The Accidental Smallholder Forum
Livestock => Pigs => Topic started by: Welshlad on January 13, 2018, 08:40:06 pm
-
I'm thinking of going down the line of selling bacon and ham instead of pork boxes.
What would a typical butcher charge to cure a loin for bacon and some joints for ham?
On average, how many slices of bacon would I expect from a 7 month pig?
Is there a profit margin for this after paying the butcher to cure slice and pack?
A brief indication would be greatly appreciated!
-
I can't give you exact figures off hand but yes there is profit after paying someone to cure, slice and pack it.
What are you going to do with the rest of the carcass?
-
Its very easy to cure bacon and to cure hams for yourself. I suspect the problem is doing it 'hygienically' if your selling to others. I'd be hesitant to use Nitrates too, just in case someone had a reaction, nut you can buy ready mixed 'cures'.
I was amazed at the cost I was charged for curing and slicing bacon.
-
Prices can vary a lot from butcher to butcher for this sort of thing so I would ask those you might get to do the work.
-
Its very easy to cure bacon and to cure hams for yourself. I suspect the problem is doing it 'hygienically' if your selling to others. I'd be hesitant to use Nitrates too, just in case someone had a reaction, nut you can buy ready mixed 'cures'.
I was amazed at the cost I was charged for curing and slicing bacon.
Yes it is easy but the money involved in setting up an EHO approved facility makes it less tenable
-
Roughly how much does it cost to cure and cut as a very brief indication?
What would you do with the rest of the carcass?
-
There's a few ways to cure yourself, I follow a Fernly-Wittingstall recipe, (roughly) about 2kg of brown sugar, some juniper berries, about 4kg of table salt and Nitrate. I think it costs around £5 to cure 2 loins of pork. The nitrate is expensive but you only use a tiny amount. Ask the butcher to cut the loin for bacon. You can buy a cheap 'meat' slicer for around £50 but I just cut slices with a knife
-
Or you can buy ready made cures from 'Butchers Sundries' that include everything.
-
We pay just over £40 for kill and cut. Sausage costs roughly a £1 a lb to make. We do our own bacon. Prices quoted on here have varied enormously, which is why I suggested you ask those who might do it for you.
A standard cut is shoulders boned and rolled, rolled and boned loin or chops, belly pork and leg joints. You can then vary that with mincing, dicing, pork steaks, fillet, hams etc. There is also no reason why you can't make a whole pig into bacon and sausage.
People find it hard to shift leg joints.
-
If you look down the pig forum page for "pigs are home" by rupert the bear, he has given his costs.