Providing appropriate enrichment materials for pigs is a legal requirement in EU member states and directly improves welfare by addressing powerful natural rooting and exploration motivation.
Pig enrichment welfare is both a legal requirement and a science-backed welfare necessity. Pigs without enrichment material have nothing to do - their powerful motivation for rooting, exploration, and oral manipulation is entirely frustrated in barren pen environments. The behavioral consequences are predictable: redirected behavior toward penmates in the form of tail biting and ear biting, stereotypic rooting on pen floors, and increased inter-pig aggression. Straw provision, where possible, is transformative - pigs with straw spend significant time engaged with it rather than each other. Where straw is not possible due to slat management, high-quality alternative enrichment through multiple novel materials rotated regularly can partially meet enrichment needs. The enforcement gap between legal requirements and actual provision on many farms represents a persistent welfare failure.