Farmer Stories
Come and meet our pig farmers!
Ian - FreshPork Farm, South Island
I am Technical Manager for FreshPork Farms in the South Island. It’s a great place to farm and the soil is ideal for breeding outdoor pigs. We have 1,200 sows as well as some pig growing facilities, including ecobarns, on our farm. We also run a few sheep and cattle.
I’ve worked on many different types of pig farms around New Zealand and Australia, and have researched best practice farming. My background knowledge from years of experience helps me to understand what research is relevant and practical for our pigs.
I love working with pigs. They have unique personalities and fascinating behaviours. Some people have a negative impression about the pig but few people that I have introduced to pigs fail to enjoy the experience.
For me this job isn’t about the money, although money is an essential part of the equation. The greatest enjoyment is about seeing animals perform to the best of their ability through good animal husbandry procedures.
Graham - Upper North Island
I’ve been working in the industry since 1980 and I’m very passionate about pig farming and producing high quality pork products.
Farming is the perfect lifestyle for me – I get to make a living out of the land that I love, and my family can also be involved. I run the farm, while my wife runs our butchers shop and online bacon company, Long Flat Bacon. My farm is on the way to Dargaville and is home to around 1,800 pigs at any one time.
We feel that our personalities are well suited to this lifestyle, we’re calm and quiet people, we relate well to the animals, love giving them a scratch behind the ears and spending time with them. My wife and I feel that our farm is a bit like our very own maternity ward, and the pigs are our babies.
For us it is about giving our animals the best possible care so that we can present a product that our customers really appreciate. Selling our products at Farmers Markets allows us to get close to our customers and the positive feedback is very satisfying.
For me, this job is not just about farming, but about best practice and taking a leadership role in the industry. That’s why I’ve been actively involved, and was a Pork Board Director for 15 years. A major achievement while I was Director was overseeing the changes to the National Animal Welfare Code to ensure best practice farming.
A highlight for me was when I sent a ham to top restaurateur, Martin Bosley, last year and he got in contact with me and said it was the best ham he’s ever eaten. It’s feedback like that, that makes all the hard work and hours tending to my pigs worth it!
James - Ashburton
I was born and bred in the United Kingdom, and came to New Zealand five years ago to manage a pig farm. The opportunities and "can-do" attitude in New Zealand has enabled us to establish our farm in the Ashburton district. I have 20 years of pig farming experience and I’ve noticed a lot less bureaucracy and paperwork in New Zealand, which allows me to focus on what I do best - looking after my pigs!
I enjoy looking after pigs because they’re such responsive animals - you can see the results of your efforts with them immediately, and that’s really rewarding.
We have 500 sows on our farm, with around 3,800 pigs all up. I’m proud of the pork we produce and it’s always a good feeling when I head to the supermarket and see our pork in the chiller.
It’s great to be involved with the New Zealand Pork industry - we can all be proud of the high standard of New Zealand pork products and we keep our produce hormone free, which sets us apart from a lot of imported pork.
Steve - North Canterbury
I run one of the biggest pig farms in New Zealand based in North Canterbury with my friend and fellow farmer, Jens.
The 3,500 sows all live outdoors and are free to roam around freely within their paddocks whenever they want. Each sow produces around 22 piglets each year meaning Patoa supplies almost 10% of all the pork produced in New Zealand. Jens and I are passionate about looking after our pigs, and so are the 45 staff that work on the farm. If they don't love animals like we do, then they won’t stay here for long.
Jens is often involved in the day to day running of the farm and is proud of the staff and the care they show toward the pigs. Pigs are highly intelligent creatures which need to be nurtured and cared for. Farming outdoors can have its down sides, like working in all weathers, but it often means the pigs do not suffer from respiratory diseases because they have more exposure to fresh air and sunlight. We would only consider farming pigs outdoors because it achieves a much more acceptable environment for the pigs’ welfare.
These pigs are our livelihood so we look after them as best we can - the happier our pigs are the happier we are!