Red Tractor moves ahead with outdoor pig tiers, but further refinement needed

By the end of this year, if things go according to plan, outdoor pig producers will have a real choice to make about where to go for farm assurance.

Red Tractor has confirmed it intends to enter a landscape that is currently dominated by the RSPCA Assured scheme. This follows the success of its Enhanced Welfare and Free-Range tiers that have existed in the poultry sector for five years.

But while it is moving forward with creating new modules and labelling for outdoor pig production, there is still plenty of work to be done on what the labels will look like.

This is based on responses to a consultation that showed plenty of support for the principle of Red Tractor introducing outdoor tiers, but raised some important questions.

There was a clear message, however, that the industry does not want Red Tractor to continue, for now at least, with plans to introduce an indoor tier, based on flexible farrowing, given all the uncertainty around it.

The consultation

Red Tractor’s six-week consultation, which ran from April 28 to June 6, sought views on the proposed introduction of an Enhanced Welfare standard, based on outdoor-bred or outdoor-reared pigs finished indoors, with more space and a solid bedded lying area, and a Free-Range tier for pigs with continuous outdoor access.

The consultation included questions about a future enhanced welfare module for indoor pig farms, based largely around flexible farrowing, but also, possibly, space requirements and the provision of straw.

It also sought views on upgrading its core standards to reflect practices already widely accepted across the supply chain.

It received 122 responses from a cross-section of the pig industry, including small independent producers, retailers, vets, integrators and NGOs. Together, respondents represented an estimated 225,000 sows, about 90% of the English sow herd.

Support for outdoor modules

A total of 57% of outdoor producers supported the idea of Red Tractor developing tiered standards and labelling for outdoor-bred pigs with straw-based or free-range finishing.

Across all respondents, 45% supported tiered standards and labelling, including most industry organisations, retailers and integrators.

Based on these responses, the Red Tractor Pigs Board has agreed to move forward with creating new outdoor modules and logos, with the aim of making them available by the end of the year.

The standards will largely mirror RSPCA Assured’s outdoor standards. “The proposed standards for these modules received good support, so most will be adopted,” said Stewart Houston, chair of the Red Tractor Pigs Sector Board.

He said bringing these outdoor tiers alongside Red Tractor’s core standards will provide an opportunity for farmers to reduce the burden of compliance with multiple assurance schemes, a key priority of the recent UK Farm Assurance Review, and provide clearer labelling for consumers.

“We’re also developing plans to support producers with transitioning to these modules, where they wish to,” he said.

Mr Houston said he was ‘extremely confident’ that there will be good uptake right across the supply chain, from small and large independent producers, processors and, crucially, retailers. “This is something we were asked to do by the industry. We’ve had lots of discussions. The whole chain is involved and wants it to happen,” he said.

However, he acknowledged that there are a number of hurdles to overcome if the new scheme is to be up and running this year, including running it past the UK Accreditation Service, which can take time. Discussions will also need to take place with the certification bodies about what the new standards will entail.

Red Tractor will support the uptake of the new standards with guidance for producers and assessors, he added.

Further discussion on names

Another key detail to be confirmed is what the new outdoor modules will be called and how they will be labelled.

The initial proposals were for ‘Enhanced Welfare’ logos, based partly on consumer research with about 3,000 participants, which showed a good understanding of the term, Mr Houston said.

However, some key respondents to the consultation made it clear they wanted the logo to reflect outdoor-bred production, as this is something consumers are already familiar with. Many stressed the importance of clear, transparent labelling that doesn’t risk confusing consumers or undermining the unique value of outdoor systems or the core Red Tractor logo.

As a result of this feedback, Red Tractor is going to conduct further research into labelling options, including a more explicit ‘Outdoor-bred’ label. “There is still a lot of discussion going on around this, and all options remain open,” Mr Houston said.

Indoor module paused

There was a strong consensus – 59% of all respondents, including 72% of producers – that the proposed Enhanced Welfare tier should not include indoor systems, including indoor flexible farrowing.

Based on this and other responses, the Pigs Sector Board has paused its work on an indoor-focused module. Only 35% supported developing an indoor-focused ‘Certified Standards Plus’ module, falling to 28% among producers.

“We heard clearly that the time isn’t right for this. The board has, therefore, paused work on indoor-focused modules, but will continue to explore ways to support producers transitioning to alternative systems,” Mr Houston said.

The consultation looked at the future of farrowing systems. While 75% of producers said they are not planning to install new or second-hand conventional crates, about half said their farrowing equipment is more than 20 years old, highlighting the need for support for investment in acceptable replacement systems, Mr Houston said.

Producers were split on whether Red Tractor should publish standards for flexible farrowing – 48% said this should be done as soon as possible, while 42% wanted Red Tractor to wait. Nearly two-thirds, 62%, said Red Tractor should not yet set a cut-off date for the use of conventional crates.

“There are just too many unknowns around policy in this area. We might be doing producers a disservice if we come up with a standard now that isn’t supported in future by whatever route Defra takes. That is why we have paused it,” Mr Houston said.

Core standards updates

Red Tractor also consulted on changes to existing core standards, partly to align it with other schemes, including RSPCA Assured, and help reduce the audit burden on farms. These included, among others, a requirement for a transport contingency plan, prohibiting rescue decks for young piglets and prohibiting slapmarking other than for identification.

Mr Houston said most of the proposals were straightforward changes and received good support, with feedback helping to ensure requirements are practical and clear. These updates will come into effect alongside the new modules.

The Pigs Sector Board is set to discuss the proposals again in September. “We are all excited to be moving ahead on this, but there is more to be done,” Mr Houston said.