Making good bacon isn’t just about curing and smoking pork meat. Making good bacon is also about the quality of the meat, and that means well-raised meat.
Pig breeds nowadays are either commercial, which includes all pigs raised in factories, or heritage pigs, which can be any of the old-time breeds that small farmers have been developing since 10,000 years ago when man turned from nomad into settler.
Bad bacon: commercial or factory-raised pigs
These are the pigs that dominate the pork industry, and they have been introduced with the advancement of commercial farming. More than 95 percent of the pigs in America are factory-raised.
Commercial farms raise pigs on a large scale to produce as much meat as possible in the shortest amount of time. The animals usually live their entire life inside metal cages and hardly, if ever, see the light of day.
The raising facilities are poised with gases coming from manure, which is typically held below the cages in vast pits. These gases would kill the pigs if vans as big as jet engines weren’t there to blow the air out.
Factory farm pigs are mostly fed with special formulas created to accelerate growth, which has an impact on their health since chemical additives can accumulate in animal tissue. Processed food waste is also allowed as animal feed in some states.
Good bacon: heritage pig breeds
These are the pigs that account for about 3 percent of the U.S. pig farming. They come from a variety of breeds that have been developed by farmers over time.
Animals that live on ethical and sustainable farms practice healthy meat and quality of meat by allowing pigs time outside where they can eat and perform typical behaviors such as rooting and digging.
In addition to being grass-fed, the pigs are also fed foods like turnips and fodder beats which benefit the animals since pigs are known to require extra nutrients than what they can get from grass.
Treatment protocols are much stricter compared to factory farms, and health maintenance is a priority. Because they have access to pastures, pigs are less likely to develop infections from injuries often sustained by pigs in factory farms.
Why good breed matters
If making good cake requires good ingredients, it isn’t any different with bacon. Good pork, in this case, well-raised pork, makes good bacon.
Only small farms raise heritage pig breeds nowadays. The taste and the texture of the meat may vary breed to breed, but this remains the primary source for obtaining good pig meat, which all heritage breeds offer.
Because these pigs are raised on pastures and are fed a nutritionally balanced diet and a healthy one, they provide safe meat that is also good-tasting meat.
Farmers’ markets are the best places to find well-raised bacon, and while they will cost you more than the average supermarket, it’s what you’re paying for that makes a difference: ethically raised pork that is healthy for you and for the environment.