Red Tractor Pigs Board chair Stewart Houston spoke to Alistair Driver about a number of key initiatives agreed by the Red Tractor Pigs Board at its November meeting.
The Red Tractor Pigs Board has set in motion further discussions about standards for flexible farrowing that could, at some point, form part of a new indoor Enhanced Welfare module, and on a possible future environmental module for the pig sector.
At its meeting in November, the board also unanimously confirmed, as announced earlier in the week, that outdoor pig producers will, for the first time, be able to use a Red Tractor Enhanced Welfare logo early in 2026.
Enhanced Welfare
Producers will have the opportunity to transition to the Enhanced Welfare Outdoor Bred and Free Range modules from February 1, 2026, placing Red Tractor in direct competition with RSPCA Assured for outdoor pig production assurance.
Stewart Houston, chair of Red Tractor’s pigs sector board, stressed that the drive for this has come from the pig sector. “The industry wanted us to do it, and it fits in perfectly with our challenge from the UK Farm Assurance Review to reduce the number of audits for farmers.”
Enhanced Welfare producers can be covered by a single Red Tractor audit, rather than having separate Red Tractor and RSPCA Assured audits.
He said there was lots of interest among outdoor producers, including some of the biggest in the UK, and the main processors, which are all represented on the pigs board. Some retailers are keen to move quickly, while others are waiting to see what sort of volumes will be involved before committing.
“There is a lot of commitment to this. We’ve had interest from various supply chains in changing over,” he said.
But while RSPCA Assured members will be able to start the transition from February 1, there will be a lag before the logos start appearing on retail packs.
A lot of work has been done to ensure producers making the transition avoid additional audit requirements while supply chains are adapting. For example, Red Tractor will recognise RSPCA Assured audits, given the similarities between the standards, so they can carry Enhanced Welfare Outdoor Bred or Free Range logos before their next Red Tractor audit.
There has been plenty of debate in recent months about the exact wording of the logo.
“We carried out substantial research with about 3,000 consumers and the label: ‘Enhanced Welfare – Outdoor Bred’ came out top by a long way,” Mr Houston said.
He added that separate consumer research puts the Red Tractor logo ‘streets ahead’ of others, including RSPCA Assured, in terms of recognition and use.
An RSPCA Assured spokesperson said: “We welcome any move to improve pig welfare. However, tiered assurance models risk confusing consumers, and the continued use of farrowing crates is a major concern.
“RSPCA Assured is the UK’s only independent farm assurance scheme solely focused on farmed animal welfare. Our label means every animal is reared to higher welfare standards, without exception.”
Flexible farrowing
The Red Tractor pigs sector board also agreed that the pigs technical advisory committee (TAC) should develop options for an industry approach to flexible farrowing.
“We are seeing producers invest heavily in flexible farrowing systems,” Mr Houston said. “Although Defra’s welfare strategy, which is due soon, might shed a bit more light, we are probably not going to see any real detail until a consultation next year, or even in 2027.
“We’ve got to the stage where we think producers need some guidance and clarity, particularly on square footage, but also elements like the sow’s turning circle and creep areas. We will involve pig farmers in the discussion, but initially we’ll put it to the TAC to look at what information is available in the marketplace and where we might go.
“We are also pushing to ensure that anyone who is currently pioneering these systems should be granted grandfather rights, if their installation doesn’t meet what ultimately comes out of the consultation.”
Mr Houston said Red Tractor’s work with flexible farrowing ties in with ongoing discussions about a possible future enhanced welfare module for indoor-bred pigs.
He said there were ‘hints’ that some retailers would like to see an indoor module that also could include issues like space and straw provision. “We need to look at whether we can help producers get something back from the marketplace,” he said.
Environment standard
The pigs board has also asked the TAC to look at what could constitute an environmental module for pigs.
After the controversy generated by Red Tractor’s attempt to introduce a Greener Farms Commitment across its sectors, Mr Houston stressed that, again, this has the unanimous support of the pigs board – and would be developed in consultation with the industry. The pig sector would be moving ahead of other sectors in this area.
“It’s back on the agenda because processors and retailers are increasingly asking for environmental credentials,” Mr Houston said.
“Unless we do something on the environment, we’re going to have several retail schemes requiring additional checks and audits – adding to the audit burden for producers
“So, we need to look at the potential for building an environmental module for the pigs sector that helps the supply chain and also benefits the producer by potentially reducing the need for multiple audits.”
l The pigs board’s strategy for the sector, which will include details on some of these areas, will be published in December.