# Best Meat Breed?



## ShellCreekRanch (Oct 12, 2005)

What is the best breed of pig for the best TASTING meat? Not necessarily the biggest breed, but the best tasting.

Thank you!


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## caseyweiss (May 26, 2005)

Berkshire.


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## MullersLaneFarm (Jul 23, 2004)

Agreed - Berkshire


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## DKWunlimited (Sep 11, 2006)

Berks also have the biggest attitude! lol As an FFA mom, I watch those kids wrestle with Berks in the show ring all the time. Durrocs seem to have the most medical issues. We have done hamps and they seem to taste pretty good. 
Too bad they don't lable things at the grocery store so you know what breed it was.


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## Ronney (Nov 26, 2004)

Berkshire, Duroc, Large White, they will all taste good if you feed them well.
Pigs take on the flavour of whatever they are being fed; consquently pigs finished on fish will taste gross whereas pigs finished on fruit will be beautiful. 

I have Duroc, Large White and crosses of both. They are all fed milk and a cooked mixture of fruit, vegetables and scraps. They don't taste of any one thing but the meat is full of flavour.

A pig is what you feed it.

Cheers,
Ronnie


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## MullersLaneFarm (Jul 23, 2004)

Ronnie, I thought that too until we raised a few Berks. Prior to that we had hamps, durocs and land race. They all were fed corn, extra Jersey milk and veggie scraps. The Berks had a texture and flavor that is better than the others we've raised. It was enough difference that we decided to keep a Berk brood sow. She thinks she's a big dog!!


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## Joy in Eastern WA (May 10, 2002)

Hey, I've been wanting to raise some berks out west here. Do any of you have any for sale????
I've even considered buying some from England and having them imported!


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## highlands (Jul 18, 2004)

It has a *lot* more to do with how you feed, treat and slaughter the hog than the breed. Our pigs taste sweet and delicious. But I know that is because of their being pastured and getting dairy because I've tested feeding different things and then evaluating how the meat was.

The lesson is you can buy a breed and then do all the wrong things and end up with horrid meat like the industry does. Or you can turn most breeds into excellent meat by handling them right.

Cheers

-Walter
Sugar Mountain Farm
in the mountains of Vermont
http://SugarMtnFarm.com/blog/
http://HollyGraphicArt.com/
http://NoNAIS.org


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## RedHogs (Jul 7, 2006)

> Ronnie, I thought that too until we raised a few Berks. Prior to that we had hamps, durocs and land race. They all were fed corn, extra Jersey milk and veggie scraps. The Berks had a texture and flavor that is better than the others we've raised. It was enough difference that we decided to keep a Berk brood sow. She thinks she's a big dog!!


Berks have the shortest meat fiber of all the breeds, Tamworths would be the longest like deer meat. I love a meat with a short fiber... almost like veal....this has nothing to do with taste it isthe meat grain so i believe it is both feeding and breed.


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## MilkandHoney (Nov 25, 2006)

I love a good marketing piece! Take a look at what Heritage Food USA has to say about their (suppliers') breeds for pork. Read it carefully.

http://www.heritagefoodsusa.com/what_we_sell/meat.html


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## GeorgeK (Apr 14, 2004)

Agreed. mmmmm Potbelly Stroganoff!




highlands said:


> It has a *lot* more to do with how you feed, treat and slaughter the hog than the breed. Our pigs taste sweet and delicious. But I know that is because of their being pastured and getting dairy because I've tested feeding different things and then evaluating how the meat was.
> 
> The lesson is you can buy a breed and then do all the wrong things and end up with horrid meat like the industry does. Or you can turn most breeds into excellent meat by handling them right.
> 
> ...


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## Rogo (Jan 1, 2006)

=== http://www.heritagefoodsusa.com/what_we_sell/meat.html ===


You had to post that site, didn't ya. Dang it, I looked at the recipes. Would someone please develop a pig that'll grow overnight -- I can't wait! -LOL-


[email protected]


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## farmergirl (Aug 2, 2005)

We raise half Berkshire/ half Hampshire pigs (Boar is purebred Hampshire, two sows are purebred Berk). Hubby and I both have found that we prefer the half Berk to the 100% Berk because the Hampshire adds in a little more lean "meatyness", for lack of a better word. The pure Berk can be too marbled and fatty for our taste.


