UK free-range egg rules could be relaxed in line with EU for avian flu outbreaks

Ministers considering change that would class eggs laid by hens kept in barns for months under restrictions as free range

Free-range egg rules in the UK could be relaxed in response to the European Union preparing to overhaul regulations after the biggest avian flu outbreak on record.

Ministers are understood to be considering a change to the rules that would mean eggs laid by hens kept in barns for months on end could be classed as free range.