Pedigree pig society to launch

The event will bring together society members and key individuals from the agricultural and food sectors across Wales who have given their support to the revival of the indigenous breed.

The society has grown out of a small group of dedicated producer stalwarts who met in 2005 amid concern that the authentic pedigree Welsh pig was in danger of dying out.

It now has more than 50 individual breeders and with the assistance of Welsh Assembly funding is forging ahead with promotion and development work.

A survey at the beginning of 2009 showed the number of registered breeding stock stood at a mere 367 sows and 77 boars. The society has now set a target of 2,000 pedigree Welsh breeding stock in the national herd by 2012.

The modern Welsh pig can be traced back to an indigenous, white lop-eared breed kept in Wales for as long as records exist.

Originally, the fast growing, easily managed and commercial type was one of the three major breeds on which the modern pig industry was built - but hybrid pig production by commercial breeding companies caused a

dramatic decline in Welsh pig numbers during the 1970s and 1980s.

It was declared an “endangered species” in 2005 and has since been classified as a “rare breed”.

Stalwarts maintain, however, it produces an ideal butcher’s carcase with good lean meat content, a high killing out percentage, good eye muscle and length of loin, well developed hams, sufficient back fat to retain traditional pork flavour and that grades well, even at heavier weights.

Additional benefits are said to include excellent mothering ability, low piglet mortality, fast live weight gain with a good feed conversion ratio, the ability to thrive under all types of management systems and excellent crossing potential with other breeds.

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