# Meat per pig



## Matt NY (May 29, 2002)

How much meat do you get from a pig?


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## bumpus (Jul 30, 2003)

Depending on how you butcher you could get between 1/2 and 3/4 of it's live weight.


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## jessandcody (Nov 21, 2003)

A good rule of thumb is 60% meat/40% waste. This does depend on how you cut it up (how much bone is in your cuts) and what organs you will consider edible. This has been accurate for us. Hope your butchering goes well!

Cody


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## Matt NY (May 29, 2002)

How big should the hams be?

This pig went toward 300 pounds. I got 82 pounds of lean. The guy that did it knows that this is my first time, and may have taken advantage of my ignorance. This weight includes all sausage trimmings, but not the fat just the lean.

From what I gather I got about what I was supposed to get in bacon, 18 pounds and 22 pounds of sausage trimmings. 25 ponds in ham seems awful short. He gave me two boneless, leading me to believe that he took alot of ham steaks for himself.


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## Siryet (Jun 29, 2002)

Matt NY said:


> How big should the hams be?
> 
> This pig went toward 300 pounds. I got 82 pounds of lean. The guy that did it knows that this is my first time, and may have taken advantage of my ignorance. This weight includes all sausage trimmings, but not the fat just the lean.
> 
> From what I gather I got about what I was supposed to get in bacon, 18 pounds and 22 pounds of sausage trimmings. 25 ponds in ham seems awful short. He gave me two boneless, leading me to believe that he took alot of ham steaks for himself.


We were new to doing this a couple of years ago and what we did was ask around our area for an honest butcher. Found one who did not sell meat as a sideline.  *He sold out last year and the new owner does sell meat as a side line* We trust? our butcher and usually end up with the right amount of pork as we weigh our hogs before and the cuts after.

Ask around for the references, that is what I suggest as this worked for us.

Good luck next time


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## Snowdancer (Sep 23, 2002)

Matt, I just had three processed and each went between 300 & 325#. My hams weigh approx 30-35# each! So off of one 300# pig I got about 70# of hams well trimmed and skinned. That's almost as much meat as you got off the whole pig! We got 62# of bacon between the three or 20.5 # per pig. So I do think this fellow ripped you off big time. 
We got approx 14- 2# packs of pork chops per pig, a lot of pork steak-more than 20 packs per pig plus neck bones, two long racks of ribs, heart, liver, shanks & sausage-lots of sausage which we love!  
To give you some idea, those three pigs cut & wrapped totally filled a brand new 21 cu ft freezer with two of the hams having to go into another freezer!
It just doesn't make it worth all of the work and expense for the small amount of meat that you got back. I'm sorry your first experience had an unhappy ending. But try again and either do the butchering yourself or find a different reputable place to do it for you.

Kathy


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## Ken Scharabok (May 11, 2002)

According to The Stockman's Handbook a 210 hog should hang at 150 pounds and produce 135 pounds of cuts as follows:

Hams - 24
Bacon - 20
Pork Roast - 17
Picnic & Shoulder Butts - 16
Pork Chops - 7
Pork Sausage - 8
Misc. Cuts - 7
Salt Pork - 5
Lard - 31

For larger weights the ratio should remain pretty much the same, although much over 300 pounds and the proportion of lard would increase. Note this does not seem to include the casings, brain, tongue, heart, liver or head cheese. Back when home processors used everything but the squeal, I suspect they would have gotton about 175 pounds of useable products out of that same 210 pound hog.

Does rather sound like you got taken big time.

Ken S. in WC TN


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## Matt NY (May 29, 2002)

Ken Scharabok said:


> According to The Stockman's Handbook a 210 hog should hang at 150 pounds and produce 135 pounds of cuts as follows:
> 
> Hams - 24
> Bacon - 20
> ...


By this account it seems that I may have gotten the smaller pig at around 250 than the 300 pounder that I assumed I was getting. I figure he grabbed some ham steaks. The picnic seems to be more in line with these figures though at 18 pounds and the bacon is also close. I figure it is hard to mess with that shoulder area. I got 7 pounds of rib chops and the loin was made to a loin roast and chops totaling 12 pouds, lost some bone there and added to my susage meat, he probably grabbd some chops from here too. The total of my sausage meat, just the lean, is 22 pounds so that figures. It isn't as far out of whack as I thought if he did give the lighter one. Still a lot short though.

He is supposed to give me a quarter of beef for a half of the second pig, the other half was his fee. I am going to request an intact quarter and cut it up myself.

Thanks to all that responded.


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## bumpus (Jul 30, 2003)

Did you figure in the 30lbs of lard or did you get the lard.

If you did not get the lard that would amout to some of the loss.


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## Matt NY (May 29, 2002)

I got some fat to make lard, but I didn't figure that in. I only mentioned the lean cuts. Next year I am planning on doing this myself.


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## blhmabbott (Feb 4, 2003)

This is a link you might find helpful. It is just a generalization and will vary if you placed a cutting order with your butcher. My DH has been a butcher for 12 years and we just butchered our hogs over Thanksgiving. They weighed 225 and our loss was right at 40 pounds because we boned the shoulders out, cut up the backbone and kept it and made bone-in hams. It DOES sound like you got shafted  .

http://www.askthemeatman.com/pork_processing_percentage.htm

Heather


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## Bouncenhumble (Jan 12, 2004)

I am a bit new here so I don't know how things go very well yet. But the more I read the more suprised I am. I have never considered my self an inteligent man. How ever I do consider my self wise. At least wise enough to know what I don't know, so I READ something on the subject BEFORE I do it!! So I keep asking my self; If you are not sure about something WHY NOT ASK OR READ SOMETHING BEFORE YOU DO IT??? It sure helps the hemmoroids!! Getting screwed isn't the funnest thing I have ever had done to myself. Whenever you have someone else do work for you, at least find out a little about what they are going to do and what you can reasonably expect for your money. It doesn't hurt to get second opinions. 

Humbly, Grant


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## Jolly (Jan 8, 2004)

Howdy folks,

A hog dresses out about a third off. As others have pointed, from there on, what you get depends on what all you use.

Personally, I'll eat everything on a pig but the squeal.  

My advice? You can use the same guy again, if you have to. Just be on hand whenever he cust your meat up. He shouldn't mind the extra help at all. if he does, you have your answer.


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