WorldPoultry: UK egg consumption beats chocolate this Easter

22-04-2014

This Easter marks the 25th since the Health Minister Edwina Currie’s comments sparked the UK salmonella crisis of the late 1980s – and the contrast could not be starker, with egg producers anticipating bumper sales over the holiday weekend as shoppers flock to buy traditional Easter eggs.

Sales of real eggs are predicted to more than double those of chocolate eggs and Currie herself says that the egg industry has come full circle: "I'm quite proud of my little part in making sure that happened and I'm very glad to be able to say so. You can have your soft-boiled egg today, in Britain, provided it's got a little Lion on. It's safe."

Andrew Joret, chairman of the British Egg Industry Council, is looking forward to the first Easter where consumption of eggs will be greater than when the salmonella crisis happened: "1988 was a difficult time, but one which led to the fantastic success story we have today.

"The British Lion mark has revolutionised the egg market, restoring consumer confidence and now helping generate record egg sales, year after year.

"We believe that this Easter consumption will finally get back to the levels they were before the salmonella crisis."

Forecasts showed that the UK was set to eat a whopping 45 million eggs a day over the Easter period – a total of 180 million eggs over the holiday weekend, far more than the 80 million chocolate eggs that are predicted to be sold.

by World Poultry Apr 22, 2014

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