Britain | Saving your bacon

Britain’s native farm animals can be rarer than giant pandas

To survive, some must be eaten

Pigs at Washingpool farm in Bridport, Dorset.
Sow lonelyPhotograph: Alamy

BRITAIN’S ONE-PIG policy was a success. In 1955 the government endorsed an “improved bacon pig” to help revive the ailing pork industry. A few breeds competed for the role but the portly Large White, which piles on weight quickly and does well indoors, prevailed. Today, an even-plumper descendant of the Large White feeds industrial pig farms up and down the land.

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This article appeared in the Britain section of the print edition under the headline “Saving your bacon”

From the November 25th 2023 edition

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