Odour pollution lands chicken slaughterhouse with £300k fine
A court heard the Environment Agency (EA) received nearly 350 complaints from local people and businesses in the area surrounding the site in Attleborough between 2019 and 2021.
The EA said that the community was largely prevented from leaving their homes in the first coronavirus lockdown in 2020 and had to endure the stench from decaying poultry at a Norfolk abattoir. The EA recorded odours 86 times outside the abattoir from the start of 2019 to September last year, ranging from faint to very strong – all of which came from the abattoir.
Norfolk-based Banham Poultry was acquired by Boparan Private Office(BPO), for an undisclosed sum in October 2021. It is not responsible for these activities which took place before its purchase of the company.
At a hearing at Chelmsford magistrates’ court on 15 September 2022, district judge Andrew King heard the abattoir had broken or damaged doors and walls, a roof so weak it collapsed, and another part of the site was unsafe for EA to enter. He acknowledged practices at Banham Poultry had a “significant effect on quality of life” in the town.
The EA said it had warned the company to act after nine complaints about the slaughterhouse were made early in 2019, coinciding with waste blood kept on site too long. Believing the company had breached its permit for managing smells, investigators gave Banham Poultry an enforcement notice to limit or prevent odours leaving the boundary of the abattoir.
Foul-smelling air
However, the court heard foul-smelling air escaped through damaged and open doors. Watery blood from poultry collected on the abattoir floor was prevented from draining away because of blocked drains while other parts of the building were badly corroded and beyond repair. Part of the site collapsed in May 2020 when the roof caved in.
Investigators were also concerned at poor housekeeping when finding decaying animal parts.
Sophie Cousins, who led the investigation into the abattoir for the EA, said: “Banham Poultry failed to invest in odour-prevention. People living and working nearby were badly affected over a long period of time
“The EA decided on prosecution after Banham missed many chances to comply with the law. We gave them time and assistance to put matters right, but the problems just mounted up.”
The EA consistently told Banham that its odour management plan either didn’t contain the necessary measures to prevent odour pollution, or procedures weren’t being followed. Banham responded to the warnings very late or ignored them.
Staff lacked the relevant training in environmental issues, so were unable to deal with the abattoir’s many problems, described by the agency as “chronic.”
The company pleaded guilty to failing to keep activities free from odour levels likely to cause pollution outside the abattoir between January 2019 and September 2021.
It also admitted not complying with an enforcement notice served on it by the EA that set out steps they should have taken to limit or prevent odours leaving the site.
Reckless culpability
District Judge King ruled the offences as reckless culpability. He fined Banham Poultry (2018) Ltd, of Station Road, Attleborough, £300,000 for breaching regulation 38 (2) of the Environmental Permitting Regulations 2016. He imposed no separate penalty for a breach of regulation 38 (3) – not complying with the enforcement notice.
The hearing at Chelmsford magistrates’ court also ordered the company to pay £67,621.45 in costs and a victim surcharge of £170.
However, the current Banham Poultry, which is owned by BPO, noted the regrettable historic environmental breaches under the previous owner in relation to odour originating from its site in Attleborough.
A spokesperson said: “Since being taken over in October 2021, the new management team have shown a commitment to being a good neighbour and are keen to play a positive role in the local community, and has the full support of the EA.
“Banham will continue to work very hard to eliminate these issues in the future.”
The spokesperson added: "A planning application has already been submitted for Station Road which will significantly improve the site, and we will continue to have positive dialogue with local residents and the regulator.”
