Egg Pack Guide

How are eggs labelled if birds are kept inside?

All Grade A eggs, which are those you buy from shops, are marked with a code that shows how the egg has been produced, which country it is from and a unique producer number for the farm where it was laid.

If a housing order, where hens are kept inside for a period to protect them from bird flu, passes 16 weeks, legislation says that eggs from those hens can no longer be called free range. 

Although the eggs are from free range hens temporarily housed for their welfare, they must be marked with a number 2 signifying that they come from hens kept inside barns eg 2UK54321. 

As well as a number 2 on the eggs, free range packs will carry the words ‘Barn eggs’ on the pack, for example next to the best before date.

You will also see posters and point of sale in supermarkets which help explain the changes to shoppers. 

Once government vets say it is safe for hens to go outside again, farmers will start to print 1UK on their eggs again eg 1UK54321, to show that they are free range.

Organic eggs are unaffected by these changes and will continue to be sold in organic packs.