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• Clipping - Poultry wizz picks up prize
• Clipping - Service award for breeder

A Devon poultry breeder who helped pioneer the introduction of Devonshire Red chicken in the West Country has received a national award in recognition of his role in the UK poultry industry. 

Kevin Ayres from Hemyock in the Blackdown Hills has worked in the poultry industry for more than 30 years.  He came to work for West Country poultry firm Lloyd Maunder straight from agricultural college in 1973 for three years and returned to the company in 1997 as its breeder manager.

Kevin attended a ceremony at the House of Commons where he received the Distinguished Service Award from the British Poultry Council, presented by Jonathan Shaw MP, junior minister at Defra.

“This award is a great surprise and a great honour,” said Kevin.  “Really it's a reflection of the team I worked with at Lloyd Maunder and our collective achievements.  We've faced some real technical and logistical challenges over the last few years, introducing the Devonshire Red and getting it breeding successfully.  But we did it and this award is the icing on the cake for me.”

Andrew Maunder, commercial director at Lloyd Maunder adds, “It was a new bird so we had to learn from scratch how to rear and breed it.   It was a massive and complex job, but Kevin helped get it established very quickly which meant we've been able to increase Devonshire Red output to 60% of our total in just four years.”

The slow growing Devonshire Red breed is exclusive to Lloyd Maunder, having been developed for rearing in its higher welfare systems including organic, free range and RSPCA Freedom Food.  The breed was first introduced to the outdoor systems in 2003 and the Freedom Food system in 2004.

As breeder manager at Lloyd Maunder, Kevin managed eight breeder farms producing up to 650,000 fertilised eggs per week for Lloyd Maunder's hatchery near Kentisbeare.  This included working with farmer Bill Yates to set up the company's first organic breeder farm, which now supplies up to 30 per cent of fertilized Devonshire Red eggs for Lloyd Maunder's organic rearing farms.

Kevin's impressive poultry industry CV also includes working as breeder farm manager for Devon Crest Poultry Ltd. and technical manager for Ross Breeders.  He also ran his own poultry breeding farm for six years, supplying Lloyd Maunder with fertilised eggs before re-joining the company 10 years ago.  On top of all this, he also served as Chairman of the British Poultry Breeders and Hatcheries Association for two years, during which time he represented breeders and hatchers to the wider national poultry industry and in Europe

“The award is a fitting tribute to his contributions over the years,” says Jeremy Blackburn of the British Poultry Council.  “It wouldn't be an understatement to say he was a major pioneer in the UK, particularly of best practice for breeding the slow growing Hubbard, from which the Devonshire Red has been derived.”

In June this year Kevin left Lloyd Maunder after 10 successful years to pursue other interests, but always with an eye on developments in the poultry sector. 

(picture credit: Poultry World)

For more press information contact Veronica Newport on 01363 866188 or email veronica@n-pr.co.uk.