Two pandemics and Brexit leave the UK pig sector in danger

For British pig farmers like Simon Watchorn, the beginning of 2021 brought new problems after a 2020 pandemic. British pork producers saw their profits eroded by COVID-19 and an outbreak of the deadly African swine fever (PSA) in Germany, and are now also having to deal with the Brexit bureaucracy that has hammered exports and hampered the demand of major buyers, such as German sausage makers. Pig prices, especially for sows, are plummeting as feed costs skyrocket. “We have expensive feed, PSA, COVID, and now we are struggling to send things abroad. People fell into the red. If the situation does not change, they will close their doors, ”said Watchorn, who lives in Norfolk, eastern England. Pigs that remained on their farm have become overweight and some have lost up to half their value since COVID-19 stopped processing meat last year. This year, Watchorn said Britain's exports to the European Union were so hampered after the country left the EU's single market and customs union ...