“Black Oak Holler” Hogs Bred For Flavor

“Black Oak Holler” Hogs Bred For Flavor HOG EQUIPMENT & IDEAS Chuck Talbot’s pigs are bred to fatten on acorns and other scrounged material found in the woods near Black Oak Holler West Virginia He has crossed Ossabaw hogs with Large Blacks for his paternal line and now has added Eurasian Wild Boar to the mix “The Eurasian Wild Boar potential is exciting for its ability to put on fat in the woods ” explains Talbot “Like the Ossabaw these aren’t just wild breeds They are feral breeds with old heritage genetics that put on fat ” Unlike many states West Virginia has no rules on breeding Wild Boar The state actually released them at one time as a way to restore former strip mines “They make an excellent maternal line with good productivity and mothering ” says Talbot The males that result from breeding the wild boar to an Ossabaw/Large Black cross sow are a little more docile than their father “I didn’t let anybody in his pen ” he says “We come and go around these two although you always need to watch boars We separate them before working them ” A former professor at North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University Talbot is trying to establish a swine production system for small farmers in the mountains of West Virginia His goal is a pig that can survive in the woods feeding on acorns and hickory nuts in the fall to produce a flavorful meat This summer he put 30 head in a 16-acre woodlot with double strand electric fence Last year he ran 100 head in the woods He runs the pigs in sorghum Sudan pasture in the summer and supplements with barley “Europeans say our farm-produced pork is bland due to corn and soybean rations ” says Talbot Keeping the pigs contained in their forest pasture starts with training as piglets notes Talbot’s wife Nadine Perry “We have a couple fields with woven wire and electric wire on the inside ” she says “We train new pigs that way ” Talbot adds that the daily barley supplement also helps “When I whoop and holler they know something good is coming ” he says “That is part of the conditioning but they also respect the 6 000 volts ” Talbot’s pigs are not the fast growing “other white meat” pigs produced in confinement His are ready for slaughter at a year’s age give or take a month They weigh in at around 350 lbs “We’re working with a group in the state to expand and upgrade meat processing ” says Perry “We are trying to expand processing and dry curing for more products If we could get dry cured product done locally we could slice it and package it ” Perry says the crossing of feral and domestic breeds combined with the barley and forest feed make for a flavorful meat It is also lower in saturated fat “The flavor is fantastic with a sweeter taste and more depth ” she says “It has a darker color and there are more layers to the flavor with a richness you don’t get with conventional pork ” Contact: FARM SHOW Followup Black Oak Holler Farm 6909 Black Oak Rd Fraziers Bottom W Va 25082 ph 304 937-4025; Chuck Talbott@mail wvu edu

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