Q&A with Ross Duffield, Farm Manager at Rodale Institute
Rodale Institute is one of our newest Producer Matrix partners and we couldn't be more pleased to have them on board! They have recently added livestock to their farming operation, so we did a Q&A session with the farm manager to find out more about how they're raising and selling their hogs.
Can you explain the mission of the farm at Rodale Institute?
Rodale Institute is committed to groundbreaking research in organic agriculture, advocating for policies that support farmers, and educating people about how organic is the safest, healthiest option for people and the planet.
How do you raise your hogs, and why are those methods beneficial to the hogs, the environment and the eater?
Our hogs are raised in a natural but supervised setting. Everything the hogs eat is certified organic. We have adopted several management practices and woven them together to create what we feel is the most humane, efficient, and beneficial operation that we can provide.
Rodale Institute hogs have access to pasture all day, every day. The pasture is managed by the farmer to provide constant nutritious forage for the animals along with all the benefits that fresh air and sunshine can bring. I am a firm believer that if the pasture is managed well, the hogs will naturally be healthier. Our barn is a large hoop structure with roll up curtains on each side that allows for constant ventilation in the building, cutting down on odor and stale air. Our feeding and pen system is adopted from the confinement industry due to the fact that these systems are very efficient when it comes to the farmer's labor input. We do not use gestation or farrowing crates but instead we allow our sows to farrow on a deep straw bed with as much room as they need. We focus on good mothering instincts and in doing so, our hogs are friendlier, and more approachable than most. Piglets in our system stay with their mothers for a longer period of time, which allows for bonding and the sharing of instinctual knowledge. A mother who is friendly and good at eating pastures will pass these traits along to her young.
As a result of all of these factors, our hogs are happy and healthy which creates superior quality pork as compared to confinement hogs. Pigs that eat grass, corn, turnips, pumpkins, apples, and beets, just to name a few of our pasture varieties, will have a more robust flavor and different fat consistency than those that are raised on grain and/or milk alone. Our customers are always blown away at the color and flavor of our pork and once they get a taste, they keep coming back for more!
Check out this video for a fuller picture of our facility and our unique approach: youtu.be/Kw0FeKLhKAA
How do you feel your hog operation can be a model for other farmers?
What is great about our operation is that it is scalable. The facility itself can be used for farrowing, finishing, or the combination of both. Small hog producers can use the ideas we have generated to create a new system or improve upon their existing operation. The model and techniques we use are easily replicable for a one sow or 100 sow operations. The pasture is key to the model and the better a farmer is at pasture utilization, the more successful their pastured hog operation will be. The model we have designed was our best ideas of how to create a modern and efficient hog operation but every farmer can take these ideas and run with them in their own direction.
The facility is also set up on partially marginal land. For small landowners, or farmers who do not have access to quality farmland, they can install this model and still generate income on land that they once thought to be low in value or worthless. Our operation is on a limited eight acre plot and we farrow and finish our hogs, but farmers could work together to create a cooperative system that it beneficial to not just the pigs but all the farmers involved. One farmer might prefer to just farrow and raise feeder pigs and another farmer might favor to finish the hogs to market weight. There really is something for everyone in this model. Farmers must get value out of every inch of their ground and hogs provide a great option to make that happen.
Where and how do you sell your hogs? If a chef or consumer is interested in purchasing some, how can they do so?
Our hogs are sold directly off the farm or in our farm store. Arrangements can also be made for delivery from Smuckers to NYC-area customers. We use an Animal Welfare Approved (AWA) slaughterhouse in Mt. Joy, Pennsylvania called Smuckers Meats. Smuckers can accommodate just about any option the consumer chooses from simply dressing the hog, butchering primal cuts, or cutting retail cuts that the consumer chooses. Primal and retail cuts are vacuum packed, labeled and flash frozen. Customers can also buy their hog live from the farm and take it to a slaughterhouse of their choice if that is preferred. The customer will pay for the Rodale hog by the hanging or dress weight pound.
Customers interested in buying a hog can contact Ross Duffield at Rodale Institute via email ross.duffield@rodaleinstitute.org or by phone at 610-683-1473.
