Free-range eggs have disappeared from supermarket shelves temporarily because of the bird flu outbreak.
Shoppers will now see eggs marked as 'barn' - the name given to eggs produced by hens which are permanently housed indoors. The change has come about because the Government ordered all birds reared for meat and eggs to be kept indoors since November to reduce the risk of an outbreak of avian - or bird - flu.
The rules apply to all birds, whether produced by one hen in a garden or a large-scale poultry business, and the length of time they have now been kept indoors means their eggs can now no longer be labelled free-range.
