NPA calls for wild boar controls to protect pig industry
The National Pig Association (NPA) is calling for more concerted efforts to control feral wild boar in the Forest of Dean in response to the threat the rising population poses to commercial pigs.
The most recent survey figures, from March 2016, estimated there were 1,562 feral wild boar roaming the forest, equating to about 21 per sq.km. According to the NPA, populations of wild boar are also spreading to new areas.
NPA chief executive Dr Zoe Davies said: “Feral wild boar pose a very genuine threat to the British pig industry.”
NPA chief executive Dr Zoe Davies said: “Feral wild boar pose a very genuine threat to the British pig industry.
“These pigs are gaining access to waste food when they root around in household bins and at picnic sites. We need to be mindful that in eastern Europe wild boar have been integral in the spread of the deadly African swine fever (ASF) virus.
“If an exotic disease like ASF got into the UK’s wild boar population, it would become almost impossible to prove that the disease had been stamped out. This would wreck our burgeoning export market, now worth £350 million a year, with devastating consequences for the industry.”
The NPA is joining forces with the Deer Initiative to host a wild boar summit in January to discuss possible solutions to the worsening situation. Experts are warning that the wild boar population could rise to 10,000 within a few years unless proper controls are put in place, the NPA has said.
Of the NPA’s decision to work with the Deer Initiative and fun a wild boar summit, Davies commented: “We want to highlight to MPs and bodies like Natural England, Defra and the Forestry Commission the wider implications of further feral wild boar population growth on the pig industry, as well as the wider impact on local communities.
“We will be encouraging local landowners to join forces and help the Forestry Commission to properly control the population and prevent further spread.
“But we also need co-ordinated action. Defra believes that wild boar control should be the responsibility of the landowner. We are therefore calling for Defra to put pressure on the Forestry Commission, as responsible landowner of a significant proportion of the Forest of Dean, to carry out an efficient cull that is properly resourced.
“The wild boar population is expanding because the conditions – warm winters, plentiful food and no natural predators – are ideal. The Deer Initiative predicts the population could reach 10,000 by 2020 unless proper controls are put in place. That would not be in anybody’s interests.”
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