People in a north Norfolk village have said their lives have become “plagued by flies” from a nearby chicken farm, with hundreds of the insects swarming their homes every day.
People in Fulmodeston, near Fakenham, said their lives were being made a misery after an influx of flies in the village, which are believed to be coming from a chicken farm operated by Banham Poultry.
Villagers have said the swarms of flies are affecting “every aspect” of their lives – posing a hygiene risk when cooking and eating food and preventing them from going outside in their gardens and opening windows during the recent warm summer weather.
Janet Smith, who has lived in the village for 11 years, said residents “can’t go on living like this”.
“We’ve been getting a hundred to 200 flies in our homes every day,” she said.
The chicken farm reopened at the beginning of this year after previously closing in 2020 due to hundreds of complaints from locals to the Environment Agency about the “unbearable smell” and noise coming from the farm.
READ MORE: Chicken farm to shut after complaints of 'unbearable smell'
Residents have said young children have been unable to sleep because of flies crawling on them in the night, and events have been cancelled because of the threat to vulnerable elderly residents.
The issue was first reported to Banham Poultry in April this year. Meetings have taken place between residents and representatives of the company, but the issue is yet to be resolved.
Resident Alison Dalby, who attended the meeting, said: “Our lives cannot continue to be blighted by the reopening of the chicken farm.
“They can’t continue operating the way they are when they are this close to our homes.”
A Banham Poultry spokesperson said: "We are aware of the issues that some of the villagers are facing with regard to flies.
"We are doing everything within our powers to reduce the risk of flies from our activities.
"We will continue to work with the parish council and we are committed to keeping them informed of our progression."
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