Supermarket food supplier Cranswick has pledged to plough £40m into its operations on the back of an independent vet’s review, triggered by claims of pig cruelty at three of its farms.
Earlier this year the FTSE 250 firm faced a third claim of pig abuse at one of its sites, when footage from Mere Farm, near Barton-upon-Humber, was released by campaigners Animal Justice Project. Pictures published by the group appeared to show staff at Mere Farm picking up young pigs and throwing them on the concrete floor – a practice known as “thumping”.
Hull pork producer Cranswick, which owns the farm, said the behaviour was “wholly unacceptable” and sacked several members of staff. The Mere Farm footage came after Animal Justice Project issued images of alleged mistreatment of pigs at two other sites – Northmoor and Somerby Top – and all three farms in question were acquired by Cranswick in 2023 amid a major expansion of its pork production.
When the Somerby Top footage was released by the campaigners in August, Cranswick said it had put a number of measures in place. Measures included retraining all of its pig farm employees, a reminder of its whistleblowing service, the hiring of five new welfare officer positions, installation of new CCTV systems across all of its sites – and an independent vet-led review into its pig farming business.
The results of that review – carried out by Dr Andy Butterworth after making 20 unannounced visits in June, July and August – have been published, with board of Cranswick Plc committing to a new, six-point plan to raise animal welfare standards across its pig farming operations. Dr Butterworth found that the Cranswick farms visited were compliant with legislation and animal welfare standards, and found no evidence of poor handling and treatment of pigs on farm, concluding that the actions seen in the investigative films “were not representative of Cranswick’s normal standards and practices”.
However, he made a list of 44 recommendations, which include the standardisation of farming practices and procedures across all Cranswick pig farms, increased use of surveillance systems to ensure good practice for pig welfare on farms, improvements in the culture and working practices on farms, and increased focus on animal health and welfare outcomes and collaboration with the industry, Red Tractor and Cranswick customers. Cranswick said its new six-point plan will be confirmed by the end of the year.
A Cranswick spokesperson said: “The health and welfare of the pigs we rear is, and always will be, our priority. As soon as this footage was shared with us in May, the Board acted swiftly to understand what had happened and take steps to stop these appalling practices from happening again.
“Many of the changes we have made predate this report – including removing anyone from the business who was found to have broken Cranswick standards and introducing a total ban of non-mechanical blunt force trauma at all Cranswick farms.
“But what this report shows is there is more we can do. As the Ƶ’s leading pork producer, we should go further than simply complying with the law and meeting our own standards. We should be looking to lead the industry and raise standards wherever possible.
“That is why the Board has developed this six-point plan to raise standards across our operations and share our experiences with the wider industry. The Board would like to thank Dr Butterworth for the work he has done and the comprehensive investigation he has undertaken. We will provide a further update in due course on our progress against the six-point plan.”
Dr Andy Butterworth added: “I was commissioned by Cranswick to look at pig operations across all their systems. I found that the behaviours seen in the videos were not exhibited during the farm visits. However there is much that can be done to improve welfare standards across Cranswick operations, and across the pig farming industry, as set out in my report and in the forty-four recommendations I have produced. I recognise Cranswick’s acceptance of the findings, and their commitment to work towards adopting the recommendations.”
