The traditional farrowing crate prevents sow movement during birth and lactation, and alternatives that protect both sow and piglet welfare are gaining traction.
The farrowing crate debate involves a genuine welfare tension between sow welfare (who benefits from freedom) and piglet welfare (who benefits from protection from crushing). The resolution is not to accept poor sow welfare as inevitable to protect piglets, but to design systems and train stockpeople so that freedom farrowing can be achieved with acceptable piglet survival rates. Several European countries have demonstrated this is feasible at commercial scale. The evidence shows that well-designed freedom farrowing systems with appropriate creep areas, pen designs that discourage overlaying, and attentive stockpersonship achieve piglet survival rates approaching those in crate systems while delivering substantially better sow welfare.