“Small organic chicken farmers in the European Union are closing or reducing operations at an unusually high rate.”

Between 2010 and 2020, the number of fully organic farms in the EU more than doubled … In the decade between 2010 and 2020, the EU lost 3.0 million farms. However, the number of fully organic farms more than doubled (+223 %), with an additional 135 000 farms having converted completely or in the process of complete conversion.

On the basis of available data, one interpretation would be that the number of producers in the organic sector has been overall on an increasing trend. Some exiting and entering the sector can be observed but overall, it would seem that producers have a tendency to remain in organic farming rather than heavily leaving this type of production. … The European Union registered a 14% yearly increase in the organic poultry head numbers between 2005 and 2015.

While premium production schemes like organic, free range, and GMO-free fed chicken have gained a lot of support throughout the EU, consumption of less expensive chicken meat cuts is growing at a much faster rate compared to more premium products like breasts and whole birds.

Production on farms with more than 5 000 laying hens account for the overwhelming majority of egg production (about 91% in 2024 - see Figure 1). Nevertheless, in some EU countries, agricultural holdings with only a few laying hens make a significant contribution to egg production; in Romania one half (50.5% of eggs for consumption) came from holdings with less than 5 000 hens, and the shares in Slovenia (20.2%), Poland (15.9%) and Croatia (14.9%) were also relatively high.

The transitional rules for poultry housing and stocking density not compliant with the regulation, which were originally set to expire in 2010 and then extended to 2013, should not be extended further even if some operators will revert to non-organic, free range production;

Excluding incomplete datasets, however, there was a positive trend in organic poultry numbers in the EU of almost 6 percent.

L’Agence Bio notes that the chains suffering the greatest net losses of farms in 2025 are dairy cattle, viticulture, perfume, aromatic and medicinal plants (PPAM), beef cattle, eggs and poultry meat.

Despite fast growth, EU organic animal production remains small in comparison to the EU total. In 2020, about 6.0% of the cattle herd and 7.2% (2019) of the sheep and goat flocks were estimated to be organically raised, while for poultry and pigs this was estimated at 3.6% and 1.0%, respectively.

Britain’s organic land expanded while certified poultry numbers declined nationally. … Organically reared poultry declined by 2% to approximately 4.8 million birds, equivalent to 2.6% of the UK poultry population. … The fall in registered operators provides a second constraint. A larger land area can coexist with fewer businesses when holdings consolidate, registrations change, or smaller processors leave the market, leaving resilience dependent on the number, location, and capability of active operators rather than hectares alone.

Approximately 40% of respondents saw no constraints to rearing organic pullets while others identified a range of factors including capital, availability of land and inadequate margins as being the primary constraint.

In recent years, the number of organic certified poultry farms has increased significantly. In 2017, about 3% of EU poultry farms were certified as organic, while in 2019 this percentage increased to 8%. Organic animal production is expected to continue to increase during 2021.

At the end of 2017, 309,982 organic farms were listed in the EU, an increase of 5.9% compared to 2016. According to our estimates, 325,306 organic farms were counted in 2018 (+4.9% compared to 2017).

In 2023, France led the EU in organic poultry numbers with 14.637 million, surpassing Germany's 6.7776 million and Italy's 4.636 million. … Over the past year, Germany saw a 5% increase, while France's growth was modest at 2%. Italy witnessed a 4% growth, the Netherlands expanded by 6%, and the UK by 3%.

There are also rational reasons for this choice, as the “exit” option was mainly selected by small-scale producers (66.67% in the cluster of farms with flocks below 30 k hens), often nearing or already past retirement age and without a successor.

The need to hire external labour and complication in farm logistics adds to the reluctance to convert, whereas organic farmers may also hesitate to expand workforce, rather opting for reduced farm or herd size. Such downsizing could increase fixed costs and create stranded assets.

In the case of Poland, there was a sharp decline in organic area from 2014 to 2018, after which the trend turned positive again. A similar pattern can be observed in Bulgaria, where the organic area contracted significantly between 2017 and 2021, before reaching a turning point and resuming growth.

Driven by consumer demand for higher animal welfare standards, the European Union's organic poultry sector continues to experience significant growth, expanding faster than the overall organic food market.

These factors could affect 5,000 poultry farms, with some farmers considering reducing production to avoid tax pressure. The proposed regulations and these challenges are putting significant pressure on farmers, potentially leading to the closure of many operations.

We analyze the causal effect of dairy farmers’ decision to produce organically on farm competitiveness measured by price markups and profitability. Moreover, we investigate the decision of organic farmers to revert back to conventional farming using survivorship analysis.

On 1 January 2012, conventional cages for laying hens were banned in the European Union (EU); all egg farmers must now use alternative hen housing systems. … Of these, 43 (33.9%) were no longer active as an egg farmer, mainly due to the ban on conventional cages.

• There is room for growth of organic and low-input outdoor meat production

This would require significant investments and a 72% reduction in the number of animals, potentially making EU poultry farms non-competitive in the global market and leading to the closure of small and medium-sized farms.

The reintroduction of containment measures including indoor housing, transport limits, and bans on bird gatherings is tightening supply, particularly for cage-free and organic categories, where availability is expected to remain scarce and premiums elevated.

Larger markets showed moderate, steady growth, demonstrating stabilization in Europe's organic poultry sector.