'There have been pigs in the family for 50 years' - BBC highlights devastating impact of labour shortages on pig sector

BBC Look North has highlighted how the current labour shortages across the sector are forcing some prominent farmers out of business. 

In an excellent feature highlighting the seriousness of the current crisis, Yorkshire pig farmer Ed Rowbottom explained how he is being forced to get out of an industry his family has proudly been a part of for five decades years. The last pigs on the farm will be gone by the weekend.

"It's been wrench. There have been pigs in the family for 50 years. It's upsetting, it's disappointing," Ed said. 

The NPA's Charlie Dewhirst was also interviewed, highlighting the need for urgent solutions to prevent a major welfare crisis. 

"Some farms are reaching the end of their tether and unless we find a way of working with the processors, we will have to look at that extreme action of a cull," he said. 

You can view the feature for a short time HERE