“The difference between good quality pork and standard pork is as big as the difference between free range and battery farmed chickens, in my opinion, so seek out rare breed pork or at least organic free range pork if possible.”
So says Tom Kitchin in the Sunday Times. Regarded by many as Scotland’s most talented chef his restaurant, the aptly named “Kitchin”, is known for combining classical French cooking techniques with the rich array of products available in his homeland.
We need more chefs in the know to demand and pay for the unique tastes that each individual rare breed of British pig produces. Clearly optimum eating quality, which must combine taste with succulence, is only available from outdoor reared rare breed traditional pigs.
Time = Taste = Cost.
This is the very short assessment of rearing rare breed pigs but this is impossible at commercial prices. Outdoor reared rare breed pigs grow at about 30% slower than modern outdoor pigs and vastly slower than the indoor factory farmed commercial hybrid pigs. Therefore rare breed traditional pork, a niche market product, should command a premium price. It is that good!
On the pig keeping courses we cover every aspect of pig keeping but place a great deal of emphasis on evaluating the cost of production and finding a correct selling price. You cannot beat your own pork on your own table but inevitably you may wish to sell some to friends or relatives who need to taste just how good it is.
It is all too easy to under price your precious product, which should in no way be compared in price to commercial pork available from the supermarket or butcher.
Personally I always chose an outdoor reared and finished rare breed pig for my own eating. The soil, grasses, herbs and exercise adds extra taste to the pork, which inevitably has more fat than commercial pigs and has to be cooked accordingly.
I believe I am possibly one of the very few people in Britain to have eaten most of the British rare breed pigs, as for the last 20 years I have run a rare breed pig finishing unit. I can categorically state that each different breed of pig has its own unique taste. So, come on a pig keeping course and learn the differences in character of the different breeds when both alive and on the table.
John
