Swedish visitors ......

Last year we had visitors from Denmark, France & Holland literally dropping in to see us but last Thursday we had a more formal visit from Swedish Pig Farmers Catarina and Jan Arvidsson who came with their daughter Mari.

Mari is studying Environmental Science at UEA for one year and whilst on a visit to see her, her parents were also keen to take the opportunity to visit a UK pig farmer. We are very  honoured that through The NPA website they chose to visit Scotts Field Pork 

The Arvidsson’s live on a 250 hectare organic farm in northern Sweden which grows some cereals but is mainly laid to pasture for 80 suckler cows and their calves as well as a 120 sow breeding herd.

Jan explained that from November to March the temperature does not rise above zero so all livestock has to be housed in the winter. As the pigs are organic their winter quarters have access to outdoor runs and then in the summer the entire herd is moved outside to live in arcs as in the UK. They are fed on organic home grown cereals and beans mixed with silage as it is a requirement that 50% of the diet must be produced on the farm.

Unlike us The Arvidssons do not sell directly to butchers. Their pig enterprise is part of a group of linked small scale family farms which between them produce 25,000 organic pigs a year for a Swedish supermarket. Some farmers have the sows and piglets up to 10 weeks of age they are then moved on to another farm to take them up to slaughter weight. Each producer receives an agreed price for their pigs as part of a 3 year contract. 

It was great to meet like minded people from another country who do the same job as me. We farmers are notorious for thinking that we work in isolation. It was interesting to hear from fellow farmers from a different country that they are experiencing similar problems to those that we have in the UK. 

We can also learn from one another too. The Arvidssons were very impressed with our Large Blacks as they farm commercial hybrids - they were very interested in the fact that here in the UK we are able to produce a commercial product from a rare breed pig something that is almost unheard of in Sweden as they no longer have their native breeds.

In turn I was fascinated by the fact that they feed their stock on silage - something that I will definitely be reading up on.

If you would like more information on The Arvidsson farm please visit their website