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## highlands (Jul 18, 2004)

Farmergirl, I'll show you mine if you'll show me yours... Could you take photos of pork chops from the various types you have and post them labeled as to breed mix. It would be interesting to compare.

I'll go first. These pork chops were from two pigs from our herd. The pigs both were gilts that looked like Yorkshires but they also have some Glouster Old Spot, Tamworth and Berkshire in them based on what the piglets look like from our sows.



Unfortunately it isn't possible to make a perfect comparison as these pork chops were not cut from the exact same ribs on each pig and the pigs were different ages and sizes. But it does show some difference. Note that a purely pastured pig grows sightly slower than a grain fed penned pig. The reason the pastured chop is so much larger is the pig was bigger and older.

*Purely Pastured:* The pork chop on the left was a 11 month old gilt live weight 300 lbs who was raised totally on pasture, no other feed except the occasional treat of bread or such. There is less marbling in the pastured pork chop. The pastured pork chop also had better, redder color and better flavor.

*Penned & Grained:* The pork chop on the right was from a 6 month old gilt live weight 250 lbs that was pen raised on commercial grower pellets by someone who bought the piglet from us. The penned / grain fed pork chop was certainly better tasting than a store bought pork chop and more marbled than either a store bought chop or the pastured chop but a little lighter in color, whiter, than the pastured chop.

What this photo doesn't show is our more recent pasture / dairy fed pork. That has the better color of the pastured plus some marbling of the penned/grain fed chops. Both the meat _and_ fat on the pastured / dairy fed chops is exquisite tasting - the best of all.

Note that _all_ tests are from pigs that are very closely related so genetics is not likely to be the difference and all the same sex so that is not likely to be the difference either.

In terms of what is the best meat breed, this test example shows that how the animal is treated (penned vs free ranging on pasture) and what the animal is fed are very important factors. I don't have an answer as to what the best meat breed is since all I've dealt with is our herd which are Yorkshire x Tamworth x Berkshire x Glouster Old Spot with maybe a bit of Duroc or something else too. My wife calls them Heinz 57 Yorkshires.

I would dearly love to see pork chops from a variety of other breeds as at some point I am going to need to bring in a new boar. If anything our pigs tend to be a bit on the lean side so the Berkshire blood line interests me. I think that the leanness in our pigs has to do largely with our methods of raising them - free ranged, the diet, pasture/hay and whey feeding. Currently we are using whey as our primary dairy feed. That is light on calories and makes the pigs a bit lean. The years we did milk they were heavier on the fat although not as fat as penned pigs. The years we've had a lot of cheese it has been between the two.

If you can photograph them on a white meat cutting board like the one above that will help. That photo was done with a flash in a room lit with warm fluorescent lights. 

Cheers

-Walter
Sugar Mountain Farm
in the mountains of Vermont
http://SugarMtnFarm.com/blog/
http://HollyGraphicArt.com/
http://NoNAIS.org


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## farmergirl (Aug 2, 2005)

All I raise is 1/2 Berk, 1/2 Hampshire, so that's all I can show you. I'll take some photos this weekend to share. Good idea!


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## RedHogs (Jul 7, 2006)

Asking what the best meat breed is is like asking.....anything controversial. The pork chop above shows in many ways what many are trying to produce or not to produce. Look at the amount of backfat and the long streaks of intermuscular fat - long and thin. This is a genetic result often found in hamps, york and landace. The fat runs perpendicular to the backfat. I try to eliminate all the backfat possible and spread the marbling out in a more short rounded clumps. The purely pastured "meat" looks very lean in the picture - and the hog looks to have been quite fatty. I'm trying to eliminate the large section of fat and increase the intermuscular fat in the "meat". I don't wont to have a pork chop with 20% of the weight as pure fat.


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## doolally (Feb 23, 2005)

To Redhogs
So what are you doing (or going to do) to achieve your aims?
Thanks
Doolally


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## RedHogs (Jul 7, 2006)

The NSF has establish carcass grading numbers that included on the registration papers to track the evolution of breeding traits so breeders can decide if a stud will move them in the right direction.


