Pastured Pork
Our pork is anything but "the other white meat". The difference between our pork and the poor substitute for chicken that you will find in the grocery store is so pronounced that you will think you have discovered a new species.Most hogs today are bred to perform in confinement systems where they are pumped full of antibiotics and live out their lives on slatted floors breathing the ammonia fumes from their own waste below them. The object is quantity over quality as always happens in a commodity system.
They use crossbreeding (hybrid vigor) to promote growth so they can get their pigs to market size as efficiently as possible. There is no premium for quality so they don't strive for quality. When you have 1000 hogs, 3 more days on feed is significant.
Large Blacks
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We take a different approach. We use heritage breeds (Large Black and Berkshire) for their ability to utilize pasture and for their eating quality.
The Large Black is a rare hertiage breed developed in the Devon and Cornwall areas of England in the late 1800's. It is known for its foraging ability and for its excellent eating quality. The short muscle fibers of the Large Black make the pork especially tender.
Berkshire
Berkshire, called Kurobuta in Japan where it is highly prized, is another heritage breed developed in England. The first ones brought to this country arrived in 1823. You can see the remarkable difference between a pork chop from a berkshire hog (left) and an industrially raised hog (right). The difference in taste is just as remarkable.