Great Sankey farmers brace themselves amid rare breed pig crisis

The future of some of the UK’s iconic native pig breeds is becoming increasingly insecure and the owners of Great Sankey farm Snoutwood Trotters are preparing themselves for tough times.

Thirteen years ago, Rebecca Scott and Liam Tickle bought two rare breed pigs.

Now the couple have around a hundred Gloucestershire Old Spot pigs on their Laburnum Lane farm.

The Rare Breeds Survival Trust, which works to save and safeguard the future of rare and native livestock, has just announced that the Gloucestershire Old Spot pig has the lowest number of breeders registering births in the UK since 2000 and the breed is now on the charity’s latest watch list as a cause for concern.

Rebecca and Liam bought their first two rare breed pigs 13 years ago (Dave Gillespie)

Rebecca said: “It's a sorry state of affairs for our native breeds as a whole but particularly our native pig breeds.

“We keep pedigree Gloucestershire Old Spot pigs.

“It would be so much cheaper for us to run a modern cross bred herd, so we can sympathise with many of the farmers and small holders who have changed how they keep pigs and what pigs they keep.

“In reality though, we fear it's much worse and that most farmers and small holders have got out of pig farming altogether.”

Over the past few years, Liam and Rebecca have built up a successful business at Snoutwood with a popular free-range pork shop selling bacon, sausages, burgers and other pork products and they also specialise in event catering with hog roasts and pulled pork.

Snoutwood's free-rang farm shop has a wide variety of pork products available to buy every Saturday morning

Rebecca said: “Our business on the retail side is great – we have built up fantastic customer relations and there’s always lots of interest in the shop and our products, plenty of catering bookings and a general interest in all things farming.

“We currently have around 100 pigs but this has fallen from around 150 due to increased costs.

“Sadly, things on the farm are financially very difficult with the current feed and electricity costs.

“The price of animal feed nationally has affected every livestock farmer.

“Before the Covid pandemic, pig food was £180 a tonne and we now pay £450 a tonne.

“The conversion rate on our native breeds is nowhere near as high as the lean modern cross breeds and so to keep traditional breeds your cost is largely multiplied.

“Add to that the fact that traditional breeds convert more to fat than muscle, unlike modern counterparts, so it's easy to see why many of our native breeds are on the endangered list.”

She added: “At Snoutwood, we use more than two tonnes of pig food every week, which costs £900 and added to the electricity costs it’s becoming increasingly unsustainable.

“For farmers who have thousands of pigs, it’s easy to see why so many farms are closing every week.”

Rebecca and Liam have around a hundred pigs on the farm, which is down from 150 in recent times

Rare Breeds Survival Trust’s chief executive Christopher Price said: “The crisis in the pig industry over the past two years is driving a very worrying and worsening situation for several of our rare native breeds.

“Fewer people are keeping these breeds now, and the number of new piglet births is falling too.

“Each of these breeds has unique characteristics - they are part of the UK’s heritage - but they also have an important role in food production today and the resilience of our pig industry into the future.

“We are asking the Government to consider the urgent plight of native breeds as it reviews the pork supply chain, and every single person who chooses native breed produce in a restaurant or at a butchers will be making a real contribution to saving these irreplaceable rare breeds.

“They will be supporting the farmers and smallholders working hard to keep and grow their rare breed herds.”