1919
Fred returns from the war
Frederick James Bosworth comes home from the Western Front and buys his first pigs. The Bosworth family have kept pigs from that moment on.
Our Story
A century of farming, four generations in.
From Fred Bosworth's return from the First World War to Stuart and Jack today, this is the story of a family business that has spent the last hundred years finding new ways to do the same work better.
1919 Fred Bosworth's first pigs
1934 The family at Spains Hall
IV Generations and counting
Where to begin
FJ Bosworth & Sons is a working farm. It is also, by accident more than design, a family record that runs from the end of the First World War to the present day. Four generations have farmed at Spains Hall under the same name, and each has had to make decisions about what to keep, what to change, and what the next generation might need.
What follows is the abbreviated version. It moves quickly through the early years and slows down where the decisions become more material to the business we run today. We pride ourselves on our heritage and it is incredibly important to us that the role of previous generations is forever acknowledged and appreciated.
The timeline
Four generations at Spains Hall.
A continuous family record from 1919 to now. The years that shaped how we farm today.
First generation · 1919 to mid-1950s
Frederick James Bosworth
Frederick James Bosworth came back from the First World War and bought his first pigs in 1919. He was farming on a small scale, tenant-style, before the family arrived at Spains Hall in 1934. The years between the wars were difficult for British agriculture, and most of what we know about this period is the kind of thing that gets passed down rather than written down.
1934
The family arrives at Spains Hall
The Bosworths take on Spains Hall in Willingale. The farm has been here ever since.
1939 to 1945
The Second World War
British farming reorganises itself around food security. The land at Spains Hall is part of that national effort.
Late 1940s
Mechanisation begins
The post-war years. Fred works to keep the farm in good shape for his sons, as British agriculture starts the slow shift away from horses.
Second generation · Mid-1950s to late 1980s
The post-war farm
The second generation (Frederick Anthony Bosworth (Tony) and Henry John Bosworth) took over from Fred over the course of the 1950s. The post-war years were a period of significant change in British farming: mechanisation accelerated, herd sizes grew, and pig farming in particular professionalised. The farm at Spains Hall grew with that change, building the foundations of what would later become a proper modern operation.
Late 1950s
Tractors replace horses
Mechanisation arrives in earnest. The scale of what one operator can do in a day changes the economics of the farm.
1960s and 70s
The pig operation grows
The herd moves into purpose-built indoor facilities. That was the direction the industry was moving, and we believe it remains the right answer for health and biosecurity.
Third generation · 1980s to today
Stuart Bosworth
The third generation took over from the second with Stuart taking responsibility for leading the pig enterprise through a massive period of growth. Buildings, health, performance and passion continued to develop to new heights.
1983
Stuart takes the lead
The herd continues to grow with Stuart at the helm. What he implemented at the beginning of his leadership journey has helped shape the business today.
2011
Farmers Weekly Pig Farmer of the Year
Recognition of decades of work and the standard the herd has reached. The first major industry award for the farm.
2010s
Choppy Waters
The pig industry had some huge challenges with disease pressure, poor prices and inputs rising. Stuart still found a way to keep moving in the right direction heading into the next part of the journey. Stuart is still involved on a daily basis today!
Fourth generation · 2017 to present
Jack Bosworth
The fourth generation has joined the third with Jack entering into the business and putting particular focus into improving efficiencies through technology across the whole business. The pace of change has picked up.
2017
Jack joins the business
Jack Bosworth joins the family business as the fourth generation, focusing on improving efficiency through the integration of precision technology across the business and bringing the pigs and arable closer together.
2019
Double or nothing
Stuart and Jack double the herd to 550 sows with the help of their fantastic team following significant investment into a new area for the breeding herd. An agreement is made with another farm in East Anglia to rear the extra progeny following the expansion.
2020
Developing the fleet
Investment into replacement and additions of machinery that could help improve quality, output and efficiency of arable operations whilst removing the need for contractors of operations we couldn't previously undertake in-house.
2021
More land to feed more pigs
Combinable cropping increases by 20% to 330 hectares after the creation of a cropping license agreement with a nearby farmer.
2022
Increasing The Offering
Agricultural contracting is launched with a particular focus on application of slurries and digestate. Jack and members of the team begin travelling around the county and soon build up a customer base that continue to use us for this and some of our other contracting services.
2023
Recruitment Drive
Rapid growth and some structural changes contributed to a recruitment drive with more people joining our team including new entrants to the industry. We can’t achieve what we do without our fantastic team.
2024
Procter's Sausages joins the family
Jack and his parents, Stuart and Carol acquire Procter's Sausages, the Ipswich-based sausage maker, giving us a route from farm to fork for some of our pork.
2024
National Pig Awards Sustainable Farming Award
Followed in the same year by a finalist place for Indoor Pig Producer of the Year. Jack was also in the final three for Farmers Weekly’s Mixed Farmer of the Year award.
2025
Developing the team
Jack continues to add key people to our team and bring on different skillsets. The F J Bosworth & Sons and Procter's Sausages team reaches 19 including seasonal staff.
Now
Quietly busy
Continued investment in and development of all areas of the businesses. Work on the carbon picture of the operation is ongoing following the latest carbon audit. Exciting discussions about the next part of the project here.
What stays the same
The work, the land, the people.
Across four generations, three things have held: the work itself (pigs, arable, and the operations that go with them), the land at Spains Hall, and the people who have helped run the place. The equipment has changed, the scale has changed, and the questions we are asking about how we farm have changed. The basic shape of the business has not. We think that continuity is worth something, and we are interested in making sure the fifth generation, whoever they are, inherit a farm worth running.
Looking ahead
Where the business is now.
The farm today is doing more of what it has always done, in better-specified ways, with a clearer eye on what the next decade will ask of British farming. The contracting and hire side is growing. The pork story is reaching more people through Procter's. The sustainability work is moving from informal to formal, with proper measurement to back up the model. We are quietly busy, and happy to talk about any of it.
Get in touch
Want to know more?
If you have a question about the family, the farm, the contracting business, or anything else covered above, the easiest way is a quick message.