New Heritage Breeds

Large Black Pigs

When we decided to start raising pigs, we researched the different pig breeds to find a breed that would work well for our needs.  We recognized that we live in a climate that can be hard on animals.  (Hot sunny summers and cold, windy winters.)  From previous experience, we knew that light colored pigs had a tendancy to sunburn.  We also found that some pigs had little resilience to disease and that others had virtually no mothering ability.  That was when we stumbled across the Berkshire pig.  Being a black pig, it didn't sunburn, it thrived outdoors, and was very hearty.  Everything we read about them said that they had great mothering instincts.  We didn't find this to be entirely accurate but over time we were able to selectively bred mothering instincts back into our pigs.  Berkshire pork is well known for being superior to commercial breeds of pork partly because of its well marbled, red colored, deeper flavored meat. 

Over the last few decades as agriculture has progressed, farmers moved production indoors in order to be more efficient.  I am sure most know how the story goes.  Consumers wanted leaner pork and lower prices.  In the process, the Berkshire sort of got left behind as it has more fat (aka flavor and juiciness), doesn't produce as large of litters and is slower growing.  As commercial breeds were developed to be leaner and more efficient, the pork grew less flavorful and somewhat mushy (a result of only having an average living space of 6.8 ft2).  Another unintended consequence was the potential for mass breakouts of antibiotic resistant superbugs; a result of pigs having subtherapeutic antibiotics mixed into their daily feed and water.  This is the basic state of today's pork and for many the pendulum has swung too far opening up opportunities for our family farm and many others popping up all over the country.

Over the last few years, we have stayed busy raising purebred Berkshire pigs on pasture where pigs have an average living space of 2100 ft2.  (Commercially you could raise 300 pigs in the same space that one of our pigs enjoys.)  We have dedicated ourselves to raising our pigs humanely meaning gentle handling and herding of the pigs, no tail docking, teeth clipping, or nose rings, etc...  We also believe in raising our animals naturally meaning no antibiotics, growth promoters/hormones, and only feeding our pigs a 100% vegetarian diet of Utah grown grains in addition to the pastures they graze.  We believe that by adhering to these practices, we produce some of the best tasting and healthiest pork available.  That said, we are excited to announce that we will be taking it up another notch by introducing two additional heritage breeds to our farm.

The heritage breeds of pigs that are black in color all have similar meat quality.  The similarities are a deeper red colored pork that has more pronounced flavor as well as better marbling.  They also have a higher quality of fat for rendering lard.  The similarities are due to the fact that they share the same ancestry hundreds of years back.  These characteristics are the reason that pork from these black heritage breeds are considered gourmet quality.

We have recently acquired two Large Black sows and two Mulefoot sows.  The Large Black is known for having a shorter muscle fiber that makes the pork very tender.  The Large Black can nearly support itself on pasture alone.  The Mulefoot is perhaps the rarest breed in the country and was nearly extinct just a few years ago.  It is now making a rather strong comeback thanks to it being named the best tasting pork in a blind taste test of the heritage breed pork.  The Mulefoot pig is named for its unique hoof.  Unlike all other breeds of pigs that have a split hoof, the Mulefoot pig has a solid horseshoe like hoof.  We are excited to add the unique attributes of these pigs to the pork we are offering.

Here you can see the solid hoof of a Mulefoot

Like other heritage breeds there are some "inefficiencies" with the breeds.  Both breeds are relatively slow growing which also means that they consume more feed to reach a butcher weight than the commercial breeds.  The Mulefoot also has rather small litters averaging only 5-6 piglets per litter.  That said, we have witnessed firsthand their excellent mothering abilities, hardiness, and natural instinct to roam and graze on pasture.  Besides, we have never approached our farm with the attitude of being the most efficient.  Our goal has always been the to raise the finest quality, ethically and sustainably, and keep prices affordable for as many families as possible.  We hope that you will continue to enjoy our pork as we seek to take it up another notch by embracing these heritage breeds of pigs.

Roaster (luau) Pigs

Just in time for summer!  We are pleased to announce that we will now be offering Berkshire Roaster Pigs.  Roaster pigs are perfect for larger gatherings/events. Our pasture raised Berkshire pigs offer greater marbling than any other pig. Marbling will add flavor, moisture, and tenderness to your pork. The more marbling, the better the results. It also means that it will be much more forgiving if you tend to overcook your pig.  The more marbling, the better the results. It also means that it will be much more forgiving if you tend to overcook your pig (like most people do).

Our Berkshire roaster pig prices are based on the hanging weight of the pig. The hanging weight on a roaster pig is the weight after the pig has been killed, scalded, and eviscerated (insides removed). The price includes delivery to the butcher, kill fee, and scald/scraping (hair removal). A non-refundable deposit of $75 is due when ordering. The balance is due when picking up the pig.  We can have the pig butterflied at no extra charge, but the butcher will need to remove the head to butterfly the pig.

