A PETITION calling for a pig farm in Oxhill to be closed down has received nearly 50,000 signatures.
Hogwood Farm Pig Unit was subject to an undercover investigation by animal welfare campaign group Viva late last year.
Viva founder Julie Gellatley said the farm had some of the worst conditions she had ever seen.
Campaigners, who shot a video, say sick pigs were dumped in gangways with no access to food or water, and a group of pigs were found eating a rotting corpse in a pen surrounded by animal skeletons.
Some 49,500 people signed a petition, which has been handed to government’s Animal and Plant Health Agency, demanding the farm be closed down.
Mrs Gellatley said: “The idea that Britain has the highest animal welfare standards is a farce. Hogwood Farm epitomises everything that is wrong with factory farming. The conditions found at Hogwood have been sanctioned by government – something has to change.
“Considering that over 90 per cent of pigs in the UK are factory farmed, this is an issue that cannot be ignored.”
The farm’s owner has not responded to The Observer’s request for comment, but speaking to the national press said the care of the farm’s animals was its top priority.
