UK bacon manufacturer Denhay Farms is rolling out a new line of “raised without antibiotics” bacon under its Spoiltpig brand in partnership with Scottish pig farmer Brydock Farms.

Denhay, based in Honiton, Devon, said all pigs at Brydock Farms in the Scottish Highlands are now outdoor bred and raised without the use of antibiotics from birth.

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“The farming system used to achieve this has been specially devised to ensure the pigs are not mixed in ages, which avoids illness to the extent that 85-90% of all the pigs reared to this system do not need to be administered antibiotic treatments,” Denhay said.

“This system takes the principles of the benefits of a late weening period to avoid illness and applies with a method that avoids inflating to organic standard prices for consumers,” Denhay said. “Where pigs do require treatment, this is delivered direct to the individual animals – not the entire herd.”

Managing Director for Spoiltpig Jim Loescher said the new line highlighted the company’s “concern regarding the global issue relating to antibiotic resistance and how farming impacts this”. “We believe in farming responsibly and always strive to do the right thing,” he added.

The initiative has been welcomed by the Alliance to Save our Antibiotics – a coalition of health, medical, farming, environmental and civil society organisations from across the European Unioin founded by Sustain, Compassion in World Farming and the Soil Association.

The Alliance said the initiative “shows how major improvements in animal husbandry and welfare can greatly contribute to reducing farm antibiotic use, while still delivering affordable meat.” 

The Spoiltpig brand was launched in 2008. Denhay said the launch was with the support of UK supermarket chain, Morrisons, “after consumers highlighted a gap for a high welfare, high quality dry cured bacon brand in the market”. 

The new bacon is on sale in Morrisons, Tesco, Nisa, Budgens and Spar stores in addition to e-retailers Ocado and Amazon Fresh. The new product is available in variant packs of dry cured smoked back bacon, dry cured unsmoked back bacon and dry cured smoked streaky bacon priced from GBP3.00 (US$3.81). 

In September last year, the World Health Organization backed the production and consumption of meat products derived from animals that have not been treated with antibiotics.