There are 14 breeds of pig in the UK including:

The Berkshire: the oldest pedigree pig recorded in Great Britain. The pork is finely textured. Japanese buyers consider Berkshires from Britain to be a speciality.

The Large White: long bodied producing excellent hams.

The British Saddleback: a dual-purpose pig producing good pork and bacon. It has secured a niche in outdoor and organic production.

The Middle White: known as “the London Porker” in the early 20th Century. The pork is well-marbled which makes it a good breed to use when serving ‘suckling pig’.

Gloucestershire Old Spots: traditionally raised on windfall apples from the local orchards and whey, the by-products of the local cheese-making. Local folklore has it that the black spots on the pig were caused by falling apples! The pig has a fine carcass produces meat for all purposes. When roasted, the Gloucestershire Old Spot produces excellent cracking but the pork is also used in making the Gloucester sausage and can be cured for bacon.

Oxford Sandy and Black: one of Britain’s oldest pig breeds, they produce fine quality white skinned pork and bacon with superb flavour.

The Hampshire: developed in the US from British breeding stock and now one of the world’s most important pig breeds producing an abundance of lean meat.

The Pietrain: renowned for its very high yield of lean meat, it formed the foundation of the Walls Meat Company’s pork production. Most commonly available as a cross-bred.

The British Landrace: originally imported from Sweden in 1949, has a high lean meat content, in a superbly fleshed carcass, which is ideal for either fresh pork or bacon production.

The Tamworth: the oldest pure English breed that is sometimes crossed with wild boar to produce distinctive gamy pork. Produces white-fleshed carcasses with long sides and big hams.

The Large Black: a black pig with a succulent taste and high eating quality.