As Tracy recounted her story, it lived up to the company’s title “The Giggly Pig Co” as there was plenty of laughter as Tracy charmed us with her account of how she triumphed over the difficulties of her early life .  Tracy was sentenced to 10 years for drug offences following two failed marriages and mental illness but as a testament to her courage and determination she pulled her life around.

Whilst in prison she undertook all the courses she could which included qualifying as a gym instructor in order to give herself a better life as she intended to set up a fitness business .  But whilst in open prison she was sent to work on the farm and fell in love with Biddy, a saddleback pig and was smitten so she next embarked on gaining NVQs in pig husbandry.

On release from prison after serving five and a half years, Tracy bought 30 saddleback pigs from the prison and with hard work and plenty of grit, she now has an award winning business raising pigs of which she now has over 300.  All the butchery, sausage making and bacon curing is done in a nearby butchers shop which Tracy purchased (taking the previous owner on to her staff) and much of her time is spread between this side of the business and attending farmer’s markets, providing hog roasts and speaking at meetings such as ours.

Not only were we enthralled by her story but we had opportunity to sample some of about 50 of her sausage flavours and purchase these, together with some of her home cured bacon and copies of her book.