How to put heritage pork on your holiday table—best breeds and where to buy them

Why It's Good:

Simply put, heritage meats are tastier. Why? Rarer and part of America's diminishing livestock history, heritage breeds are raised for the flavor of their meat, rather than their ability to be cheaply mass-produced and raised in indoor factories for uniform color, size, and bland flavor.

Why It's Green:

The best way to preserve rare breeds—generally raised outdoors and more humanely than commercial hogs—is to eat them, encouraging farmers to raise them. With the majority of the meat industry focusing on only one or two commercial breeds possessing the same genetic traits, one disease can wipe out a large part of the pig population, leaving less food and fewer species for future healthy generations.

Ham it Up for the Holidays

By now, most of us are familiar with heritage breed turkeys, but there are heritage breed animals that walk on four legs as well, including pigs, goats, and cattle.

A heritage breed represents an animal that may or may not have enjoyed commercial popularity in a previous time. Generally, these are breeds that were raised by small farmers for their qualities and hardiness, and—in our current era of factory farms when only one or two breeds are intensively raised—are in danger of dying out. (Six of fifteen domestic hog breeds raised for food during the 1930s are now extinct. For more information about conserving breeds of farm animals, contact the American Livestock Breeds Conservancy.)

These days, heritage pork is all the rage with chefs and food fans across the country who have discovered their excellent texture and unctuous flavor. More farmers are raising them now to meet the growing demand and to preserve breeds for posterity. Heritage pork is usually more expensive than conventionally raised pork, but fans (count me in!) find it well worth the price. Consider heritage hams the ultimate centerpiece for your holiday table.

Here are a few types to look for:

  Berkshire:

Probably the most popular heritage breed, Berkshires—also known by their Japanese name, Kurobuta—are a prized gourmet black breed and have excellent meat with highly flavorful marbling. Chefs often buy the whole hog and use it for tasting menus that incorporate the cheeks, belly, ham and bacon (much to our delight).

  Tamworth:

A red heritage breed that, in my opinion, produces the best bacon in the world. It’s said to be a direct descendant of the wild boars that roamed the forests of Staffordshire.

  Gloucester Old Spot:

Also called the "Iron Age Pig," this breed is a cross between the domestic and wild pig. Old Spot hogs were once widely bred and have exceptional meat and nice marbling.

  Yorkshire:

Yorkshires are a prolific breed and do well as pasture-raised animals. Yorkshires, a hearty animal, were a foundation breed crossed with other breeds to create modern commercial pig varieties.

Here are some resources on where to find heritage ham and pork:

You can sometimes find small-scale hog farmers who raise heritage breeds at farmer's markets or via the Internet.

  Local Harvest:

The essential guide for finding local producers nearest your zip code or mail-order sources.

  Flying Pigs Farm:

Jennifer Small and Michael Yezzi raise a variety of heritage pigs in a healthy setting on their farm in Shushan, New York, which they then process and sell locally and via mail order. They have both smoked and fresh whole hams through the holidays, as well as ham steaks and other smoked products.

  Heritage Pork International:

A consortium of Iowa pork producers who raise Berkshire pork exclusively. They certify the purity of the breed and pledge to raise the animals humanely without sub-therapeutic use of antibiotics in their feed. Because, honestly, who wants that in their Christmas ham?&#8212Susie Quick