News

Micro pigs advert banned

AUGUST 20, 2010: An advertisement from a leading breeder of micro pigs has been banned after experts queried a claim that the animals would not grow beyond pint-size.

Members of the British Kune Kune Pig Society complained to the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) about an advert by Cambridgeshire-based Little Pig Farm.

The adverts claimed it sold ‘easy to care for’ pigs that are the ‘smallest in the UK’, measuring just 12in to 16in (30cm to 40cm) when fully grown.

The society claimed there is no breed that would grow only as tall as 16 inches, and that ‘easy to care for’ was misleading.

The ASA agreed on the first point and banned the advert. It said the farm had not substantiated its claim of pigs growing no more than 12in to 16in. It dismissed the second complaint, saying readers "would understand there was a certain amount of work and effort involved in caring for the pigs”.

SEE the November issue of Country Smallholding for a special feature on micro pigs.

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