Take the label challenge
The labelling information below can be applied to all pork products and prepared foods which contain pork as an ingredient.
Each supermarket employs its own methods of labelling for their own brand pork products and the amount and clarity of information provided varies from supermarket to supermarket and in some cases from product range to product range. If you want to find out more about a particular supermarket’s labelling policy you should contact them directly (contact details are usually provided on the pack). Likewise the different pork brands e.g. Walls, Pork Farms etc also have their own labelling policies and if you wish any specific information about these you should contact the manufacturer.
The quality and amount of information provided is generally better for fresh pork than other pork products, however some supermarkets are now consistently labelling even their ready meals with information on the origin of the pork.
To be confident that you are buying British look for the following logos on packs:
Red Tractor: This logo means the animals have been reared to Red Tractor farm standards. Red Tractor has a special scheme, known as Assured British Pigs or ABPigs, which checks farms annually to ensure high standards of animal welfare are being met. Click here to find out more about ABPigs.
The Quality Pork Standard Mark: When this logo is shown incorporating the Union Jack it means that your pork is British and that the farm that produced it was audited to ensure that it complies with UK law. Click here to find out more about The Quality Pork Standard Mark.
Freedom Food: This logo means the animals have been reared on British farms inspected and approved by the RSPCA. Click here to find out more about Freedom Food. (please note that not all Freedom Food products are necessarily from the United Kingdom and therefore you should always also check the country of origin on these products, however you can be reassured that regardless of the country the pigs have been reared to high welfare standards)
