Why We Raise “Woodlot” Pigs

In some of our past posts, you may have noticed that we’ve made references to “raising pigs on pasture” or “raising pigs on woodlots.”

What exactly does that mean, and why do we do it?

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The Problem With CAFOs

About 93% of all the pigs raised in the United States are raised on “factory farms,” sometimes referred to as “CAFOs” (confined animal feeding operations). 

In this set-up, piglets are taken from their mothers and weaned at around three weeks of age, then placed in concrete- or slatted-floor set-ups where they will be raised indoors for the rest of their lives. The slats allow manure to fall through to a pit (often referred to as a “lagoon”), where it’s then collected (and often spread as fertilizer). 

There are many folks who will argue that CAFOs are the only way to go when it comes to pork production because it’s cheaper and more consumer-accessible. With these set-ups, you “can” raise more meat with a smaller land footprint. 

However, the irony of this statement is that, of all animals raised in CAFOs, about a million die just during transport to slaughter and as many as 10% are “downers,” which are animals so sick or injured they can’t stand or walk on their own. There’s quite a bit of waste as a result. 

Poop Problems

Then there’s the problem of the poop. In Iowa alone, there are more than 4,000 large CAFOs (which house 1000 or more animals each), with the largest CAFOs producing 68 billion pounds of manure each year. Pig waste that’s collected in lagoons is extremely problematic. These lagoons are prone to spills and leaks, with manure waste causing algae blooms and spreading dangerous pathogens like E.coli.

These spills and leaks often aren’t widely publicized, but are more common than you think. Hurricanes put the lagoons at an even bigger risk of catastrophe, with Hurricane Florence in 2018 leading to the contamination of dozens of waterways in North Carolina and causing massive fish die-offs.

Animal Welfare Concerns

Poop problems aside, raising animals in this kind of set-up presents other logistical hurdles. These animals, typically raised in a footprint of three square feet per pig, have enough room to lie down and turn around (not counting sows raised in gestation or farrowing crates, who aren’t able to do that at all). 

Because animals are raised so close together, they require heavier doses of antibiotics and other medications. These living conditions are not reflective of what the animals require naturally. They’re unable to root and forage and often, unable to even turn around comfortably. Tail-biting, aggression, and cannibalism are common. Pigs are smart - and they get bored in confinement, which causes them to lash out.

Big Business

You won’t see CAFOs shut down or heavily regulated any time soon. They benefit from industrial and agricultural tax breaks and subsidies and the agribusiness industry lobbies heavily in Washington to make sure their best interests are kept at heart. 

Sadly, most small producers don’t qualify for the breaks and subsidies that are enjoyed by the larger ones. 

Because livestock production tends to be an economy of scale, it’s become harder and harder for small producers to do simple things like book slaughter appointments and raise enough animals to pay the bills. When regulations are passed, they tend to affect farms from the bottom up - with CAFOs remaining largely untouched with their high level of political “untouchability.”

Contrary to popular belief, these aren’t all American-owned companies, either. The companies that own the majority of CAFOs in the United States include Cargill and Tyson (both American-owned) but also Smithfield (Chinese-owned) and JBS (out of Brazil). 

Undocumented workers make up roughly half of the workforce in these CAFOs (most of which are located in rural, low-income communities). Studies have shown that people living in areas dominated by CAFOs have significantly reduced lung function and higher rates of pneumonia, asthma, eye irritation, and various infectious diseases.

The Alternative to CAFOs

There are massive issues with the way we raise and process meat in the United States, but there are producers who are trying to do things a bit more sustainably - for the environment, for the animal, and for the community. 

When people visit our farm, it rarely smells like pig manure (unless we happen to have some on our boots…or Dundee has just found a fresh pile to roll in!). In fact, it’s unlikely that you’ll even see our pigs - they’re not anywhere near the house or the main barns. 

Instead, for the majority of the summer, they’re in the woods.

We rotate our pigs through wooded pastures for a few reasons. We refer to our pigs as “pastured pigs” or “woodlot pigs” for a variety of reasons, but I’ll admit that calling them “pastured pigs” is a bit of a misnomer because they aren’t technically on “pasture.” We just don’t have a better nomenclature for the way we do things!

Why Our Pigs Aren’t Really Pasture Pigs

There’s a misconception out there that pigs (like sheep or cattle) can thrive on grass alone. That’s not the case. Pigs, like us, are monogastric. In fact, out of all the other animals in the world, pigs have the digestive system most like a human’s (which is why pig cadavers are often used in medical research and surgeon training). 

Because of this, pigs can’t digest grass like ruminants can - cows and sheep. They need a diet that’s more diverse. They’re omnivores, meaning they eat both plant and animal matter, and need certain vitamins and minerals to remain healthy.

So if we were to leave our pigs out in a pasture - a hay field - all year long, we’d run into problems. For one, the pigs would get hungry and probably find a way to escape. They’d also root up the pasture beyond recognition - something we don’t want to happen when we’re trying to keep the pastures healthy for our ruminant animals that need them.

Before you come at me and say- “yeah but WhAt AbOuT PaSturE PiGs?” - know this: there are some pig breeds that perform BETTER on pasture than others, but all pigs are omnivores and require a diet that meets those needs. They will likely get some of their diet met through natural foraging, but you will likely still need to supplement with additional feed or you’ll run into deficiency problems long-term. 

Those breeds that perform reasonably well on pasture include Idaho Pasture Pigs and Kunekunes (and I should also note that both of these breeds grow to much smaller sizes, meaning they aren’t always as suitable for commercial sale). 

Why We Raise “Woodlot” Pigs

So instead of raising our pigs on pasture, we raise them in the woods, providing them with the grain they need to thrive out of an automatic feeder we’ve plopped right in the middle of our woodlot.

This is serving a few purposes for us. One, the pigs love it. They’re free to roam around within their electric-fenced paddock and root and forage to their hearts’ content. They sleep in a lean-to hut and can come and go freely. They eat whenever they’re hungry - since they’re on an auto-feeder - and drink whenever they’re thirsty -  since they’re on an auto-waterer. 

Best yet, the forest provides them with a bit of shade - a must during hot summers. Pigs can and do get sunburned, which is why they cover themselves with mud. The mud provides a coating of protection against harsh UV rays and helps cool them down (pigs can’t sweat to cool down, like we can, despite having sweat glands).

My personal favorite part of raising pigs in the woods like this is that we don’t have to worry about odors or escapees. The only time we ever notice any kind of odor issue with our pigs is when we have them close to the house in the spring, when they’re still young and being trained to an electric fence (and therefore, need to be within our eyesight at all times). 

Other than that, that’s it. It’s sometimes easy to forget we have pigs because they’re so comfortable back in their wooded paddock! They’re happy, too - a telltale sign of a happy pig is a pig that stays put. We seldom have pigs break free of their pen (the only time we had an issue this summer was when it was time to start loading trailers to the slaughterhouse and we weren’t vigilant about electrifying the fence during the process). 

Healthy=Happy=Better Overall

A healthy pig is a happy pig - and a happy pig creates less headaches for the farmer. It also produces exceptional meat. An increase in stress hormones, whether it’s caused by shipping stress or fighting right before slaughter, can dramatically impact the quality of meat. It leads to meat that’s tougher and less flavorful. 

So while we try to raise our animals in the best possible conditions because we know it’s the right thing to do for them and for the environment, it’s not entirely altruistic - we’re also looking out for our own best interests here. 

But I think we can all agree that this is probably okay - as long as everyone wins in the end.