PEOPLE in Hereford were left stunned when they came face-to-face with a giant Trojan pig.

The pig was visiting Hereford Livestock Market as part of a national campaign to highlight cheap, low welfare imports, which it is claimed are damaging the local pig industry.

In 2005, more than 850,000 tonnes of pigmeat were imported into the UK and the National Pig Association (NPA) claims that 70% of this would have been illegal to produce in the UK due to higher welfare standards.

The NPA, which organised the demonstration, claims much of the foreign pork is unclearly labelled, which farmers fear could lead consumers to believe it was produced from UK pigs.

Barney Kay, of the NPA, said: "This is not an anti-import campaign. All we are asking for is a level playing field to allow British pig farmers to compete.

"We hope our Trojan pig will raise awareness of the issue and encourage shoppers to look for the Quality Standard Mark when buying pork, bacon, sausages and ham."