When visitors come to Meadow Barn Farm they are often curious about the different animals we have. However, it’s our pigs who capture most people’s interest.

Firstly, people are intrigued about the striking differences between breeds. Our pigs are rare breeds, including Devon Large Blacks, Saddlebacks and Berkshires. Rare breeds are generally rare as they don’t fit the criteria needed for modern industrial farming methods, for example they may take longer to grow or convert too much feed to fat.

Secondly, visitors also enjoy watching the pigs out and about, going about their (sometimes mischievous) piggy business. Pigs really are quite charming animals, however they are not a common sight in our rural landscape, unlike sheep and cows. A statistic I heard a few years ago is suggests that only 2% of pigs in the UK are really free range. This probably explains why none of us see pigs that often but see plenty of bacon, ham and sausages, etc,. in the supermarkets, and why visitors enjoy seeing them on the farm. 

The Meadow Barn Farm pigs are truly free range. They live outdoors and are moved regularly from patch to patch. This means they enjoy a varied diet, but have plenty of space so they can go about their natural behaviours like foraging, rooting for grubs, grazing on grass and wallowing in mud.

We also have relationships with local producers who generously give us produce that may otherwise end up in the bin. For example, a local brewer passes us the ‘spent grain’ which is a by-product of the brewing process, but the pigs absolutely love it (even though it makes our car smells rather interesting…)! We also get a large amount of seconds vegetables local organic supplier. This means that our pigs regularly feast on all manor of very delicious fruit and vegetables - those that would not go amiss in the smartest of home-delivered veg boxes! On top of this we have a large quantity of organic grain from a local farm that we soak (in order make the proteins digestible for the pigs).

What all this means is that our pigs are very happy, and they are fed on very little (soon to be no) soy. Many people do not realise quite how much soy is imported into the UK to be used as animal feed. Soy if often used for animal feed because it is particularly high in protein and other nutrients, and it is also cost effective. However, is does have implications on the environment, so we'd rather avoid it if we can.

We are also working towards growing our own crops to feed the pigs and have them grazing a wider area. In the meantime, we will continue to turn the waste of others into food by feeding it to our pigs.

We feel privileged to care for these rare breeds of pig. They are a joy to be around and have wonderful characters.

If you’re passing-by or staying with us on the farm, and fancy it, you can buy some sausages, bacon or joints in the knowledge that every care has been taken in the welfare of the animals and the wider environment. We would also be happy to introduce you to our rare and happy pigs.