Environmental enrichment for pigs — providing materials and opportunities for natural rooting, exploration, and play — is legally required in the EU and dramatically reduces harmful behaviors like tail biting.
Enrichment for pigs is not a luxury but a biological necessity — pigs evolved to spend most waking hours rooting, foraging, and exploring. Deprivation of these activities in barren environments causes chronic frustration expressed through redirected behaviors including tail and ear biting of pen mates. The welfare costs of enrichment deprivation are paid by both the biters and the bitten. Enrichment programs that provide rotated novel materials, rooting substrate, and foraging challenges are highly effective at reducing harmful behaviors while providing positive welfare experiences. The challenge is implementation at scale in systems where management complexity increases with enrichment provision.