Soil Association calls for pig swill review

A review of the ban on swill feeding is among a raft of recommendations to emerge from a report by the Soil Association.

The report, Feeding the animals that feed us, aims to kickstart discussions over the “necessary improvements” to UK livestock feeding regimes.

The association blamed the trend towards intensive factory farming systems over the past 60 years that has meant cows, chickens and pigs were now eating less grass and food waste and more grains and imported proteins such as soya.

“This is a highly inefficient use of resources – the dependence on grain and soya imported from across the globe makes our food systems much less resilient and adds to the vulnerability and unsustainability in our food chain,” the report said.

Rising demand for meat and milk meant more land and resources were being used to feed farm animals, destroying rainforests and grasslands and contributing towards climate change, it added.

Other recommendations included better advice and support to help producers make the most of UK-sourced material and to improve production; market measures to encourage companies to act as pioneers in UK sourcing; and further consultation on the raising of Soil Association standards on the proportion of home-grown feeds required in rations and on fishmeal use.

• Copies of the report are available at www.soilassociation.org/animalfeed.aspx