Agriculture Reference
In-Depth Information
The saying “fat as a pig” has lost some of its meaning over the past 30 years in the
United States. Historically, swine were raised as a source of fat to provide lard for
cooking. With the increasing use of vegetable oils for cooking, there is less demand
for lard and farmers are raising extremely lean swine for the marketplace.
7.7.1 Biology
Swine are monogastric animals. Their digestive system is similar to a human, consist-
ing of a stomach, duodenum, ileum, and colon. They are omnivorous scavengers eating
a diet consisting of grains, roots, and a few greens, plus insects and will also consume
meat, even becoming cannibalistic.
Genetic studies indicate that domesticated swine are descended from the Eurasian
wild boar, Sus scrofa. Domestication occurred nearly simultaneously in Europe and
Asia about 9000 years ago. Wild swine were first recorded in cave paintings and car-
vings over 25,000 years old. The first records of domesticated pigs are from China,
over 7000 years ago. Historical records show that pigs from China were brought to
Europe in the eighteenth century for purposes of improving the European breeds.
Swine have greater intelligence than most farm animals and have been used to
replace dogs for hunting.
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Domesticated swine often become wild if not kept in con-
finement, and it is likely that most wild pigs hunted in the United States are descendants
of domesticated pigs.
Distinct breeds of swine have evolved over the years. To maintain the character-
istics that distinguish a particular breed, farmers band together to form a registry that
lists names and owners of livestock meeting the ideal characteristics for color, size,
and the like. It is interesting to note that the first swine entered on a registry of purebred
livestock was a boar owned by Queen Victoria of England in 1875. The major breeds of
swine in the United States are Duroc, Landrace, Chester White, Poland China, Berk-
shire, Spots, Yorkshire, and Hampshire.
The meat of swine (pork) is considered “unclean” and not fit for human con-
sumption in Jewish and Muslim religions. It is most likely this prohibition is
related to the presence of parasites in many swine herds of the Middle East. Avoid-
ance of foods that could carry disease makes good medical sense. Including it in reli-
gious doctrine makes for more healthy followers. There is no such prohibition in
other religions.
“No man should be allowed to be president who does not understand hogs.”
President Harry Truman
7.7.2 Feeding Requirements
The nutritional requirements of swine are similar to that of humans. As a result, we
would expect them to compete with humans for the same types of food. In reality,
swine will eat a wide variety of foods that humans do not prefer to eat. Historically,
