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Farming Today: Pigs

Farming Today This Week

17/05/2014

Pigs

BBC Radio 4 - Farming Today, Pigs

Pigs are on the up! Charlotte Smith explores optimism in the industry.

Pigs are on the up! Charlotte Smith explores optimism in the industry with Sally Stockings, on her outdoor pig farm in Oxfordshire.

It's been a tough few years in the pig industry - competition from cheaper imports, astronomical feed costs, folding businesses - but in this week's programme Charlotte Smith explores increasing optimism in pig farming. She meets Sally Stockings on one of her outdoor, commercial units in Oxfordshire. Across the south of England Sally's business produces 4,000 pigs a week for supermarket shelves all over Britain. After her husband's death four years ago, she decided to keep farming so she could pass the business down to her four sons - it hasn't been easy but she tells Charlotte how they've managed to boost productivity and make a living, with the help of her stock manager Anthony Saunderson.

On one of the hottest days of the year, Sally, Anthony and Charlotte meet some newborn piglets and watch as the sows go wallowing and sploshing in lovely, cool, muddy water. Unfortunately, Charlotte has to battle the rising temperatures in a plastic jumpsuit - all in the name of biosecurity.
And we look back at a week of special reports on pig farming, including the latest 'freedom farrowing' crates at an indoor unit in Yorkshire and the industry's biggest trade event - the Pig and Poultry Fair at Stoneleigh.

Presented by Charlotte Smith and produced by Anna Jones.

Intelligent speech, the most insightful journalism, the wittiest comedy, the most fascinating features and the most compelling drama and readings anywhere in UK radio.

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