Pig World
  • News
      • Animal Health
      • Breeding
      • Business
      • Environment
      • EU
      • Food Safety
      • Housing
      • Marketing
      • NPA
      • National Pig Awards
      • New Products
      • Nutrition
      • People
      • Pig Fair
      • Politics
      • Training & Education
      • Welfare
  • Features
    • Animal Health
    • Breeding
    • Environment
    • Farm Visits
    • Herd Recording
    • Housing
    • Marketing
    • Nutrition
    • Products
    • Training
  • Comment
    • AHDB Pork
    • Chris Fogden
    • Dennis Bridgeford
    • Peter Crichton
    • Red Robin
    • Veterinary View
    • Zoe Davies, NPA
  • Numbers
  • Pig Prices
  • Magazines
    • July 2025
    • June 2025
    • 2025 Innovation supplement
    • May 2025
    • April 2025
    • March 2025
    • 2025 Buildings supplement
    • February 2025
    • 2025 Nutrition Supplement
    • January 2025
    • December 2024
    • November 2024
    • 2025 National Pig Awards supplement
    • October 2024
    • September 2024
    • August 2024
    • 2024 Pig Health supplement
    • July 2024
    • June 2024
    • 2024 Innovation supplement
    • 2024 Pig & Poultry Fair Guide
    • May 2024
    • April 2024
    • 2024 Buildings Supplement
    • March 2024
    • 2024 Pig Nutrition supplement
    • February 2024
    • January 2024
    • December 2023
    • November 2023
    • 2023 National Pig Awards supplement
    • October 2023
    • September 2023
    • Health Supplement
  • Suppliers
  • Jobs
    • Browse Jobs
    • Post a Job
    • Manage Jobs
  • Classified
  • Events
    • Pigs Tomorrow
    • National Pig Awards
Podcast
Pig WorldPig World
  • News
      • Animal Health
      • Breeding
      • Business
      • Environment
      • EU
      • Food Safety
      • Housing
      • Marketing
      • NPA
      • National Pig Awards
      • New Products
      • Nutrition
      • People
      • Pig Fair
      • Politics
      • Training & Education
      • Welfare
  • Features
    • Animal Health
    • Breeding
    • Environment
    • Farm Visits
    • Herd Recording
    • Housing
    • Marketing
    • Nutrition
    • Products
    • Training
  • Comment
    • AHDB Pork
    • Chris Fogden
    • Dennis Bridgeford
    • Peter Crichton
    • Red Robin
    • Veterinary View
    • Zoe Davies, NPA
  • Numbers
  • Pig Prices
  • Magazines
    1. July 2025
    2. June 2025
    3. 2025 Innovation supplement
    4. May 2025
    5. April 2025
    6. March 2025
    7. 2025 Buildings supplement
    8. February 2025
    9. 2025 Nutrition Supplement
    10. January 2025
    11. December 2024
    12. November 2024
    13. 2025 National Pig Awards supplement
    14. October 2024
    15. September 2024
    16. August 2024
    17. 2024 Pig Health supplement
    18. July 2024
    19. June 2024
    20. 2024 Innovation supplement
    21. 2024 Pig & Poultry Fair Guide
    22. May 2024
    23. April 2024
    24. 2024 Buildings Supplement
    25. March 2024
    26. 2024 Pig Nutrition supplement
    27. February 2024
    28. January 2024
    29. December 2023
    30. November 2023
    31. 2023 National Pig Awards supplement
    32. October 2023
    33. September 2023
    34. Health Supplement
    Featured

    July 2025 issue of Pig World now available

    July 6, 2025
    Recent

    July 2025 issue of Pig World now available

    July 6, 2025

    June 2025 issue of Pig World now available

    June 4, 2025

    2025 Innovation supplement now available

    June 4, 2025
  • Suppliers
  • Jobs
    • Browse Jobs
    • Post a Job
    • Manage Jobs
  • Classified
  • Events
    • Pigs Tomorrow
    • National Pig Awards
LinkedIn X (Twitter)
Pig World
Chris Fogden

Could the grass be greener?

Alistair DriverBy Alistair DriverOctober 31, 20163 Mins Read
LinkedIn Twitter Facebook Email
First-generation farmer and Nuffield Scholar Chris Fogden owns and manages 950 outdoor sows on 40ha of rented land within the rotation of a large Norfolk arable estate

Full-marks and many congratulations to anyone who won, became a finalist or even entered one of the recent awards ceremonies, including the National Pig Awards. You are truly great ambassadors for the industry and some of the stories behind the businesses are truly inspirational.

