Wild boars 'ruining my business'

The government has said there are 300 feral boar in three counties

A farmer in south Herefordshire fears her business is being ruined by wild boars which live in nearby woods.

Bets De La Pasture, who owns the farm at Weston-under-Penyard, near Ross-on-Wye, said the boars had killed one of her cows and damaged her fields.

The government has estimated there are 300 feral boar in Dorset, Herefordshire and Gloucestershire.

Officials from the National Farmers' Union said they were receiving more reports of wild boar problems.

'Permanent problem'

Ms De La Pasture said: "We've halved our production here, which has great economic consequences for us and it's making it unviable now.

"They dig up our pasture and it's virtually impossible to get it back now it's like this.

"We have 40 acres and the vast majority of it has been ploughed up. They keep returning to the spot too, it is a permanent problem."

Last week, the government issued guidance on how to cull wild boar.

The Department for the Environment, Farming and Rural Affairs (Defra) said it was important landowners were allowed to decide for themselves if a cull was necessary.