[cambee]

Morning. We will be sending off our first 2 pigs (Berkshires) in 6 weeks time and before I visit our local abattoir to discuss my requirements I just wanted to pick brains as I hate going into a situation looking really clueless. I am thinking that one pig will be for our freezer and one to sell on. We sell half lambs to friends and family so I’m used to picking up a bag of joints and delivering that straight away but with the pig, I think our best means of selling would be sausages. So my question is, as I don’t have an EO passed kitchen so cannot separate and package up sausages at home (though I am registered as a food business)  what is it best to ask the abattoir to do? Should I ask them to package up packs of 12 and then add a label next to their label before freezing and selling? Is that likely to be cost prohibitive? Should the whole of one pig be sausage or just certain parts of it? Those of you who sell sausages please advise what you do. Btw I think I should add that we sell out of eggs everyday at our farm gate and also have a holiday let so I’m hoping my sausage market will be those 2 sources.

[harmony]

There is no reason why you can't make a whole pig into sausage and burgers. Yes, there will be a cost to making them roughly a £1 per lb but best check with your butcher. You could make different varieties. Yes, packaging and labelling will need to be paid for but all necessary if you intend to sell on to the public. I would always try the sausage before you have it made. Some butchers double mince and I find that too pasty. Some sausage is too spicy etc. Some people like thin, some thick.


A general cut up would be
shoulders sausage or boned and rolled, minced or diced
loin boned and rolled or chops
legs roasting joints
belly pork strips or roasting joints


Then there's other variations.

[bj_cardiff]

I have always found sausages (and bacon) made by the abbatoir to be pretty expensive. At £1 a lb its basically £1 for a pack of 6 sausauges, when you are providing all of the meat!

If this is your first time I would get the pigs jointed there should be around 10kg of 'trim' from your pigs and I would just ask them to make that into sausages, or if your definately set on sausages maybe get the shoulders and neck made into them. You need a lot of fat for sausages.

[harmony]

I have always found sausages (and bacon) made by the abbatoir to be pretty expensive. At £1 a lb its basically £1 for a pack of 6 sausauges, when you are providing all of the meat!

You add water to sausage so you get more weight back when made. You factor in the making cost like you should factor in your other costs. Sausage and burgers sell.

[bj_cardiff]

You add water to sausage so you get more weight back when made. You factor in the making cost like you should factor in your other costs. Sausage and burgers sell.

I have made my own sausages from the last few pigs I had. For about 10kg of trim it doesn't cost much for the skins or seasonings, of course the investment is the meat grinder and its fairly time consuming. Not suitable for selling as done in my kitchen!

[harmony]

You add water to sausage so you get more weight back when made. You factor in the making cost like you should factor in your other costs. Sausage and burgers sell.

I have made my own sausages from the last few pigs I had. For about 10kg of trim it doesn't cost much for the skins or seasonings, of course the investment is the meat grinder and its fairly time consuming. Not suitable for selling as done in my kitchen!

We have done the same. We make our own bacon too but as you say for ourselves. We had a friend with a foot operated sausage maker so you had both hands free for the sausage. Bring back The Generation Game!

[cloddopper]

I have always found sausages (and bacon) made by the abbatoir to be pretty expensive. At £1 a lb its basically £1 for a pack of 6 sausauges, when you are providing all of the meat!

If this is your first time I would get the pigs jointed there should be around 10kg of 'trim' from your pigs and I would just ask them to make that into sausages, or if your definately set on sausages maybe get the shoulders and neck made into them. You need a lot of fat for sausages.

 I used the belly pork for the extra fat source once it was taken off the skin , which I rendered down for lard & crisp crackling .
 I'd be tempted to get as much of the pig cut into sellable joints as possible , and if possible buy a chest freezer to store it till you can sell it . To turn a whole pig into sausages  will still give you a hundred or more packs of 8 sausages ( aka a pound of sausages ) .

 With this Brexit thing  in the offing it might pay you to hang on to you food supplies for a few months .
I wouldn't leave my goats pigs , sheep or any livestock or veg unattended either for this critical time lest they get snaffled by lazy thieving B45 tards .

[cambee]

Thanks all. Yes I’m now thinking a mixture of smaller joints with sausages just from the trims as suggested here. I feel a bit more confident going to speak to the abattoir now and I also read the ‘Perfect Pigs’ book I’d forgotten that I’d bought from Oakland Pigs which it turns out is helpful in that score. I’ve bought a brand new huge chest freezer ready and waiting. Just have to get my head around adding our own labels to the butchers labels now. And as for stock piling for Brexit, that made me chuckle as I’ll be fine on the meat score with my pigs and lamb but looks like I’ll have to give up on veges seeing as it seems that the only thing I can successfully grow is lettuce!!