Thebigspringsfarm is a farrow to pasture farm.  This means that our pigs are born and raised here.  Our pigs are not confined in small paddocks and packed into large confinement housing.  Virtually all pork offered to the consumer is raised in a confinement setting.  Due to the fact that confinement pigs are housed so close together, they are constantly medicated.  Our true grazing pigs are raised radically different.  

The standard pig operation has a pig being born and eventually processed in less than six months.  The entire time the pig lives in confinement, fed a steady diet of GMO corn/soy feed, and not seeing the light of day.

Our pigs live wonderful and happy lives on our pastures, enjoying the sun, rain, snow, and fresh air.  We raise our pigs on large rotational grazing pastures that contain dense nutrient grasses, clover, legumes, and brassica’s.  Our pigs also forage forested areas and glean what the forest floor provides, such as nuts, roots, and other vegetation.

By virtue of their breeds’, our pigs take a lot longer to grow.  The kune kune pigs on our farm are selected for processing in around 12 to 13 months and our IPP’s are selected for processing around 10 to 11 months of age.  Our pigs are slower/longer growing pigs.