A native British Lop Pig. The ears cover the eyes to protect them when foraging.
A couple of weeks ago we moved out of London. Today was our first weekend of not shifting boxes about. So, when I asked Tim what he’d like to do today, on our first free weekend together in the country, he suggested we go and see some pigs. Very romantic, but hey, we’re in the country.
After a brief discussion about appropriate footwear (my scruffy ones let in water, but I don’t want to ruin my warm and dry ones with pig poo) we set off to see some young, rare pigs at Hazeledene Farm, in the Ashridge Vale on the edge of Chesham.
We had no idea that there are pigs that are so rare that they are almost endangered species. One of those breeds is the Lop Pig, previously known as the National Long White Lop Eared Pig. It’s one of the original, native British pigs.
It seems, much like the way the Milk Marketing Board buggered up British cheeses in the 70s, wiping out a huge selection of our traditional cheeses, the government waded into in the subject of pigs in 1955. British artisan cheeses have been recovering gradually since the 90s, to the point that we now have a fantastic selection of cheeses again. Sadly, some native pig breeds have been lost forever.
The Government’s Howitt Report recommended that in order to increase profitability and compete with imported bacon, farmers should concentrate on the Landrace – imported from Sweden, and the Large White and Welsh breeds.
This led to the extinction of native pig breeds such as the Cumberland, Lincolnshire Curly Coated, Ulster White, Dorset Gold Tip and Yorkshire Blue.
Tea time
Mum..?
Is it hot in here, or is it me?
So these little piggies are rather special, as there are currently only around 200 Lop sows left in the country.
A chap in the farm shop gave us a bag of something that the pigs like – not entirely sure what they were – some sort of pig food pellet – the pigs were certainly keen to get hold of them. And I wouldn’t want to be amongst these pigs when they are hungry – they are enthusiastic eaters.
A dandy of a Cockerel
Free ranging chickens
Hazeldene Farm owners Liz and Steve also keep rare breeds of chickens, such as Marsh Daisy – apparently only a hundred of those left. The pure white Ixworth chickens are slightly less rare, with around 500 left. No wonder they were so upset a fox got one of their rare chickens recently. It’s so nice to see the chickens wandering around wherever they want, and funny to see how they sheltered in various places, under their houses, under a bench, under a raised drinking water can, when a sudden downpour of rain came. They raise all the animals and chickens here on organic principles.
This is the pork shoulder Tim cooked a few weeks back, after one of our visits to Hazeldene Farm. The crackling was cracking, and it was perfect.
Shoulder of pork. Raised on organic principles.
A trivet made from the bones
In the oven
Cracking crackling
Postscript: I saw the other day that the lovely Philip Dundas of the pop up restaurant Pip’s Dish at the Garage in Islington did a shoulder of lop pork recently. Can’t wait to go and try Pip’s Dish. It’s here: http://www.pipsdish.co.uk/2012/07/stuffed-british-lop-shoulder
The farm is here: www.hazeldenefarm.com
Lovely post. I’d like to visit there now. Any pictures of the chickens?
Loved this post. Beautiful pictures.
Probably the best .looking cracklings I’ve ever seen. Lovely stuff indeed.
I posted a couple of the chickens – but it was raining on this visit, so it was tricky to get close. – due to the fact I didn’t want to get soaked! They are lovely looking chickens, through, some are pure white. Go and see them if you are local, the people are very welcoming.
Thanks Conor. I wonder if that’s because the meat these pigs produce is different to your average pig. They are slo growing pigs, and the quality comes from how they’re brought up.
No question about it. Quality pork from quality animals that enjoyed their time. It’s a bit far for me to come (Dublin).
Best,
Conor
I cannot believe that I have not found you before,your work is great. That said I raise a heritage breed of pig here in the US (I am originally from NZ and find American industrial grown foods hard to digest – literally and figuratively).We have a tiny farm designed to feed a few families, nothing fancy. I also have a milking cow so my pigs are raised on milk and eggs and all that other yummy stuff that scandalises the neighbours – like grass and cabbage. My pigs are Herefords and only a few years ago there were about two thousand of them left in the states. But the reason I grow them is simply that they grow slower, do well on pasture, have smaller litters and are easy to train, so I don’t have to build a fortress to keep them in. I loved this post and your photography – lovely to have found you.. celi at
http://thekitchensgarden.com/
Love your pigs! Thanks for following me. Good journey.
Thanks – they’re not our pigs though – they are on a local rare breeds farm! We just like to visit them, and eat proper food.
Proper food indeed! Great storytelling and the photography is inspirational! *laughs* Always remember to wear proper footwear.
It’s important to know the source of food as much as we can and eat proper food indeed. I really enjoyed reading this post. And wow the pork shoulder looks amazing!!! I haven’t had tried cooking this particular method, but I would love to eat this meat… I’m a huge pork dish fan.
And thank you for your kind comments about my husband’s blogging tip post.
Thank you for visiting – and it’s very generous of you to pass on your advice.