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

Whisper it, but we all secretly know outdoor pigs rule, OK?

Guest WritersBy Guest WritersJuly 1, 20173 Mins Read
LinkedIn Twitter Facebook Email

Many outdoor pig units are on land rented from a large-scale arable farm or estate.
Based purely on observation, here’s my guide on how to avoid fallouts with all of the other departments.
You have to accept that the outdoor pigs are probably seen as one of the least important things on the place and are only thought of when there is a problem that can be blamed on you.

At the top of the tree would undoubtedly be the shoot. This is because the owner spends a huge amount of his winter shooting, both at home and as a guest at other places. Spending so much time in the company of his gamekeepers means that they have his ear. If you upset the keepers, you, by default, quickly upset the owner. Don’t do as one, now ex-producer, did on a shoot day when they walked down the line of pegs where the guns stood, pulling the pegs up and not-so-politely telling the guns where to go before getting into a physical altercation with the keepers. That was not a good idea.
You must also accept that a shoot doesn’t follow normal biosecurity rules. You have to just hope that any participating pig farmers don’t wear their pristine French Wellington boots on their pig units, at least until they are too old and scruffy to be seen on a shoot.

Next down the pecking order would be the home farms, which have not been seriously profitable since the heyday of the 1980s, but still bask in that former glory.

Sometimes internal politics can get in the way here. On many places, the farm manager and the head keeper don’t see eye-to-eye, as the farming activities are seen to get in the way of shooting, while the shoot gets in the way of farming and is also bankrolled by the farm. If you get on too well with the farm manager, the ’keeper won’t think much of you and vice versa, so you have to be careful in choosing your close ally.

Usually it would be the farm manager, as you need him for straw, borrowing bits and pieces and, most importantly, giving you the decent, free draining fields.
Next on the list might be the other people that rent ground for vegetables, maize, etc. The rent that these people pay for quite a few acres can make them the most profitable part of the enterprise, even rivalling EU grants. They don’t create strange smells, either.

The trendsetters in agriculture, however, have now started to remember soil biology. Outdoor pigs on light enough land can only be good, with all of that lovely muck put back on it, and almost zero agrochemical applications during the occupancy. Little will rival outdoor pigs in terms of what is put back into the local economy through employed staff and turnover per hectare.

So keep it quiet, but we all know that outdoor pigs really rule the roost.

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
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
Share. LinkedIn Facebook Twitter Email
Previous ArticleHow consumer power could end Russia’s antibiotic silence
Next Article Zinc removal requires common sense from all
Guest Writers

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

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.