Why outdoor pig breeder plans expansion into rearing

Putting plans into action for a new pig rearing enterprise is top of Norfolk pig farmer Mike Durrant’s to-do list this year.

Instead of selling all weaners from his 1,700 outdoor sows at five weeks old, Farmer’s Weekly’s 2025 Pig Farmer of the Year has been researching and planning two rearing units.

Across his two breeding units, Mike would aim to retain about 2,000 weaners and rear them inside on straw, taking them through to finishing weight.

See also: Farmers Weekly Awards 2025: Pig Farmer of the Year

He is looking at options on the Worstead Estate, which is keen for more muck to use on the arable land, plus a site further afield.

Expansion plans

As well as the possibility of renting and converting existing sheds, he has not ruled out a new-build unit.

“It’s always something I have thought about, and then after winning the award and having conversations with Pilgrim’s Europe, I thought ‘why don’t we give it a go?’,” he says.

Mike believes sticking with a scheme that pays a set rate, rather than exposing himself to price fluctuations in the market, is a “no-brainer” for his business.

He says the numbers look so good, he would encourage anybody with a spare shed or yard space to research the options available as a potential diversification.

This venture into rearing and finishing will be Mike’s second expansion in a short window, after acquiring the second of his two herds last year.

For this business, he took on the existing team of staff, who have all had training on the British Quality Pigs (BQP) protocols.

Mike speaks with the manager every day but has largely left them to it, believing it better for morale if he resists making changes when “it’s ticking along nicely” and he is happy with results.

Weather challenges on an outdoor site

Since nearly doubling pig numbers, Norfolk has experienced a hot, dry summer and a very wet winter.

The sows coped well in the heat, thanks to the sprinklers and shades Mike has installed. He says the insulated huts also paid well.

What was more challenging was the long, wet winter.

While the sows love wallowing, Mike knows he will run out of straw and must pay a premium to buy more in, having used up the estate’s supplies.

The heavy rainfall has also led to problems with rutted tracks, so Mike has invested in a lighter-weight feeder and intends to downsize the tractor.

“We want to get away from the compaction, so we will do similar to arable farmers, probably using big flotation tyres on a lighter tractor and looking at optimal tyre pressures to reduce the damage,” he says.

As soon as the ground dries up, he will be cultivating the tracks to level them out and using the grass harrow to reseed the pens with a grass mix formulated for outdoor pig units.

Last summer, Mike began trialling ad-lib feeders for the sows – he has found pigs to be contented and been very pleased with how well they have worked.

Converting fully, however, requires large investment so is one for the longer-term to-do list.