Les cochons dans les bois
Les cochons pâture
Plutôt jambon ou coppa ?!
Vitrine au point de vente à la ferme
At La Bracadelle, that's how it's done!
First, a short 3-minute video to introduce our small farm:
Our pigs are raised outdoors when the weather permits and sheltered in an open-sided shed on straw in rainy or very cold weather.
During the first eight years that our pigs were 100% outdoors, we noticed a slowdown in their growth during the winter months. Furthermore, just as with sheep and cattle, sheltering them during rainy periods helps maintain the paddocks in good condition.
When they are small, up to about 3 months old, we keep them in a park near our home so that we can easily supervise them.
From the age of 3 months we transfer them to the other parks. We have 4 parks grouped together on 11 hectares .
The parks consist of meadows and lots of woods .
There are many chestnut and white oak trees and therefore... chestnuts and acorns , which makes their meat even more delicious !
We start slaughtering our pigs between 12 and 16 months and around 130 kg (compared to 5 months in intensive farming).
BUT WHAT DO OUR PIGS EAT?
We produce our own grain for our pigs : triticale, barley and soybeans.
We feed our pigs every day at a rate of 1 kilo of feed per day per pig.
BUT WHERE ARE THE PIGS PROCESSED?
Right here on the farm!
We have a small processing workshop which allows us to prepare 2 to 3 pigs per week.
We also have a dryer which allows us to dry all of our cured meats.
And finally, we sell all our products at the farm on Friday afternoons and at the Revel market on Saturday mornings.