for both processing work and the catching teams that collect the finished birds for delivery to the processors.

Additional permits

The recent allocation of an additional 2,000 non-EU work permits to meat processors should help alleviate the labour problems, but Meat Industry Ireland has warned that it could take over three months to source staff.

Swedish firm Scandi Standard purchased Manor Farm from brothers Vincent and Justin Carton in a deal worth €70m back in 2017.

Frank McMyler recently replaced Ado Carton as country manager at Manor Farm.