A DORSET farming family has had its plans for barns for the rearing of almost 2,000 pigs approved.

The application for Pennymore Pitt Farm in East Stour, which its owners say will help make the business financially sustainable, was supported by a North Dorset District Council planner.

He said there would be no adverse impacts from the development.

The 130-acre farm already has a herd of 80 beef cattle and its owners said the proposals for pig raising would help diversify the business.

Pigs will be housed in the two barns from the age of 20 days for 28 weeks before they are sent off from the farm.

A planning statement submitted to the district council said: “The applicants are proposing to diversify through the erection of a pig rearing and finishing unit which will be operated on a high-welfare straw-based system.

“The proposal will enable the next generation of the farming family to continue operating within the agricultural sector and offers an attractive career opportunity with future financial sustainability.

“It will offer a diversified and unsubsidised source of income for the existing rural enterprise.”

It added that about 2.2 ‘batches’ of 1,900 pigs will go through the two barns each year with breaks for the facilities to be cleaned and washed out.

The Woodland Trust had objected to the application due to concerns about the levels of ammonia and nitrogen that could be produced and the impact it could have on nearby Duncliffe Woods which is classified as ancient woodland.

However, a report by council planning officer Ian Cousins says that there would be an “acceptable level” of the two chemicals produced following a computer modelling test.

Mr Cousins granted permission for the two new pig rearing barns, saying there would not be an “adverse” visual impact from the new buildings.