Electronic identification (EID) of pigs has many benefits, yet uptake generally remains low in the UK, particularly compared with some of our EU competitors, such as the Netherlands. Barriers include cost, uncertainty among some farmers about how to use the data, appropriate equipment at abattoirs and, according to consultant Dominic Charman, who has worked on EID on a number of UK farms, a pre-occupation with breeding herd performance above that of finishing. “The vast majority of UK producers are paid for kilos on a hook, not pigs per sow per year,” he said. “The reality is, however, that breeding herd…