The Large Black pig is a British breed of domestic pig. It is the only British pig that is entirely black. It was created in the last years of the nineteenth century by merging the black pig populations of Devon and Cornwall in the south-west with those of Essex, Suffolk and Kent in the south-east. It is hardy, docile and prolific; it forages well and is suitable for extensive farming, but not well suited to intensive management.
It was a successful breed in the early twentieth century and was exported to many areas of the world. Population numbers declined after the Second World War, when the Howitt Report discouraged rearing of all but three pig breeds suitable for intensive pig farming. By the 1960s the breed was almost extinct. Although numbers have since risen, it is still an endangered breed.
History
The Large Black resulted from the amalgamation of black pigs from two geographically separate areas, Devon and Cornwall in the south-west of England, and Essex, Suffolk and Kent in the east. The pigs from eastern England, mainly Essex, were influenced by importations from China in the late 18th century, while those from Devon and Cornwall were probably more closely related to the pigs in mainland Europe, particularly France. The Devon pigs were originally selected for "the length of their bodies, ears, noses, tail and hair, the longer the better, without reference to quality or substance", but selective breeding brought improvements to the breed, and by 1850 the type was small-boned and thick-bodied, with good conformation and constitution. Alternative origins proposed for the black colour of the breed are black Guinea hogs imported from Africa (similar to the Guinea Hog of the US) or from Neapolitan pigs.
During the late nineteenth century, the Large Black grew in popularity. A breed association, the Large Black Pig Society, was formed in 1898 or 1899, in Ipswich, Suffolk. A trademark, consisting of the letters LBP within a shield, was registered in 1902.
The Herd Book of Large Black Pigs was first published in 1899. In it the black pigs of Devon and Cornwall were combined under one name with the remnants of the smaller Black Essex, Black Suffolk or Small Black, and other black East Anglian breeds whose numbers had fallen below sustainable levels. There were considerable variations between the types in the two areas, but breeding stock was exchanged between them and by 1913 "general uniformity" had been achieved.
1920s to modern times
In 1919 a Large Black sow was Supreme Champion at Smithfield (UK), and at the Royal Show that year 121 Large Blacks were entered, more than any other breed. Popularity of the breed peaked in the 1920s, however, and after World War II, population numbers declined as farmers began to favour pig breeds that would do well in intensive indoor farming. The breed association was merged with the National Pig Breeders Association (later the British Pig Association) in 1949.
In 1955 the Howitt report on the development of pig production in the United Kingdom was published. Its main conclusions were that UK pig farms were poorly placed to compete with European producers, that the diversity of local breeds in the UK was an obstacle to progress, and that British pig farmers should focus on three breeds only: the Welsh, the British Landrace, and the Large White. The report initiated a period of decline in all other British pig breeds, including the Large Black. By the time the Rare Breeds Survival Trust was founded 1973, numbers of all traditional pig breeds were dangerously low, and many of them were extinct. The Large Black was placed on the Trust's endangered list.
In other countries
By 1913, Large Black had by then spread throughout most of Britain, and had been exported to most of mainland Europe and to North and South America, Africa and Oceania. The first exports to Australia were in 1902 or 1903, with the Large Black being chosen over the Berkshire pig because of their ability to thrive in hot weather, their foraging abilities and their fecundity. By 1930, Large Blacks represented only 1 percent of Australia pig population, and were raised mainly by breeders in Victoria, South Australia and Tasmania. The breed population continued to hover around 1 percent of the total population, with a slight increase after World War II and a decrease to almost zero new registrations in the 1980s. The first exports to the US were in the 1920s, but the population in that country dwindled to the point where imports were again necessary in 1985. Today, small herds can be found in the US that descend from the pigs imported in 1985 and 1990, and there are also herds in Canada, Australia, and South Africa.