SHOPPERS in the UK will no longer be able to buy free-range eggs from Monday.

Birds have not been allowed outdoors since November due to fears of avian flu outbreaks.

As a result, eggs sold in shops will be classified as “barn eggs” rather than free-range, the name for eggs produced by hens permanently indoors.

Earlier this month, an outbreak of Avian flu was discovered in Aberdeenshire.

Other outbreaks of H5N1 were identified in Dumfries and Galloway as well as Arbroath towards the end of 2021.

Scotland’s Chief Veterinary Officer Sheila Voas urged all bird keepers to ensure their biosecurity measures were up to scratch.

She said: “The risk to the general public’s health from avian influenza is very low.

“However, the risk to people with intensive exposure to infected birds is considered to be low.

“Food Standards Scotland advises that avian influenzas pose a very low food safety risk for consumers, and it does not affect the consumption of poultry products, including eggs.”

While earlier this year, a confirmed case of bird flue was found in a person in the South West of England.

The UKHSA said the risk to the wider public from avian flu continues to be very low but said people should not touch sick or dead birds.

In a statement, it said: “Bird to human transmission of avian flu is very rare and has only occurred a small number of times in the UK previously.

“The person acquired the infection from very close, regular contact with a large number of infected birds, which they kept in and around their home over a prolonged period of time.

“All contacts of the individual, including those who visited the premises, have been traced and there is no evidence of onward spread of the infection to anyone else. The individual is currently well and self-isolating.”

A Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs spokesman told The Guardian: “The 16-week grace period we allowed for free-range eggs has now been exceeded, and eggs must now be marketed as ‘barn eggs’.

“We have worked closely with the sector and retailers to implement these changes as smoothly as possible.”

Speaking to The Guardian, Aimee Mahony, chief poultry adviser of The National Farmers’ Union, added: “Shoppers may notice different labels on egg packs explaining that the eggs have been laid by hens temporarily housed to protect their health and welfare. Once the risk levels have reduced and the housing measures have been lifted by Defra, birds will be able to go outside again.”