National Pig Association - The voice of the British pig industry.
How NPA was formed, why NPA was formed, how NPA is different By Hugh Crabtree.
NPA has its roots in the National Pig Breeders Association (NPBA) which was founded in 1884. It was an association of pedigree breeders and almost a century later in 1978 the Association of Breeding Companies merged with NPBA, recognising the reducing numbers of pedigree breeders in the United Kingdom and the growing influence of commercial breeding companies.
In 1981, NPBA launched a commercial sector to represent commercial pig farmers and this lead in turn to the establishment of an allied industries membership in the late 80s. My original involvement was as an allied industry member of the NPBA and in due course I became a council and executive member. In 1991 the association was renamed the British Pig Association (BPA) and for another decade worked hard to become “the voice of the British pig industry”.
During this period it became increasingly obvious that BPA’s efforts were being confused and diluted by the continuing rivalry of the NFU Pig Committee. Consequently, discussions lead by then chairman of BPA John Godfrey began taking place behind closed doors (first in 1995) and continuing into the deepening crisis in the United Kingdom pig sector in 1997/98.
John Godfrey knew where the debate needed to get to but was not universally supported in the first instance — including by me by the way, as I couldn’t see allied industry companies joining the NFU. As the talking continued the most agitated pig farmers and their supplier supporters formed the British Pig Industry Support Group (BPISG) in 1998 and commenced a campaign of direct action some of which was pretty militant and confrontational. This meant there were now three bodies claiming to represent the industry and as 1999 approached it was clear the matter of representation had to be concluded formally. I suggested a Pig Industry Summit to John Godfrey and in March 1999 it took place over two days.
By the end of 1999, the NPA had been formed, unrivalled as the clear single voice of the British pig industry. John Godfrey its founding chairman and I its vice-chairman. Credit for pulling off this difficult and highly political task must largely go to John Godfrey and his vision which was several years in gestation. However, it could not have been done without the support of many like-minded industry “lifers” from right across the spectrum of producers and allied trades alike.
NPA was needed to clearly represent this unsupported livestock sector and very important producer of food for the nation and it has done so ever since. Perhaps the most important characteristic of the NPA and why it is so different from the NFU, is that it was founded to represent an industry not just another group of farmers. Yes pig farmers, but also their allied trades, commercial breeding company suppliers and even the inclusion of processor customers — the supply side of the pork chain at least as far as the supermarket shelf.
Whilst the involvement of processors continues to be challenging, efforts continue to be inclusive and market facing. NPA can’t represent the technical interests of all its members and neither should it, but it can and does represent the industry interests that its membership shares. Hitting well above its weight and the envy of other agricultural groups and sectors, NPA is an association its members can be proud of and as we witness the impact of history beginning to repeat itself, we all need an association so clearly dedicated to preserving and developing pork production in Britain.