Outdoor pig production systems offer significant welfare advantages over indoor intensive systems through space, rooting opportunity, and natural behaviour expression, but require careful management.
Well-managed outdoor pig systems provide significant welfare benefits over intensive indoor production. Access to soil for rooting, open space for exploratory behaviour, wallow access for thermoregulation, and the ability to separate from the social group are all welfare-positive features of good outdoor systems. However, poorly managed outdoor systems can fail on parasite control, shelter provision, and stocking density. The welfare premium of outdoor production is real but requires management commitment to maintain. Consumer choice of outdoor-certified pork provides market incentive for high-welfare production.