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the buzz

“Forget the Acorn. It's all about the Peanut-Fed Pork.”

The Spanish have their prized Jamon Iberico—acorn-fed black-footed pigs cured into insanely rich meat that currently sell for prices in the $90 a pound range. But now we’ve got our own nutty pigs. Domestically raised, peanut-fed Berkshire fresh pork is now being served and sold!

The peanut-fed pig project was conceived to offer a comparable alternative to European cured meats and charcuterie like Parma, San Daniele and Serrano. It is a collaboration between Newman Farms, S. Wallace Edwards and Sons, Paradise Meats and Heritage Foods USA (the great folks who bring us those Heritage Breed Turkeys on Thanksgiving.)

This is how the programs works. Every week, Mark and Rita Newman and their sons at Newman Farms, who raise Berkshire pigs and own the last independent family pig farm in the Ozarks in Missouri, coordinate the production and processing of the peanut-fed six-spotted Berkshire pigs that are raised on pasture by half a dozen family farms in the Ozarks’ fertile region. (All animals are handled according to the Humane Farm Animal Care Standards and the farm is Certified Humane.)

The pigs are then sent to Sam Wallace Edwards and Sons in Surry, Virginia where the meat prepared into Berkshire bacon, sausage, and Surry-ano ham, named in honor of Sam’s hometown. The meat is then shipped out to Paradise Meats, a family-owned abattoir dedicated to helping small family farms get their product to market. A lack of abattoirs is the biggest bottleneck for the sustainable protein market.

The ham can already be found on the menu at Momofuku Ssam Bar and Union Square Café. Peanut-fed fresh Berkshire Pork will be on the menus at Babbo, 5 Ninth, Union Square Café, Lupa, Al Di La, and The Tasting Room for the next two weeks. If you’d like your own peanut-fed fresh Berkshire pork you can visit Ottomanelli and Sons, Esposito’s Sausage or www.EdwardsVAham.com or heritagefoodsUSA.com.

Cured peanut-fed bacon will be available in June 2008, while smoked peanut-fed hams will be available in June 2009.

Chefs interested in learning more may want to sign up for the three-day NEW U. taking place June 15th to teach chefs about the art of raising, transporting, and processing pork according to pasture-raised traditions.

Also stay tuned for Patrick Martins' and Sarah Obraitis’ new book, There’s No Business like Slow Business,” coming out in December. A feature film about Heritage Foods, “Backgrounding America,” will premier in Los Angeles and New York in 2009.

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Posted: April 27, 2008 - 3:46 pm

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