missuscluck Posted January 30, 2009 Share Posted January 30, 2009 Justine you do make me laugh Note to all, they are not my personal trotters. They are still attatched to my legs Mrcluck will be thrilled he has been snapped and placed on the omlet forum!! Ill show him when he gets back from doggie walking duty. Back on topic... I havent yet watched all of the programme yet. We started to watch but after about 1/2 hour I fell asleep. Not because I dont find Jamie O' riveting but due to being very over tierd Ill watch the rest later hopefully. I was surprised about the labeling and also even more surprised about the 'wiltshire cured' thing. Its all very wrong. I also didnt really know about the lower standard permitted in the pig industry abroad. I love Pork shoulder. Its one of my favourite cuts. Lovley slow roasted. The state of the pig farming industry in this country is very sad to see. I was upset at the tale the farmer told of how he no longer can afford to keep pigs and that a pig farmer had taken his own life. We would love to do it full time as a job. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
missuscluck Posted January 30, 2009 Share Posted January 30, 2009 Sorry meant to add....Justine is right we dont have our boy pigs castrated. I guess if you do castrate it means you can keep them longer and gain more meat. I guess in a comercial situation that would make more sense. It also stops the boys from fighting. We are friends with an elderly couple who always kept pigs on their smallholding in small batches of 6 or so at a time breeding from their own sow and free ranging. The ideal situation. They would always castrate the boys very soon after birth to stop them fighting and trim their teeth to stop them causing any damage to the sow when feeding. He would place them upside down in a welly boot and do the deed with no pain releif She was quietly disaproving that we didnt castrate the boys. We do have to be very carefull about the dates when the boys go as 'boar taint' is very real and will ruin the meat. Im not saying its right or wrong. It just dosent affect us in the situation we raise ours so we dont have to do it. I dont know enough about commercial farming to say its not on, end of. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fluffyknickers Posted January 30, 2009 Share Posted January 30, 2009 I wasnt able to watch it all as was up and down the stairs looking after my daughter who was ill. I buy pork products from a local pig farm called Wicks Manor Farm and they rear all their pigs on straw (you can see them from the farm shop!) and then send them off to have the deed done and then sent back to the farm where they become sausages, pork, mince, bacon etc. Extemely reasonsable price and really delicious. x Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted January 30, 2009 Share Posted January 30, 2009 I recorded it as it was on too late and having read this I've decided not to watch it as it sounds too upsetting and I don't need to watch it because.. A -I'm a vegitarian B - I only buy the good stuff in Waitrose anyway. It was bad enough seeing the chickens and I am the converted. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lewis Posted January 30, 2009 Share Posted January 30, 2009 I watched it too, and I think that the pigs should be given an anaesthetic when being castrated, but I can also see that the cost would be really high and the farmers can't afford to do it because of the prices they get for their meat. I am looking for a pig farm to go to do some work experience, and I think I've found a free range organic outdoor born and raised farm Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted January 30, 2009 Share Posted January 30, 2009 you'd think they'd be able to freeze the area, like they do when you get your ears pierced. surely that wouldn't cost much? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Janty Posted January 30, 2009 Share Posted January 30, 2009 This is where we buy our pork from : http://www.freerangepork.co.uk/acatalog/About.html We actually buy it from our local butchers shop. They decided about a year or so ago to only stock Blythburgh Free Range Pork. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Janty Posted January 30, 2009 Share Posted January 30, 2009 Those people who are driving up from Essex to the coffee morning on 15th February can wave to the piggies as they pass Walberswick. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lewis Posted January 31, 2009 Share Posted January 31, 2009 you'd think they'd be able to freeze the area, like they do when you get your ears pierced. surely that wouldn't cost much? I've just had a look on google and apparently it's been tried. Have a look at this PDF Testicle FreezingLast but not least, at the Raumberg Gumpenstein Institute in Austria, extensive research is carried out to a method using a spray to freeze the piglets' testicles prior to castration. After using the spray, which contains chlorethyl, the researchers use lidocaineas an anaesthetic on the wound to sooth the pain. Results of this kind of research are positive as the piglets show less stress than without the use of freezing. In addition, no piglets showed any 'pain behaviour' after castration, wound healing is generally quick and the prices are relatively cheap. They can also use a Nose Spray, Carbon Dioxide and an Injection. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
