A FARMER’S daughter has established a pig fattening enterprise and direct meat sales business thanks to a novel Menter Moch Cymru initiative that provided her with five weaners.

Rhiannon Davies was given the pigs and training and one-to-one mentoring on topics ranging from their day to day management to marketing their meat, after winning a pig finishing competition run by Menter Moch Cymru and Wales YFC.

The initiative culminated in her showing the animals at the Royal Welsh Winter Fair.

Rhiannon, who grew up on a beef and sheep farm and is a member of Caerwedros YFC, said: “I always wanted to keep pigs but I’d never had any experience of working with them so to have the opportunity to have a go with the benefit of a network of support was extremely valuable.

“When you are starting anything new you have to learn as you go along but thanks to Menter Moch Cymru there was always someone there if I had a question I needed answering.’’

Rhiannon’s introduction to pig production was so successful that before those first five pigs had been sold she bought in a further four weaners and has since launched a direct meat sales business, Cig Banc Sion Cwilt, on the family farm at Talgarreg near Llandysul.

When she launched the business, Menter Moch Cymru stepped in again with multiple opportunities for training in skills such as marketing, even product photography.

“There were so many courses and that really accelerated my knowledge,’’ she said.

Rhiannon is now in a discussion group which gives her an opportunity to meet up with other pig producers on their own farms and to learn and share ideas – some have even set up a butchery on their farm.