We can deliver the pig to either Gary's Meat in Payson, UT or Tooele Valley Meats in Grantsville, UT. Both butchers scald on most Wednesdays and your pig can be picked up the following Thursday or Friday. Both Gary's and Tooele Valley are USDA inspected facilities and the pig will be stamped as such. This makes it very easy (and legal) for restaurants, hotels, caterers, and other businesses to host events.

When ordering, please select the size range you prefer for your event. Please keep in mind that each pig will yield slightly different from pig to pig.  We will go out of our way to help ensure your event is a success. As always, please feel free to call with any questions.  Order here!

Utah's Finest Pork

Executive Chef Jim Light at the grill.

This past Saturday we hosted the wonderful folks from Viking Cooking School and Slow Food Utah. The event was headed up by Jim Light who is the executive chef at Viking Cooking School. They chartered a bus from SLC and came for a tour and lunch at our farm. We gave a quick summary of our farm and explained the three factors that contribute to the quality and yummy taste of our pigs. I have posted about these qualities before but they are:

Genetics
Diet (Feed)
Environment

Checking out the pigs.

Berkshire pork or Kurobuta pork as it is often referred to, is genetically superior on a few accounts. The genetics are responsible for the darker red color of the pork and the deeper, richer flavor. Berkshire pork has excellent marbling and a lower pH level than other breeds of pigs. This leads to more tender meat, higher water retention (without the need to brine), and greater moisture throughout the meat. This means it is also more forgiving if you tend to overcook your meat dishes. Also as we have mentioned before, these traits are primarily recessive which is why cross bred Berkshires really don't improve meat quality in commercial breeds. It is also the reason we raise 100% purebred Berkshires.

The pigs' diet consists of small cereal grains (all grown in Utah) like wheat, barley, triticale, and oats. During the warm weather, the pigs have access to grass pastures. During the cold weather, we mix grass/alfalfa hay into their feed to give them the beneficial nutrients that the greens offer the pigs. The small cereal grains produce a fat that is harder and whiter in color compared to the fat of corn fed pigs. Experienced cooks and chefs notice an immediate difference in the way the fat cooks. We also feel that the grain mix offers the pigs a wider variety of nutrients leading to better health. Our pigs get water from nipple drinkers which ensures clean fresh water at all times. Water quality is as equally important to the pigs health as the feed quality.

Berkshires enjoying some spring grasses.

Unlike large pig CAFOs (factories) we do not use antibiotics in the pigs feed to boost growth rates. Not only is this a dangerous practice (think super bugs) but it has been proven to be unhealthy to humans by means of reducing the effectiveness of antibiotics in sick patients. (I plan to post on this topic in greater detail soon.) Additionally, we never feed the pigs any animal by-products, old bread, slop, or anything of the like. We could certainly reduce our feed costs by using these things, but we would also lower the meat quality. Animal welfare and meat quality are two things we refuse to compromise on.

Environment. Our pigs free range on grass, are allowed to root around, and behave as pigs. In the summer time they make mud holes that they wallow in to stay cool. When it gets cold, we provide our pigs with deep straw bedding that they burrow in to stay warm. Visitors to the farm are surprised to see how fast pigs can run. Of course you need lots of space to allow a herd of pigs to run which our pigs have. There is actually a benefit to allowing the pigs lots of room to move about. It increases their muscle tone which produces a perfectly firm yet tender texture in the pork. When we need to sort or work with the animals, we gently herd them to keep stress levels to a minimum. We don't dock tails, clip teeth, or push our sows to produce more piglets than is healthy for them. We take pride in raising happy pigs that enjoy a humane life. In return, we get pork that is absolutely delicious!

Our farm visitors last Saturday were able to go out and see all of these techniques put to practice. After spending some time observing the pigs grazing, holding piglets, and dodging landmines, we went back inside to enjoy some grilled chops. Our crowd of 35+ people quickly grew silent as they enjoyed the food. Then we began to hear the compliments on the quality of the pork. Many times we heard it proclaimed that this was the best pork anybody had tasted and certainly the finest pork in Utah. We figured if anybody would know, it would be this group of chefs and foodies. We are honored to be considered the producers of Utah's finest pork. Of course, we can't take all the credit, we have had lots of good advice and help along the way. We continue to rely on our neighbors and good friends, Rich and Amanda Holden with Sheeprock Feed Company who do a fantastic job of producing our feed. They search high and low for high quality grains grown in Utah to feed our pigs with.

Me (Christian) showing off a two week old piglet.

We had a wonderful time with our visitors and hope they will visit again soon. We look forward to this weekend on May 7 from noon to 4pm when we will be hosting our Farm Day. The weather forecast looks perfect. We hope you will be able to come and see for yourselves what makes our pork taste so yummy.