The news follows months of campaigning by the British pig industry to prevent pork from illegal farms appearing on British supermarket shelves, on restaurant menus and in brand-name products.

After hearing promises from each group in turn, at an industry stakeholder meeting with food minister Jim Paice, NPA chairman Richard Longthorp said, "It is excellent news that every organisation has confirmed its members will use only meat from legal pig farms."

The European Commission fears as many as a third of continental pig producers will be unable to meet the January 2013 deadline to get sows out of stalls, except for the first four weeks of pregnancy.

In Britain, where pig producers conform to higher welfare standards, stalls have been wholly banned for 13 years.

Following the meeting, Stewart Houston, chairman of the British Pig Executive, said the industry would now discuss the various pledges that had been made in more detail, to ensure they will be honoured.

Among the organisations represented at the meeting were the British Retail Consortium, the Food and Drink Federation, the Provision Trade Federation, the British Hospitality Association, the Danish Agriculture and Food Council, the British Meat Processors Association and Vion.

British Retail Consortium indicated at the stakeholder meeting that it was keen to avoid the sharp price rises that followed the introduction of Europe's battery cage ban in January this year.

NPA said British producers would be ready to prevent unnecessary price rises for consumers by providing any additional pork required — but they would need advance commitment from retailers.