It's possible to build low-cost barns by combining a specially-designed tent system with walls made out of big square bales.

Developed over the past 10 years by researchers in Denmark, the new big bale tent system has already caught on with farmers all over Europe. They were developed with hog finishing in mind but are also being used successfully for farrowing as well as for calves, sheep, and free-range poultry

Biggest advantage of the design is that it's cheap and it meets many of the new animal welfare requirements now being instituted in Europe. Hogs have direct access to an outside feeding area that's surrounded by an electric fence so all waste isn't confined inside the building, as with conventional hog production. And the building can be easily taken down and reconstructed in a new location whenever needed.

The walls are made from 4 by 8-ft. square straw bales with wire panels protecting the inside surface. The roof consists of a pre-formed reinforced plastic tarp supported by center masts and secured to the ground by ropes. One, two and three-mast versions of the big bale tent are available requiring 24, 52, and 64 bales respectively. The interior is well-ventilated by gaps in the walls and by circular openings at the mast-heads which allow natural air movement but don't allow entry of rain and snow. Pigs can leave through a choice of exits and the interior can be deep-bedded with straw.

The new-style straw barn can be erected by a crew in half a day. Graham Falcke, sales director for Monarflex, the manufacturer, says the buildings can be left standing for 12 to 18 months after which they should be dismantled and rebuilt on a clean site using new bales. The tent itself has a working life of 3 to 5 years.

A 3-mast tent can accommodate up to 200 market ready hogs.