Pasture Raised Pork, Is It Worth It?

To farm or not to farm?  Our family thinks farming/homesteading goes beyond trying to save money and possibly having healthier foods, it provides endless family activities and unmatchable learning experiences.

For me, growing up on a farm taught me what physical hard labor was and how to stick with completing something even when you didn't want to.  Note that I did NOT grow up on a full time job type farm where it was my family's sole income, it was a hobby-like farm, 200 acres of hobby.  It also taught me to respect nature and animals and know it's not your effort that gives success but God's grace.  We cannot make it rain, sun to shine, a seed germinate, livestock to stay safe and healthy... God makes that happen.

This preface is to point out that there is more to our homesteading decisions than the information below.  We DO consider the benefits of our investments, but their are some benefits that out weigh financial.  Also, we can only grow what our assets allow.

So with out further ado, is raising your own pork or purchasing pasture raised pork (vs. store purchased) worth it?


What is Pasture Raised Pork
Unfortunately this can be a misleading term since grass fed is all the rave these days.  Pasture raised pork means the pigs are not confined such as in CAFOs (concentrated animal feeding operations) but are allowed to roam free and most likely forage and dig in the dirt.
It DOES NOT MEAN that pigs are solely grass fed.  Pigs are omnivores therefore needing more than grass.  Pasture raised pigs are able to forage minerals and nutrients from the ground unlike CAFO pigs but they still need some protein supplement.

Health Benefits?
I put a question mark on this subtitle for a reason.  Arguing the health benefits for pastured pork is not as easy as arguing for grass fed beef.  Animals, in a sense, are what they eat.  Its not surprising that cows grazing solely on grass have lots of good nutrients in their meat.  Even their fat has good nutrients for you (such as Omega-3s).  Pigs, as said above, cannot graze solely on grass.  From my experience they actually prefer the stuff under the grass such as roots and bugs and such.  Foraging pigs can take in more nutrients than confined pigs which will increase the nutrient quality of their meat but according to research it's not as substantial as grass fed beef.  This is mainly due to the need for protein supplementation.  Whether this supplementing is done with natural plant sources (some farms use acorns, soy beans, etc.) or grain; these sources still contain the type of fat (Omega-6) that research has deemed we need to consume less of (though we DO need some Omega-6 in our diet).  This ratio of higher Omega 6 to Omega 3 is why some say pastured pork is not worth it.
The bottom line for me is that our pigs go to the slaughter house healthy and happy, I know their diet contained more nutrients than confined pigs, they were never medicated and our slaughter house takes great care of their facility and the work they do (it's a family run, USDA certified place).

Is It Worth It To Buy?
I can only speak to the prices in our area (I live in southern New England).  I know prices can range widely depending on where you live.  I gathered the below prices from our 'standard' grocery store (our local butcher, who provides much better cuts, and high end grocery stores both have higher prices than these).  Also, note these are our last year's prices which we expect to be less this year after learning some helpful hints.

Almost across the board their prices are less per cut which should be expected.  Mass production farming can offer food at low prices, and I appreciate low cost food since food is a necessity for everyone.  Just like any product though, you get what you pay for.  I can honestly say (and I am not a saleswoman or a liar) that the difference in flavor and quality is noticeable.  Better quality meat (good marbling) and better quality processing (how its cut) makes for a better tasting product.  That's the best I can summarize it.
 

Christmas Rib Roast

And every once in a while, when the media tries to freak me out about bacteria in meat, fillers, hormones (though I believe hormones are not allowed in pork production), etc. I just don't have to think about it.  I know exactly step by step how our meat got to our freezer.
Quickly, I would like to point out that I am NOT against large scale farms.  I know this is a hot issue for some and I don't feel it's necessary to get into that here.  Just don't base your opinions off a few biased documentaries, it's not fair.

So, Is It Worth It To Raise Your Own Pork?
Money wise, it's close to equivalent for us.  We are probably not saving money.  I am saving time by not having to go to the grocery store as often though (this is huge to me).  All in all  it's a fairly easy YES.  Pigs are easy to care for and are pretty friendly.

I want to be clear that this post was not intended to persuade any of my local friends to by meat from us (we actually do not want to over whelm ourselves with too large of a pig production).  This post was solely to answer some questions we have been asked.

We plan to get at least 4 pigs this year (double from the 2 last year) and already have pre-sold a whole pig worth of meat.
We're looking forward to seeing those little piggies darting around the field in the coming months. :)