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Better Pork Featured Articles

Better Pork magazine is published bimonthly. After each edition is published, we share featured articles online.


Acorn-eating pigs save ponies

Thursday, December 5, 2013

After a wet spring and a dry summer, there's a bumper crop of acorns in the Hampshire woodland on the southern coast of England. That's bad news for the region's famous New Forest ponies. In a Daily Mail article, top forest official Jonathan Gerelli said: 'The problem is that our ponies like the acorns but the acorns don't like them. If they eat them, they tend to start to bleed internally and die a horrible death."

But the acorns aren't poisonous to pigs, so every year in about mid-September local farmers let their pigs loose in the forest to save the ponies from themselves by eating the fallen acorns first. This practice is known as "pannage," and has been going on in the region since the 19th century, when some 6,000 pigs would forage. These days, the number is usually around 200, though the unusually high amount of acorns called for double the pigs this year. After about 60 days in the 70,000-acre forest, the pigs are rounded up and returned to their farms. As a side benefit, pannage fattens up the pigs for Christmas. BP

Current Issue

October 2025

Better Pork Magazine

Farms.com Swine News

B.C. building new plant and animal health centre

Wednesday, October 15, 2025

The B.C. government is building a new plant and animal health centre in Abbotsford. The new facility will be located at 34252 King Rd. next to the University of Fraser Valley’s Abbotsford campus. “This new centre will help producers prevent and respond to disease threats, protect our... Read this article online

New MacDon FD2 Plus Draper Header

Wednesday, October 15, 2025

Case IH continues to expand its innovative harvest equipment lineup with the launch of the MacDon FD2 Plus Draper Header, a new series designed to provide farmers with smoother, cleaner, and more efficient harvesting. Available in multiple widths — 30, 35, 40, 45, 50, and even 61... Read this article online

Ag in the House: Oct. 6 – 10

Tuesday, October 14, 2025

The Liberal government held its position on supply management when the Bloc Quebecois pressed MPs on the topic during question period last week. On Oct. 7, Yves Perron, the Bloc’s agriculture critic, reminded the House about Bill C-202 and how it protects supply management. He asked... Read this article online

Horror movies filmed in rural Ontario

Tuesday, October 14, 2025

As picturesque as rural Ontario and its farm settings can be, the landscape can also create the perfect backdrop to send chills down a spine. With that at top of mind and in celebration of all things spooky and horror in October, here are some horror movies filmed around rural... Read this article online

Winter Rules For Spreading Manure in Alberta

Monday, October 13, 2025

As winter approaches, Alberta farmers are reminded to review the rules for spreading manure on frozen or snow-covered ground. Under the Agricultural Operation Practices Act (AOPA), farms with nine months or more of manure storage are not permitted to spread manure during the winter unless... Read this article online

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