Farrowing Crate Alternatives: Protecting Piglets Without Confining Sows

Farrowing crates prevent sow movement to protect piglets from crushing — but also cause significant welfare harm to the sow. New systems aim to protect piglets while giving sows more freedom. Evidence is promising but challenges remain.

Key Facts

Farrowing crates confine sows during birth and the 3–4 week suckling period in a space too small to turn around
Piglet crushing by sows accounts for approximately 15–20% of pre-weaning piglet mortality in indoor systems
Farrowing crates virtually eliminate crushing — but cause sow welfare harm through movement restriction
The EU has banned farrowing crates in Norway and Sweden and is actively developing EU-wide legislation
Free farrowing systems allow sows to turn around and express nesting behaviour before and during birth
Temporary crating systems confine the sow only for the first 3–5 days post-farrowing, when crushing risk is highest
Pen design, bedding material, and management quality significantly affect sow behaviour and piglet survival in free systems
Higher pre-weaning piglet mortality in free farrowing systems (approximately 2–4% higher) is the primary producer concern

Welfare Considerations

Farrowing crate alternatives represent one of the most technically complex welfare reform challenges in pig farming. The welfare tension is genuine: farrowing crates prevent crushing deaths that cause suffering to piglets, while causing confinement stress to sows that express strong nesting motivation before birth and cannot satisfy it in a crate. Free farrowing systems that allow sow movement produce better sow welfare outcomes but require careful pen design and management to limit the increase in piglet crushing. Evidence from countries that have implemented free farrowing at scale — particularly Norway and Sweden — shows that the piglet mortality gap can be substantially closed with appropriate pen design (side creep areas, post rails at the correct height, deep straw for nest-building) and skilled stockmanship. The transitional approach — temporary crating for the highest-risk early days — may offer a welfare compromise where full free farrowing is not yet achievable.

What You Can Do

Support pork producers investing in free farrowing or temporary crating systems as welfare improvements
Choose pork certified under schemes that prohibit permanent farrowing crate use
Advocate for EU and national legislation setting timelines for farrowing crate phase-out with welfare-based alternatives
Support research into optimal free farrowing pen design that minimises both sow confinement and piglet mortality
Reduce pork consumption to reduce demand pressure on systems still relying on permanent farrowing crate confinement