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## highlands (Jul 18, 2004)

RedHogs said:


> The purely pastured "meat" looks very lean in the picture - and the hog looks to have been quite fatty. I'm trying to eliminate the large section of fat and increase the intermuscular fat in the "meat". I don't wont to have a pork chop with 20% of the weight as pure fat.


Wow, RedHog, you got that totally backwards. The purely pastured chop was lean and perfect, no trimming of fat needed. The hog was not fatty at all.

On the other hand the pen raised pig was _very_ fatty requiring a large amount of trimming and the fat was yellower probably due to the corn in the diet.


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## Up North (Nov 29, 2005)

Here are chops from a purebred Hereford gilt. This pig was raised on a modest amount of corn as well as milk and alfalfa.


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## highlands (Jul 18, 2004)

UpNorth, I have a post on my blog on this topic at:

http://sugarmtnfarm.com/blog/2007/03/pork-chop-comparision-best-meat-breed.html

May I have permission from you to use your picture of the pork chops? I would link back to your web site if you like.

Cheers

-Walter
Sugar Mountain Farm
in the mountains of Vermont
http://SugarMtnFarm.com/blog/
http://HollyGraphicArt.com/
http://NoNAIS.org


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## highlands (Jul 18, 2004)

Here's another article on the web along these lines with some phtotos of pork chops and comments:

http://beyondsalmon.blogspot.com/2006/06/pigepiphan


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## Up North (Nov 29, 2005)

Walter, we know very little of marbling, grading, or the other methods of evaluation. We do know the milk-alfalfa-corn produced chops are tender, sweet, and delicious. But our basis of comparison would be to store-bought chops, as we have not had the opportunity to sample other grower's products.

We posted as you requested other breed chops. 
Are the chops pictured desirable or undesirable by meat appraisal standards?... :shrug:

Mark & Heather


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## highlands (Jul 18, 2004)

UpNorth, I don't know since I only know store bought and our pigs - like you I have that limitation. Once we see a lot more photos it will be interesting to start getting a feeling for any differences. To me your chops look like they have a good rich red color, I see some marbling, the fat looks a little light on the rind but that is how they were trimmed by the butcher and a personal preference - I like a nice rind of fat. The million dollar question is how did they taste and how tender were they?

Cheers

-Walter
Sugar Mountain Farm
in the mountains of Vermont
http://SugarMtnFarm.com/blog/
http://HollyGraphicArt.com/
http://NoNAIS.org


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## Up North (Nov 29, 2005)

Walter - Feel free to use for comparison and discussion. The lack of fat on the rind is an astute observation. That is probably due to fact that it was our first home butchering, and we skinned the hog, and may have left 3/8" or more on average on the hide. Being inexperienced and all, dontcha' know.
The milk fed pork is generally richer and sweeter, and quite tender. Very little chewing required, LOL.

I propose that growers throughout the country meet at a central location, have CowGirlOne prepare chops for us, and have a taste-testing BBQ.
Sound like fun?  
Mark& Heather


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## RedHogs (Jul 7, 2006)

> Wow, RedHog, you got that totally backwards. The purely pastured chop was lean and perfect, no trimming of fat needed. The hog was not fatty at all.


I was trying to show that their is no right way to do it...... you verified by calling yours _perfect_. I'll try to post some pics.... I never have in my life- thats what the office staff is for - but you will see a vast differnce in the leanness of the outer covering of fat. The actuall red part of the meat looks very lean - the fat portion looks to be very thick by commercail standards


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## highlands (Jul 18, 2004)

RedHogs said:


> I'll try to post some pics.... I never have in my life- thats what the office staff is for


RedHog, I don't get you... You come off like some big honcho, large commercial, possibly confinement factory farm producer with an office staff and other comments you've made yet you are here on a homesteading discussion list. You regularly diss those of us who homestead. Why are you bothering to waste your time? It is most odd. What are you? What's your business name? Web site...


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## RedHogs (Jul 7, 2006)

> You come off like some big honcho, large commercial, possibly confinement factory farm producer with an office staff


 I'm a very small farm by commercial standards and not very efficent. I do have an office staff that allows me few opportunites with computers as the crash if get near them. My day job is not my farm....I am in real estate develpment - my job is a constant nightmare full of stress - my farm is my retreat. If thats not the definition of homesteading i don't know what is.


