A decision on a controversial chicken farm which would house thousands of birds has been delayed after the case was put to central government.

An East Suffolk Council planning committee was to decide whether they would approve three poultry houses for the farming of 141,000 broiler chickens on land next to West End Farm on Mill Lane in Shadingfield, near Beccles.

However two hours before their meeting on Tuesday, July 14, the committee was informed the final decision on the proposed farm would be made by the secretary of state for agriculture George Eustice, who will consider the proposals for the factory farm along with another site in Thorndon.

READ MORE: Calls to block farm set to house up to 141,000 chickens96 objections to the proposed chicken coop have so far been made, with residents of Shadingfield warning the proposed farm “will ruin the local area” and “sets a precedent for the rest of the country”.

Lee Osmon, who petitioned 80 neighbours in opposition to the factory, said: “We are horrified, profit is being put ahead of everything else.

“It’s not just for us, or for Suffolk, but on a national level something needs to be done about this. If you don’t take notice of Shadingfield today, tomorrow this could be your town. They’re doing this all over Suffolk and soon the county could be one big chicken factory.”

Mr Osmon said he was concerned the farm, which if approved would be 400 metres from the village, would cause environmental issues along with smell, light and noise pollution.

He added: “We are all on a drainage ditch system around here, and this whole coronavirus was caused by mismanagement of animals.

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“If there was an avian flu breakout, all of the buildings in Shadingfield would be within the one kilometre zone.”

Historic England has also opposed the plans, as the factory would be built on the front of a historic moat farm.

In the meeting on Tuesday, planning manager Liz Beighton recognised the need for the region to be “self sufficient”, but said the final decision was for central government to make.

County councillors voted unanimously to conduct a site visit examining the relationship between the proposed site and the adjacent historic moat farm.