BFOI-016231 - Pig Farm

Request

I am writing to make a request under the Freedom of Information Act 2000. I request the following information relating to inspections of intensive pig farms within Breckland District Council conducted between 1st January 2020 and 31st December 2025 (inclusive):

1. A list of all intensive pig farms, and their permit number, inspected within the local authority area during this period
2. The date(s) of each inspection
3. The reason for each inspection (e.g routine, complaint-led, follow-up)
4. A summary of any violations, non-compliances, or welfare concerns identified at each inspection
5. Any formal notices, improvement notices, or enforcement notices issued as a result of those inspections
6. Any cautions issued
7. Any prosecutions commenced as a result of violations found, including the outcome of those prosecutions
8. Any other enforcement action taken

Requested format: please provide the response as a spreadsheet (excel or CSV), with one row per inspection and the following columns in this order:

Farm name | Permit number | Inspection date | Inspection type | Violations/non-compliances found | Notices issued (type and date) | Prosecution (yes/no) | Prosecution outcome | Other enforcement action

Where a farm has been inspected on multiple occasions, please include a separate row for each inspection.

Response

Inspections and permitting of pig farms are the responsibility of the Environment Agency. They can be contacted at enquiries@environment-agency.gov.uk.  Further information is available on the GOV.UK website.

Breckland Council does however manage complaints relating to pigs. We have received the following number of complaints in the timeframe you have requested.

All are relating to odour and noise:

• 2020 = 7
• 2021 = 5
• 2022 = 7
• 2023 = 2
• 2024 = 0
• 2025 = 3

Such complaints are typically recorded under broader categories, such as odour or noise, with "pigs" referenced in the remarks field. The data has been compiled by searching these remarks to identify relevant cases within the specified timeframe.

Please note that more detailed information (such as specific locations, complainant details, or case-level records) has not been disclosed as it would constitute personal data. This information is exempt from disclosure under section 40(2) of the Freedom of Information Act 2000 (personal information), as disclosure would contravene the data protection principles set out in the UK General Data Protection Regulation and the Data Protection Act 2018.