Hog Farm, Chapter 10: Mmm...BACON

Mmm...BACON. My husband quotes this every time we cook bacon (in his best Homer impersonation, of course). We do love bacon, especially wrapping dates or scallops. This is the story of bacon through the lens of a Field Mom. At the Gould farm, it all starts with an adorable pink porky piglet (and those ears!), weighing in at a mere 3 pounds. 

Newborn piglets

These are the basics of the meat we eat. The market pigs don’t ever live in a stall; it’s always open-pen living for them because there are no fighting issues. They are never given growth hormones. They are vaccinated when they’re just a couple of days old to prevent illness. Then, they are only given medicine when there is sickness, which is hopefully never. They drink fresh water and have access to an unlimited and highly efficient diet of ground corn (to supply heat and energy), soybean meal (to provide protein), vitamins and nutrients. Feed rations are tailored to optimize health and growth at each stage of their life.

Farrowing Crate

In the farrowing crate, usually ten to eleven piglets are born in a litter. They have teeth and curly long tails; the tails are clipped to prevent tail biting. The temperature in the farrowing room is about 70 degrees Fahrenheit to accommodate the needs of the mother (sow), but there is a heat lamp and heat pad in each crate for the litter to warm themselves. The piglets actually need about 90 degrees Fahrenheit. The bars you see in the photo on either side of the sow are to prevent her from crushing the piglets. They start life at about 3 pounds and grow very quickly on their mother’s milk for 2-3 weeks until they are weaned. At that point, they weigh somewhere around 15 pounds.

Nursery Pen at Hagenbuch Farms

(photo by Kate Hagenbuch)

Upon weaning, they are moved to a “nursery” farm (or pen, if kept at the same farm) where the floors are usually plastic for comfort for the smaller weaning pigs. The temperature is kept warm, around 85 degrees Fahrenheit and they each get about 3 square feet of space. They had feed to taste in the farrowing crate and, upon arrival at the nursery, they have unlimited access to feed and water.

Finishing Pen, 50 lbs at Janssen Farm

(photo by Pam Janssen)

Sometime between 6-10 weeks, or 50 pounds, they are moved to a “finishing” farm (or pen) where the temperature is lowered to about 70 degrees Fahrenheit and they each get about 8 square feet of space. They continue to receive as much feed as they wish to consume and will grow to 250-280 pounds by the time they are about 6 months old. When they reach that weight, they are ready for market! I was surprised to learn the meat we eat comes from such a young animal.

Finishing Pen, 260 lbs at Janssen Farm

(photo by Pam Janssen)

At that time, they are loaded on a truck and taken to the processor. At the processor, the animals are harvested, packaged, and immediately shipped fresh to retailers.

One of the things I wondered, going into this tour, was whether there is any chance that our meat at the super-market is raised locally. The answer is, probably not. There are three states that make up about 50% of the U.S. pork production, Iowa, North Carolina, and Minnesota (Illinois is no. 4). So, if you live near one of those states, there is a chance you will be eating pork from a “neighboring” farmer. Otherwise, there is a good chance it has been shipped from further away. That’s not all bad if you believe in the economies of scale.

Every animal has a tattoo or tag. We learned that once the animals are harvested, tracking stops. So, looking at that package of bacon in the meat case, the store can determine what processing plant it came from, but as of today, there is no way to know what farm that specific meat came from.

Before our farm tour, I had heard about  “corporate” farming. I didn’t really have a good definition of what that meant, but was wondering if the pork I was buying was farmed by one of those very large top five pork processors. The answer to that is, probably not. The percentage of farms owned and operated by the hog processors/retailers is very small. Most pork is raised by independent family farmers, like the families we met - the Goulds, Hagenbuchs, and Janssens.

We learned some interesting things about super-market pork and Hormel. First of all, Hormel has something they call the “red box.” This “red box” is used by Hormel, at the time they purchase the pigs from the hog farmers, to achieve better consistency in the size, flavor, and leanness of the meat. This demand for consistency is driven by what the consumer has come to expect. A very specific weight range is one of the qualifications of the "red box;" and if the farmer is “in the box” he is rewarded with a price incentive. If he’s “out of the box,” the price is docked. In this day-and-age, I expected the farmers would weigh each pig to make sure it’s on target before sending it off, but that technology isn't available to all farms, yet. Many farmers actually choose the pigs for market by sight – and that is a very valuable skill. When the pigs get to the processor, the farmers find out how they did.

Most farms write a standards of practice (SOP) plan and comply with PQA Plus (Pork Quality Assurance Plus), which is an educational program for the continuous improvement of production practices. It addresses food safety, animal well-being, environmental stewardship, and public health issues. A few of the 10 Good Production Practices (GPPs) that are part of the program include, establish and implement an efficient and effective health management plan, use antibiotics responsibly, and practice good environmental stewardship. Assessments are done every three years by the farm veterinarian; and Hormel can do unannounced audits as part of their contract with the Gould Farm. Every employee must go through PQA training, even the weekend high school student.

Bacon-Wrapped Pork Medallions

from Pork Be Inspired

And last, but certainly not least, our tour ended with a delicious seasoned butterfly pork chop sandwich grilled by a local butcher who came to talk to us about different cuts of pork and demonstrate how to cut a pork loin into several different cuts. His part of the program was fun and we learned a few new things about cooking pork. His mantra to us was "Grill It, Don't Kill It!" That was to remind us we can turn down the heat and not cook dry pork chops like we all remember from our childhood. We no longer have to be worried about trichinosis in the meat we buy from the super-market. Look for 145 degrees Fahrenheit, he said. Or, grill it to 135, wrap it tightly in foil, then let it sit for 20 minutes and it will come up to 145 and be juicy and tender. Check out Pork Be Inspired for some great pork recipe ideas!

Thanks to being a Field Mom, I had an eye-opening tour of the Gould Hog Farm in Maple Park, Illinois, and learned a lot from the Farm Moms who joined us. Now I know where our super-market pork comes from and the background of our bacon! It’s actually pretty awesome knowing. 

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The Gould Farm is a “farrow to wean” operation, which means they specialize in the birth (farrowing) of the market pigs. The Goulds are investors in a local network of farms that retain ownership of the pigs until they reach market weight (about 280 pounds). When the piglets are weaned, they are transported to another farm that specializes in the “nursery” stage of the pig’s growth. There is a third farm that specializes in the “finishing” stage, which is the longest and final growth stage of the market pig’s life.

We had two Farm Moms on our tour with us; they were Kate Hagenbuch, of Hagenbuch Family Farm, and Pam Janssen of Janssen Family Farm. Both raise hogs and have crop land to support the hog farm, similar to the Goulds. Not all hog farmers specialize, like the Goulds do, and the operations vary as much as the people who own them. Kate’s operation is a “wean to finish” farm and Pam’s is “farrow to finish” farm. Thank you to both for sharing photos from your operations with me.