Prague-style suburb near Ostrava: new residents protest plans to revive a pig farm

In the Ostrava district of Polanka nad Odrou, local residents have launched a petition against plans to revive a pig farm next to a newly built residential neighbourhood. According to the agricultural cooperative behind the project, the plan involves housing around two to two-and-a-half thousand pigs at the site of a former pig farm that closed five years ago.

New houses across the street from the old farm

Right across the road from the grounds of the "Družstvo vlastníků Polanka nad Odrou" cooperative, a new development of 35 private houses with white façades has sprung up over the past few months. While cows were kept next door and farm machinery operated nearby, the new residents had no complaints. But news of plans to resume pig breeding has changed the mood — people are now worried about smells, noise, a rise in flies, heavier traffic and falling property values.

Michal Jašek, a local resident of 16 years, recalls the years when pigs were kept next to his property: "You'd sit down in the garden, and within seconds you'd have fifty flies on you." He founded the initiative group "Polanka společně" and launched a signature campaign that had gathered around 250 signatures by mid-August. Some longtime residents, however, take the farm's return in stride, viewing livestock farming as simply part of village life.

Cooperative: the farm was mothballed, not shut down for good

Jan Rédiš, chairman of the cooperative's board, explained that pig breeding was halted five years ago because of a catastrophic slump in the pork market — not because permits were lost. The buildings, he said, were deliberately preserved so production could resume in the future. The premises are now set to be leased to CBS Trading, a company that specialises in producing breeding stock rather than fattening pigs for meat.

According to Rédiš, no resident had ever asked about the farm's future until now. Hana Zajacová, who lives in the new development, says buyers were never told about plans to resume production — information she believes would have affected their decision to buy. The developer, RD Styl, confirmed it only learned of the farm's plans in late July, from the homeowners themselves.

Company promises to cut ammonia emissions

CBS Trading spokesman Filip Offenbartl said the company will take steps to reduce the impact on residents: 40% of the pigs raised will be transported to another farm, all manure will be sent to a biogas plant rather than spread on fields, feed additives will be used to lower ammonia emissions, and insecticides will be actively deployed to control flies. He added that the company holds all the necessary legal permits — a claim confirmed by the city administration.

Activists point out that the permit to keep pigs in the area dates back to 2017, before the new residential development opposite the farm even existed. The initiative group is already consulting lawyers and considering further steps, including looking into alternative uses for the cooperative's land.

Pavel Bochňa, mayor of Polanka nad Odrou, said that in 16 years in office he has never received complaints about pigs or cattle being kept in the area, adding that farming is simply part of local residents' everyday life. He stressed, however, that if reviving the farm turns out to be unlawful, or if the company fails to keep its promises, the municipality will use every legal means available to resolve the issue.

Source: seznamzpravy.cz