Wednesday, March 24, 2010

Our Pigs

We base our premium pork products on old-breed, free-range pigs that come from small farmlets south of Hobart, in the Huon Valley and on Bruny Island. These days most of the pigs we use are from our own farms. The main breeds we use are the black Berkshire (pronounced “Barkshire”) and Wessex Saddleback breeds, both of which are slower growing and better tasting than the ordinary commercial white pig. As older varieties of pigs, both Berkshires and Wessex Saddlebacks have greater marbling and a greater external fat content than faster growing pigs. Our pigs are either female or immature males, and have a diet that could include apples, cherries, potatoes, grass and whey that’s created in the process of cheesemaking at Bruny Island Cheese Company. The pigs' fat is packed full of flavour, and is predominantly unsaturated (making it much healthier than butter). When you cook with Rare Food pig products, you should find them richer, and therefore use and eat less meat.