Leading Scottish pig farmer Jamie Wyllie welcomed Scotland’s Cabinet Secretary for Rural Affairs Mairi Gougeon on his farm yesterday as the sector faces its worst crisis in a generation.
The Cabinet Secretary was accompanied by local MSP Paul McLennan on the visit to one of several high health pig farms run by Wyllie in East Lothian.
Pig farms across the country are all operating at a substantial and growing loss.
Wyllie estimated that losses of around £26/pig in February 2021 have since deepened to more than £56/pig.
Overdrafts are rising at an alarming rate and several Scottish farmers have already sold off sows to cut loses.
The pig sector encountered significant disruption during the Covid pandemic which affected processing capacity and saw the partial closure of Scotland’s largest pig abattoir facility at Brechin.
Wylie added that disappointingly, several major retailers have continued to stock significant volumes of imported pork, undermining home production and the dramatic spike in animal feed prices in response to the Russian invasion of Ukraine has significantly increased the scale of current losses on pig farms.
“It is in the interests of Scottish consumers, processors, and retailers that farmgate prices for pigs rise immediately to stave off a rapid rate of herd liquidations.”
Speaking on behalf of NFU Scotland, Wyllie thanked the Cabinet Secretary for the pig hardship scheme in Scotland, established following the Covid-driven closure of Brechin abattoir but called on her to consider further immediate, direct support for the sector to ensure a critical mass of production is preserved.
He also asked for the Scottish government to consider an ‘Ongoers’ loan scheme to help financially support those who see their future in the industry.
The union also called on the Scottish government to seek greater retailer support for Scottish pork, pointing out that a small percentage increase in the volume of home-produced pork on supermarket shelves would make a considerable difference.
Help in re-establishing the Chinese export licence at Brechin, lost because of the Covid outbreak at the plant, would also expand the market opportunities for Scottish pig producers.
At a UK level, NFU Scotland called for the Scottish government to push Westminster on the need for proper border controls to monitor pork imports and for the English language requirements for overseas butchers looking to come to the UK to work in our staff-strapped processing sector to be relaxed.
