Farmers' crisis plea on costs

Shropshire pig farmers were handing a petition to Downing Street today to demand support from the Government for an industry which is in meltdown.

Record wheat prices have resulted in feed costs tripling in the last 18 months, meaning every pig farmer is losing about £20 per animal.

Richard Hooper, who manages the pig unit at Harper Adams University College in Edgmond, was joining the protest. He said Shropshire was suffering greatly as a result of the industry's volatility.

"Across Shropshire we are producing between 30 to 50 per cent fewer pigs than we were last year," he explained.

"We have seen some big units pack up recently and they have been well-known family farms. But that is a sign of the meltdown, that even the big boys can't cope with this downturn."

Richard said the public's interest in British produce gave him and others hope for the future, and believed that a march on Downing Street would highlight the issue.

Organisers of the 500-strong delegation, which includes NFU president Peter Kendall and his deputy Meurig Raymond, were due to hand in their petition to 10 Downing Street at just after midday.

He said: "People do care about where their meat comes from and they do care about its quality. British farmers are constantly trying to work to better standards and have the highest welfare of any country in the world. But all that costs money and we should be getting a better return.

"If our industry continues the way it is going then any hopes of a sustainable recovery will be dashed."

Stewart Houston, chairman of the National Pig Association, said most of the supply chain now recognises "the appalling situation we are all going to find ourselves in unless we quickly find solutions to the shakeout that is currently taking place in the national pig herd".

He urged retailers to support the rally and to respond to the messages it sends out. "Our key message is that higher pig prices now will prevent a crisis of supply availability towards the end of the year."

"We urgently need you to pass price increases down the chain to producers. Whilst many retailers have made sympathetic noises about increasing prices, the American giant Wal-Mart has insisted it will continue to put pressure on suppliers."

He added: "This policy, driven from the US, hangs over the industry like the grim reaper. For as long as Asda maintains this aggressive stance it is difficult for other retailers to translate their support into positive action."

By Rural Affairs Editor Nathan Rous