Pastured Pork?
posted on
March 22, 2022
Pastured Pig?
Have you heard of a pastured pig before? That’s all we have at Buffalo Valley Pastures!
Let’s talk about store pork products, first. Many farms these days feed their pigs a steady diet of corn and soy. Those are two easy ways to give our little pig friends energy and protein. Obviously, this is not a balanced diet, so often times the pigs will be given additives to supplement their nutrition.
The most commonly grown crops in the USA is corn and soybeans, and most of it is GMO. Where there is GMO, there is usually a lot of spraying as well. Although you may be avoiding GMOs when you shop at the store, the pigs before they became yummy bacon did not!
According to an article by Lynne Rossetto Kasper, 97% of pigs in the U.S. are raised in Iowa at a factory farm. She visited this factory farm where the pigs never see the light of day and breath ‘poisoned air’ from the unsanitary conditions and lack of fresh air. They also live in small cages and are only kept alive until they reach their slaughter weight. In the meantime, they stand in their own filth, and they are fed a steady dose of antibiotics to keep them from getting sick in these toxic conditions. It may not be pleasant, but it is legal. Farmers also have to figure out large scale waste management which isn’t good for the environment either.
Many people don’t want to support such farming practices. What’s the alternative to this dark and dismal reality? Pastured Pigs! At Buffalo Valley Pastures, our pigs roam free with the rest of the animals! They go around eating grass, weeds, nuts, grubs and anything else they can find! They get plenty of sunlight, fresh air and exercise! With a healthy life style, antibiotics and other medications are not necessary. When there is a sick pig, the farmer treats them with homeopathic alternatives. You can rest assured that our pigs are not only fed well, but raised well, too!
Do you think it makes a difference? Absolutely! There is truly a difference in not only the taste and texture of the meat, but the color as well! It’s not pale like the so called ‘other white meat.’ Pastured pig meat has a reddish hue to it. It’s tender and delicious. Even the fat is higher quality because of their diet! I personally have never liked eating pork so much!
Buy your tenderloins, chops and sausages today! There are no preservatives or nitrates in our sausages or any of our products! Don’t forget lard! Our lard aka fat is high quality, made from our pastured pigs. Use it to make your fried foods or replace your every day cooking oil. Find the 'pork fat' in the Pastured Pork section of the website.
Thorp, Elise. “7 Reasons to Eat Pastured Pork.” Trillium Wood. July 14, 2021.
https://www.trilliumwoodfarm.com/blogs/news/6-reasons-to-eat-more-pastured-pork
Kasper, Rossetto Lynne. “Inside the factory far, where 97% of U.S. pigs are raised.” The Spledid Table. May 6, 2015.
“GMO Crops, Animal Food, and Beyond.” FDA. Feb. 17, 2022.
https://www.fda.gov/food/agricultural-biotechnology/gmo-crops-animal-food-and-beyond#:~:text=Corn%20is%20the%20most%20commonly,%2C%20livestock%2C%20or%20other%20animals.
