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Meat And Lard Research Paper

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Pigs have really been divided into two major groups: Meat and Lard. The meat type pigs are also known as bacon types, they were developed to have more lean meat with moderate marbling of fat. On the other hand lard type pigs were developed to hard large deposits of fat so that the animals could be butchered into large chunks a bit easier. Modern swine production has focused prominently on developing pigs that grow fast and produce a very lean, light-colored meat. Older heritage breeds are raised for niche markets because they have more fat and grow much slower, however they are more efficient on pasture than commercial hogs. Producers of the heritage or older breeds believe that the meat and lard are much more flavorful and nutrient dense when raised on pasture at a slower rate, that is just preference. The majority of commercially raised hogs are going to be a hybrid. The mother is a maternal breed which is usually white and the father or sire is usually a terminal breed. A maternal breed that was …show more content…

These pigs are starting to become threatened or endangered of becoming extinct. They were once more prominent, but due to the shift from small farms to industrial farms they are not very prominent. These breeds do not do well in confinement, thus they are not popular. The five breeds that I listed are only a few of the heritage breeds, but they are rather docile breeds. They make great backyard hogs. They take a bit longer than commercial pigs to grow, but they have the ability to forage for food and they are all excellent mothers. I believe that it is very important to maintain the heritage hog populations as they have some great genetic lines and many consumers are partial to the slower growing pigs which make for a niche market. I understand that the maintenance of these breeds requires much time and effort but it would be a tragedy to lose

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