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## tyusclan (Jan 1, 2005)

In RedHogs' defense, I haven't seen him "dis" anyone on here. He's been very knowledgeable and helpful in a lot of areas. 

The point that I think he was making in the pork chop comparison is that in the chop from Walter's hog, the lean meat is indeed very lean. But,... there is at least a half inch of fat *around* the pork chop. While the meat itself is lean, the hog was definitely carrying quite a bit of fat. I'm in no way trying to put down Walter, his hogs, or anyone else's, but in the two chops that I'm looking at, that's what I see.


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## farmergirl (Aug 2, 2005)

Okay. I got the pictures taken! DH is the computer whiz, so he'll be along to post the photos in a few minutes


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## simplefarmgirl (Mar 31, 2006)

i have read all the post, I think everyone is entitled to there own opinions. I raise pigs, I am a small farmer compared to the big places,, which theres are none around here. I like fat on my pork chops I like fat on my pigs,, but my pigs have alot of room to move around, so there isnt any fat. I have had to convince my customers,, I am breeding pigs not always growing for the freezer, I sell them as piglets most of the time, my sows are not overly heavy,, They do better in my opinion not being fat while giving birth.. my sows weigh between 250-500 and none of them are fat. So we all learn by trial and error, some times more error than trial. If you feed something one yr and you dont like how they turned out try something different next time.

Simple farm girl


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## Up North (Nov 29, 2005)

farmergirl said:


> Okay. I got the pictures taken! DH is the computer whiz, so he'll be along to post the photos in a few minutes


Talk to us Farmer girl! - Are these the half Berk/half Hamp Chops? How were they raised? What were they fed?
Hanging weight at harvest?


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## MaineFarmMom (Dec 29, 2002)

The best pork we've ever raised came from Gloustershire Old Spots. I'm still listed as a breed in the registry so I get quite a few calls from people looking for them. They're easy pigs to raise, kind of lazy, easy on pasture, and eating a rare breed is a great way to save it. Breed the best, eat the rest.


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## farmergirl (Aug 2, 2005)

Our pigs are raised in large paddocks with grass to munch on. Most of their diet is a blend of ground corn and soybeans, with vitamins and minerals added. I'm currently having the feed milled at a 4 to 1 ratio, corn to soybeans. I believe the protein comes in around 14%. We also feed them raw eggs from our free range hens and vegetable and leftover scraps from our food in the house. Hanging weight came in right around 220# a piece (we had two processed last time). The pictures have a bit of glare in them so the chops ended up looking a little lighter colored than they actually are. The meat ends up fairly lean but has thin streaks of marbling throughout.

Forgot something: Yes! They are 1/2 Berk, 1/2 Hamp bred. That's all I'm breeding now


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## RedHogs (Jul 7, 2006)

MaineFarmMom do you know of anyone in the southeast with GOS stock??? I bought a boar in Va that I wasn't happy with but still would like to try some more.


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## MaineFarmMom (Dec 29, 2002)

I don't know of anyone but Kirk Brimberry will if there's anyone out there. I'll PM his phone number to you.


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## farmergirl (Aug 2, 2005)

I'd LOVE to have a GOS boar someday. Know of anyone in Texas who sells GOS pigs?


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## MilkandHoney (Nov 25, 2006)

Wow, I lost track of this thread some time ago. There sure are some mighty fine looking chop photos here. Gotta love the evidence that points at the food supply and pasture raising that influences taste greatly as much if not more than breed. 

I've recently heard that nut fed pigs are far and away the best tasting pigs - anybody have any experience with this?


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## unioncreek (Jun 18, 2002)

I'd have to side with Redhog on saying the left chop came from a fatty hog, just look at the layer of fat around the right edge. I would actually prefer the right chop since it has more marbling.

Bobg


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## gimpy (Sep 18, 2007)

Taste is very much a matter of opinion, but on "Iron Chef" (the Japanese one, not the American one) I saw an episode where the chefs were raving about potbellies and how they preferred to cook with it as opposed to "standard pork". Of course I don't know what "standard pork" means in Japan.


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