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
Sam Walton

January 2015: Greed, or desperation, keeps us hanging on

PW ReportersBy PW ReportersDecember 29, 20143 Mins Read
LinkedIn Twitter Facebook Email

Another year dawns, which inevitably makes me wonder what 2015 will bring. Some lucky people seem to have a magic wand and get their predictions right every time; I’m not quite at that level, but I do try – which reminds me of an old school report of mine that said “he really is trying”!

At harvest time, the wheat price locally was hovering a few pounds above the £100 mark and the forecast was that it wouldn’t rise until after next harvest. Are there some traders hidden away somewhere who cause chaos in the grain market? It’s already £30 up, so they will have made another fortune.

As often happens, when things start to rise, they keep on rising for a while, and then we get greedy, or is it desperate, and hang on. Similarly, as prices drop, they too keep on dropping and again we hang on, as they can’t possibly get any lower! At least it makes life interesting, but one heck of a challenge to pig farmers trying to fix their feed prices.

Who would have thought that bird flu would arrive again? It certainly caused a lot of hassle in this area, with pig farmers not being able to move their finished pigs – and we all know what happens when they get overweight; compensation perhaps? A pig just flew past my window!

It certainly reminded us that even though we’re an island, disease will find a way, so we can’t be too careful. Wouldn’t it be nice if we were self-sufficient and didn’t have to bring in anything, not that imports caused this outbreak. It’s thought wild birds, either arriving or passing through, carried it here.

My contact in Denmark, the delightful Trina Vig Tamstorf informs me that the Danish pig industry has spent £2.75 million on a state-of-the-art disinfectant centre on the Danish/German border, through which every livestock lorry entering Denmark will have to pass. Demark exports millions of piglets to Germany and Poland (among others), and this investment has been made because the pig industry remains the country’s lifeline. We would need one of these at all our ports, but I guess if we had, there would still be one or two “entrepreneurs” who might just find a way round it.

Every pig farmer I spoke to in December mentioned the price falling about 1p/kg/week at present. It doesn’t sound much, but it’s 80p/pig and you don’t need many pigs for that penny to make a huge difference to the total received.

I wonder if retailers will ever be brave enough to pay the same pig price every week, all year round, like my local butcher, Chris Tindall in Driffield. He also pays the same price for beef all the time, and both are above market prices. In addition to paying the same price, we still need to have a fairer three-way split on the finished product.

A happy and prosperous New Year to you all, and keep the info coming!

> Sam Walton Yorkshire farmer Sam Walton is a former pig producer and the founding editor of Pig World

Share. LinkedIn Facebook Twitter Email
Previous ArticleChristmas Q&A special – Acting Chief Executive, AHDB, and Director, BPEX, Mick Sloyan
Next Article Liquid feeding systems are all automated now
PW Reporters

Read Similar Stories

Current optimism means producers can fix the roof while the sun shines

October 5, 2017

Global pork news gives our producers plenty to cheer

May 6, 2017

The price is right for a prosperous year

February 1, 2017
Latest News

ABN kicks off pioneering long-term mill project

July 11, 2025

Red Tractor to press ahead with new tiers for outdoor pig producers

July 10, 2025

Last chance to enter or nominate for 2025 National Pig Awards

July 10, 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-Level Pig Stockperson – Ref 1760 Hampshire

    • Hampshire
    • Roadhogs Recruitment Ltd.
    • Full Time
  • Pig Stockperson – Ref 1759 North Yorkshire

    • North Yorkshire
    • Roadhogs Recruitment Ltd.
    • Full Time
  • Pig Stockperson – Ref 1758 Norfolk

    • Norfolk
    • 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.