Britain calls for 800 foreign butchers to avoid pig cull

LONDON, (Reuters) - Britain will offer six-month emergency visas to 800 foreign butchers to avoid a mass pig cull, it said yesterday, after farmers complained that an exodus of workers from abattoirs and meat processors had left the pork sector fighting for survival.

A combination of Brexit and COVID-19 has sparked an exodus of east European workers, leaving some 120,000 pigs in barns and fields across the country waiting to be slaughtered, according to the National Pig Association.

Environment Secretary George Eustice said the temporary visas would address the problem which farmers said was putting livelihoods at risk and causing animal welfare issues.

“What we’re going to do is allow butchers in abattoirs and meat processors dealing with pigs, to be able to come in on a temporary basis under the Seasonal Worker scheme for up to six months,” Eustice told reporters.

“That will help us to deal with the backlog of pigs that we currently have on farms to give those meat processors the ability to slaughter more pigs.”

Eustice said around 800 butchers would be needed to clear the backlog and announced aid to help abattoirs store meat.

But he said the government had decided not to ease the English language requirement for skilled visas to allow more butchers to come via that route - a key demand from farmers, who have been calling for weeks for ministers to take action.

“We have looked at that but we don’t think that provides an answer to their particular challenge. And that’s why we decided instead to have temporary visas,” he said.

The National Pig Association said in a statement it was “very relieved” the government had come up with measures aimed at reducing the back log, while National Farmers’ Union Vice President Tom Bradshaw told Times Radio the visas were “a step in the right direction”.

“The critical thing is how quickly can we get those butchers over here?,” he said. “We just need them here as soon as possible.”

The lack of butchers is just one of a number of areas where Britain is facing acute labour shortages.

Last month, it announced plans to issue temporary visas for 5,000 foreign truck drivers and 5,500 poultry workers, but the government wants businesses to invest in a British workforce rather than rely on cheap foreign labour.