Residents Unite to Oppose North Yorkshire Factory Farm Expansion
A dozen local residents came together at a public meeting to oppose a major expansion for an intensive poultry unit (IPU) in Alne, North Yorkshire.
East Farm wants to add six new intensive sheds, more than doubling the number of birds confined. [1]
Residents voiced concerns about the environmental and animal welfare impacts of housing so many birds in close quarters.
James Wright, 42, a Company Director in Alne, said:
“Doubling this site to nearly 600,000 birds will have a severe impact on local air quality, odour and road safety. Residents are being asked to accept unmodeled washout smells hitting us every four days, dust and air pollution impacts, and heavy lorry traffic doubling in the area – with 64 HGV movements on peak days!
“With the other chicken farms in the region, this will total 7.5 million birds annually within 3km! The Council cannot ignore the human cost of this industrial overexpansion and should urge a full independent technical review of the proposal.”
The applicant at East Farm is the same as York Gate, another factory farm in Melmerby that is trying to expand and has met strong local opposition. [2] [3]
A major expansion of six new sheds, this intensive farm in Alne would increase the number of chicks confined at any one time to almost 600,000 – adding an extra 2.4 million chicks a year to North Yorkshire.
Doing so would put a serious strain on the local environment, residents worry, in part because of all the additional waste generated. The application states that manure waste would be taken to Thetford Power Station, which is expected to close in March 2027 – and no replacement manure management method has been identified. [4]
At the meeting, residents also expressed worry for the birds confined inside the factory farm. As well as more than doubling the number of birds if the expansion is approved, this factory farm uses fast-growing breeds. That means chicks live for only 38 days, during which time their bodies grow so unnaturally fast that they often have trouble walking.
Communities Against Factory Farming (CAFF) is supporting local residents. [5]
Maya Pardo, Legal Coordinator at CAFF, said:
“There is strong local opposition to these factory farm expansion plans because of the cruelty of cramming another two million chicks into sheds where they will never see the light of day, as well as the devastating pollution of local waterways and the noise and smells that residents will face.
“With such a high accumulation of intensive chicken farms in the area, it would be deeply irresponsible for North Yorkshire Council to approve these environmentally damaging expansion plans.”
ENDS
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About CAFF
Communities Against Factory Farming (CAFF) works closely with residents across the UK to review planning applications for intensive farms and submit strong, evidence‑based planning objections. The organisation has helped communities block and overturn multiple intensive poultry unit applications when councils overlooked key environmental and animal‑welfare issues.
For more information or further comments, please contact:
Daniel (Press Back Office) press@caff.org.uk
Notes for Editors
[2] https://www.yorkpress.co.uk/news/26174193.poultry-factory-farm-planned-melmerby-near-ripon/
[4] https://www.eadt.co.uk/news/25940797.power-plants-eye-thetford-risk-closure-2027/