At our recent Eastern Region NPA meeting, the tidiness or otherwise of pig farms came up.
I am reminded of this when I gaze enviously at a neighbour’s recently moved herd, which has, as usual for them, gone onto grass stubble resulting from their grass seed crop. Grass cover adds considerably to the aesthetics of an outdoor pig unit as well as its environmental credentials.

Moving onto grass is a situation I’ve long aspired to in vain, as my landlord doesn’t grow grass seed and we have to squeeze into a crop rotation based on two years’ pigs, sugar beet, potatoes, onions, maize for biogas and then back to pigs.

A meeting for outdoor producers in the summer highlighted the risks we can pose to human drinking water quality and a resulting visit to our unit pointed out some remedial measures we could take.

One that grabbed my attention was the potential to undersow maize with grass, to help mitigate environmental problems with maize and leave a beautiful grass sward to move pigs onto after maize harvest.

There are, of course, a few obstacles.
Work in another river catchment in the West Midlands has designed a bespoke seed drill after limited success with more readily available machines. Sorting how this can be made, paid for and finding a suitable contractor is not to be undertaken lightly.

Also, we – meaning the various crop tenants – tend to work in isolation of each other, each seeing our individual enterprise in isolation, rather than being part of a whole. This short-termism is degrading soils as no-one has a long-term interest in their preservation, only for the short years of their occupation.
Overcoming this by working together might lead to benefits for each of us as well as the wider environment.

The best time to drill under-sown grass in maize is a week after the last herbicide. And as my landlord has demonstrated their ability to kill their own sugar beet, I might fear for my grass if they go too near it with a sprayer. At least there is plenty of time before drilling in late May and with the help, encouragement and enthusiasm of Ed from the Norfolk Rivers Trust, we will get there.

We also have another problem with this site: one field drains on to a sandy track in very heavy rain and, in turn, dumps a deep layer of silt on a public road.
We’ve sought advice for design and siting of silt traps and bunds and there might even be some funding available, apparently.

Share. LinkedIn Facebook Twitter Email
Previous ArticleStrong pork focus for EU trade mission to Hong Kong, Vietnam and Indonesia
Next Article How Russian ASF plan could force small pig producers out of business
Alistair Driver

Editor Pig World, group editor Agronomist and Arable Farmer and Farm Contractor. National Pig Association webmaster. Former political editor at Farmers Guardian. Occasional media pundit. Brought up on a Leicestershire farm. Works from a shed in his Oxfordshire garden.

Read Similar Stories

Comment: British pork reimagined: Data-led marketing for a changing consumer

July 9, 2025

Comment: Market recovery, export growth and on-farm innovation

July 7, 2025

Comment: Encouraging signs as big pig issues discussed in parliament

July 4, 2025
Latest News

NPA urges government to address planning constraints and border controls in Batters review submission

July 15, 2025

June UK pig slaughterings up 2.7% year on year

July 15, 2025

Who has gone the extra mile? Nominate 2025 Chris Brant Award winner now

July 14, 2025
Sponsored Content

THE GATEKEEPER OF RESPIRATORY HEALTH – MYCOPLASMA HYOPNEUMONIAE (M.HYO)

April 30, 2024

Tackle the root cause of PWD with free diagnostic tests

March 1, 2024
Current Pig Industry jobs
  • Senior Piggery Stockpersons – Ref 1762 Western Australia

    • Western Australia
    • Roadhogs Recruitment Ltd.
    • Full Time
  • Assistant Pig Farm Manager – Ref 1761 Leicestershire

    • Leicestershire
    • Roadhogs Recruitment Ltd.
    • Full Time
  • Senior-Level Pig Stockperson – Ref 1760 Hampshire

    • Hampshire
    • Roadhogs Recruitment Ltd.
    • Full Time
GETTING IN TOUCH
  • Advertise
  • Contact Us
  • Meet The Editors
  • About Us
  • Email Newsletters
  • Subscribe
  • Reuse permissions
OUR SOCIAL CHANNELS
  • Twitter
  • LinkedIn
PARTNER EVENTS
RELATED SITES
  • Farmers Weekly
  • Agronomist & Arable Farmer
  • Farm Contractor
  • National Pig Awards
  • Pigs Tomorrow
  • Poultry News
  • Weekly Tribune
  • Privacy Policy
  • Cookies Policy
  • Terms and Conditions
© 2024 MA Agriculture Ltd, a Mark Allen Group company

Type above and press Enter to search. Press Esc to cancel.