A $50 deposit per 1/2 share is required to hold your order, and the balance will be due after the final weight and processing is calculated. Prices are based on $2.35/lb. hog rail-weight. Your processing fees are separate and additional, and will vary greatly based on your cut and cure selections. If that sounds unfamiliar, see the info at the bottom of this page for the primer on how farm-direct hog shares work. It’s a different mode of buying meat than supermarket-style, but it’s the most economical and sustainable way to buy meat.
1/2 Hog, Customize your Cuts & Cures – $50 deposit, estimated final total cost $275 for the half-hog, + an estimated $150 to $175 for processing
- When you get a half a hog, you will be able to specify your own precise instructions about cutting, grinding, and curing as desired.
- You will have two separate bills, one to our farm for the animal, and one for the butcher directly for your custom processing.
- Final invoice will vary +/- $50 based on actual rail-weight of the hog at time of processing.
FAQ| How does buying hog shares work?
If you have never bought freezer meat straight from the farm, here’s a quick primer on how farm-direct hog shares:
- You buy a fraction of the hog (a half). You pay us, as the farmer, for the animal based on it’s rail-weight, and the butcher for the processing. That means your total bill can vary based on the final weight of the animal, typically ranging from 275 to 300lbs for a whole hog, or 135 to 150lbs for a half.
- You get to experience “tongue-to-tail” eating. You will get your fraction of everything a hog yields, which includes the commonly-known cuts like pork chops and bacon, but there are also roasts and soup bones, too.
- We will arrange a date when you can pick up the hog at our farm, packaged and frozen.
- A ½ a hog will rail-weight at about 150lbs, and after the unusable bone and grissel is trimmed, you will have closer to 90lbs of pork. These are estimates, of course. But, it’s a lot of meat, so you’ll need a chest freezer to store it all. If you’re not accustomed to buying food in bulk, please be sure you have enough freezer space to store this, as we don’t have the ability to inventory any meat.
How is the pork raised?
This is pasture-raised pork, and heritage breeds. That means that they spend their lives with full access to the outdoors on a pasture. Hogs are omnivores, and significant portion of their diet is foraged greens (grass, clover, and alfalfa hay in the winter) as well as grubs, shrews, snakes, and whatever other treats they enjoy digging out of the ground. They are given a supplemental diet of non-GMO corn that is also raised and harvested on our farm. The hogs are never given any antibiotic or hormone regimens.