National Pig Association has warned that recycling human food by feeding it to pigs must take place only under strictly-controlled conditions, otherwise, the group claimed on Friday, there is a risk of outbreaks of notifiable diseases, such as foot-and-mouth, classical swine fever and African swine fever.

NPA's warning was issued in response to the "Pig Idea" campaign, launched on Wednesday (5th June) by environmentalists who are pushing for more food waste to be fed to pigs, to minimise the excesses of the current food system and save resources.   

In Western countries, most food waste occurs at later stages of the supply chain, in retail or in the home. Up to 40 percent of food is thought to be avoidably wasted by consumers and retailers in some countries. Food waste campaigners in the UK have suggested that, rather than increasing food production, which would in turn increase the burden on the natural environment, addressing food waste could lead to greater food security; author Tristram Stuart has estimated that reclaiming 25 percent of the food wasted in the U.S. and Europe alone could end global malnutrition.

Earlier this week, an influential parliamentary committee made a number of recommendations for achieving global food security. Amongst these were calls to promote more extensive systems for livestock and avoid feeding edible grains to livestock while people go hungry. The MPs also warned against using potential food crops as biofuel feedstocks.

NPA said it recognised that "feeding pigs properly-treated and rigorously-tested foods such as unsold bread and vegetables can deliver significant environmental benefits," though the industry group warned that there is room for confusion, which could have serious consequences.

NPA claimed that there is "a risk of regulatory breakdown" in the food system, as happened in the 2001 national foot-and-mouth outbreak, when infected swill was fed to pigs on a Northumberland unit. As a result, feeding waste food from catering establishments including home kitchens and restaurants to pigs — even vegetable waste — has been banned since 2001.

NPA general manager Dr Zoe Davies said, "We don't want this campaign to give the public the mistaken impression that it is alright to feed waste food to pigs."

She said the law also covers food waste from other premises, including food factories and distribution warehouses, that contain or have held animal by-products such as raw eggs, meat and fish products. None of these items may be fed to pigs, including pigs kept as pets.

Dr Davies continued, "We appreciate that the Pig Idea campaigners have the best of intentions and have been at pains to explain all the legal issues but we remain concerned that promoting the image of pigs eating waste food is unhelpful" She claimed, "The pig industry already uses over a million tonnes per year of by-product from food manufacturing, but only as part of a tightly-regulated and audited process."

The Pig Idea campaign has the backing of numerous celebrity chefs including Hugh Fearnley Whittingstall as well as organisations such as the Soil Association, Friends of the Earth and Compassion in World Farming.

Following the FMD outbreak in 2001, the government Anderson Enquiry recommended that the ban on allowing pigs to be fed on food waste, initially intended to be a temporary measure, be upheld. The ban was extended throughout the EU in 2002. The environmental campaign hopes to reverse the European law.

Emma Slawinski of Compassion in World Farming told Farming Online on Friday, "The amount of food we waste is unsustainable. Pigs, and poultry in fact, are nature's recyclers and intensive systems use too much edible grain that could go to feed people, whereas food waste can't."

Responding to NPA's concerns, she added, "Compassion absolutely supports the Pig Idea campaign. That said, it is of utmost importance that caution is taken and that the correct biosecurity arrangements are in place. My understanding is that the campaign is advocating heat treatment to process the food waste, so cooking it.

"Although we should obviously take all the necessary precautions, this caution shouldn't stand in the way of what is an excellent idea and a sustainable approach to farming."