The Accidental Smallholder Forum
Livestock => Pigs => Topic started by: Laurasfarm on September 12, 2013, 11:12:25 am
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I just came across this website
http://www.thepigidea.org/get-involved.html (http://www.thepigidea.org/get-involved.html)
They are campaigning for the feeding of food waste (including kitchen) to be fed to pigs again. They raise good points but don't mention the 8billion foot and mouth cost or the animal slaughtered
what does everyone think?
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Some views on this earlier in the year:
http://www.accidentalsmallholder.net/forum/index.php?topic=33880 (http://www.accidentalsmallholder.net/forum/index.php?topic=33880)
:thumbsup:
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Well it used to be what everyone did but I suppose the food chain is much more complex now with food coming from all over and different countries.....If a family kept pigs and collected food waste from friends it was usualy local produce, I am talking over 40 years ago...now it could come from anywhere and more likely to carry stuff to contaminate the piggies...its a hard one, I agree as the pigs should taste better, the feed cheaper and the waste less..... ???
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Im on the fence with this one. I think there is an argument for common sense but then again, there are different levels of common sense.
I see nothing wrong with giving them my kitchen waste because i know whats been in contact with meat and what processed food is etc.
There is also the argument that pigs have been fed kitchen waste for years without issue And the rumour that foot and mouth may have been started by the goverment, similar to the BSE scare in an attempt to move all the farming in eurpoe to france.
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So many people also think they have common sense when they don't......I am not sure my husband would know the difference between processed food and natural stuff :innocent:
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I would prefer to feed fruit and veg waste as it does at least look like food, unlike the cardboard we are supposed to buy in bags. Not so keen on scrapings from plates etc as you can't tell what is in it and I don't like to feed pork to pigs (not sure they mind tho!) Also commercially, people are not always very careful and can see possibilities for getting light bulbs in swill for example.
Also depends very much on your set up, personally I cannot see the argument that someone raising a couple of weaners for the freezer is going to be spreading disease among the entire pig population of the UK when the pigs have only ever left the holding to go to the abbatoir. Obviously, if they were breeding and selling them the situation would be different.
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Re HGL's comment that it was widespread practice 40 years ago, that is quite correct but so was the incidence of outbreaks of Foot & Mouth, Swine Fever and Swine Vesicular Disease! All of these declined in frequency until a localised outbreak of Swine Fever in 2000 and then the disaster of FMD in 2001. The livestock industry couldn't be trusted with the more severe restrictions on feeding food waste introduced in the early 1970s so the EU Commission banned all feeding of kitchen waste throughout the EU in 2001. Seems the only way is a total ban as there will always be stupid individuals pushing at the boundaries and as far as I'm concerned that is the only solution and I wouldn't support The Pig Idea one iota.
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I don't support it either. It would just encourage irresponsible and ignorant keepers to feed risky stuff. And the idea of collecting food waste and processing it into pig feed centrally? What the hell's the point of that? It would cost a fortune and be of no benefit to pig keepers.