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The Fat free lean index is one of several measures of hog quality (in this case, leanness) that can be used in determining value. The index was developed by the National Pork Producers Council, an industry trade group.
In 1990, approximately 25 percent of U.S. market hogs were purchased on a carcass merit system that differentiated price based on lean content. The differentials varied, and there was a scarcity of data to indicate whether the price spread was sufficient between good and poor quality pigs. [1]
A checkoff-funded task force in 1990 recommended that procedures be established to determine value of pigs based on pounds of quality lean in the carcass. [1]
In 1993, the National Pork Producers Council's (NPPC) Lean Value Task Force, funded by the National Pork Board (NPB) and in cooperation with the Pork Committee of the American Meat Institute, developed the Uniform Lean Information Project. In it, the Fat-Free Lean Index, (FFLI) was developed. The intent of the FFLI was to permit pork producers to compare the lean content of their pigs over time and with the pigs of other producers, even though each producer may be marketing to different processors using different technology to estimate carcass lean content. The original FFLI equations were based on carcass separation data collected in university trials from 1970 to 1985 from pigs weighing between 200 and 250 lb. Since then, pigs have been made leaner through genetic selection and market weights have increased greatly. [1]
A sausage is a type of meat product usually made from ground meat—often pork, beef, or poultry—along with salt, spices and other flavourings. Other ingredients, such as grains or breadcrumbs may be included as fillers or extenders.
Intensive pig farming, also known as pig factory farming, is the primary method of pig production, in which grower pigs are housed indoors in group-housing or straw-lined sheds, whilst pregnant sows are housed in gestation crates or pens and give birth in farrowing crates.
A butcher is a person who may slaughter animals, dress their flesh, sell their meat, or participate within any combination of these three tasks. They may prepare standard cuts of meat and poultry for sale in retail or wholesale food establishments. A butcher may be employed by supermarkets, grocery stores, butcher shops and fish markets, slaughter houses, or may be self-employed.
Marbled meat is meat, especially red meat, that contains various amounts of intramuscular fat, giving it an appearance similar to marble.
In animal husbandry, feed conversion ratio (FCR) or feed conversion rate is a ratio or rate measuring of the efficiency with which the bodies of livestock convert animal feed into the desired output. For dairy cows, for example, the output is milk, whereas in animals raised for meat the output is the flesh, that is, the body mass gained by the animal, represented either in the final mass of the animal or the mass of the dressed output. FCR is the mass of the input divided by the output. In some sectors, feed efficiency, which is the output divided by the input, is used. These concepts are also closely related to efficiency of conversion of ingested foods (ECI).
A carcass grade is an assessment of quality for a culled cow or bull. The various grades are defined by the United States Department of Agriculture, and assessments are based primarily on the fatness of the cow to be culled.
Smithfield Foods, Inc., is a pork producer and food-processing company based in Smithfield, Virginia, in the United States, that is a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Chinese conglomerate WH Group. Founded in 1936 as the Smithfield Packing Company by Joseph W. Luter and his son, the company is the largest pig and pork producer in the world. In addition to owning over 500 farms in the US, Smithfield contracts with another 2,000 independent farms around the country to raise Smithfield's pigs. Outside the US, the company has facilities in Mexico, Poland, Romania, Germany, Slovakia and the United Kingdom. Globally the company employed 50,200 in 2016 and reported an annual revenue of $14 billion. Its 973,000-square-foot meat-processing plant in Tar Heel, North Carolina, was said in 2000 to be the world's largest, harvesting 32,000 pigs a day.
Pig shows are an event where pigs are evaluated for their quality. They are evaluated on a multitude of things which include composition, capaciousness, and skeletal integrity along with general appearance and conformation to their respective breed. Owners buy or raise their pigs from small piglets and spend time learning what the pig needs to make it the best possible. You can switch up compositions of a pig by simply changing what and how you feed them. Other names for a pig show include swine show and hog show. A pig show is frequently part of a larger agricultural show. During the agricultural show pigs may be shown, as well as cattle, goats, and sheep.
Lean Hog is a type of hog (pork) futures contract that can be used to hedge and to speculate on pork prices in the US.
Ractopamine is an animal feed additive used to promote leanness and increase food conversion efficiency in farmed animals in several countries, but banned in others. Pharmacologically, it is a phenol-based TAAR1 agonist and β adrenoreceptor agonist that stimulates β1 and β2 adrenergic receptors. It is most commonly administered to animals for meat production as ractopamine hydrochloride. It is the active ingredient in products marketed in the US as Paylean for swine, Optaflexx for cattle, and Topmax for turkeys. It was developed by Elanco Animal Health, a division of Eli Lilly and Company.
Pig farming or pork farming or hog farming is the raising and breeding of domestic pigs as livestock, and is a branch of animal husbandry. Pigs are farmed principally for food and skins.
Pale, soft, exudative meat, or PSE meat, describes a carcass quality condition known to occur in pork, beef, and poultry. It is characterized by an abnormal color, consistency, and water holding capacity, making the meat dry and unattractive to consumers. The condition is believed to be caused by abnormal muscle metabolism following slaughter, due to an altered rate of glycolysis and a low pH within the muscle fibers. A mutation point in the ryanodine receptor gene (RYR1) in pork, associated to stress levels prior to slaughter are known to increase the incidence of PSE meat. Although the term "soft" may look positive, it refers to raw meat. When cooked, there is higher cook loss and the final product is hard, not juicy.
Lard is a semi-solid white fat product obtained by rendering the fatty tissue of a pig. It is distinguished from tallow, a similar product derived from fat of cattle or sheep.
The Choctaw Hog is a breed of domestic pig historically used by Native Americans. They are now reduced in population to some hundred animals, most of them in the Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma. The American Livestock Breeds Conservancy calls the Choctaw Hog's status "critically rare" and says it "is a high conservation priority."
Pork is the culinary name for the meat of the pig. It is the most commonly consumed meat worldwide, with evidence of pig husbandry dating back to 5000 BCE.
The National Pork Board is a program sponsored by the United States Department of Agriculture Agricultural Marketing Service whose purpose is to provide consumer information, perform industry-related research, and promote pork as a food product. The board's activities are funded by a mandatory commodity checkoff program, which requires hog producers to pay a small percentage-based fee each time an animal is sold.
Feeder cattle, in some countries or regions called store cattle, are young cattle mature enough either to undergo backgrounding or to be fattened in preparation for slaughter. They may be steers or heifers. The term often implicitly reflects an intent to sell to other owners for fattening (finishing). Backgrounding occurs at backgrounding operations, and fattening occurs at a feedlot. Feeder calves are less than 1 year old; feeder yearlings are between 1 and 2 years old. Both types are often produced in a cow-calf operation. After attaining a desirable weight, feeder cattle become finished cattle that are sold to a packer. Packers slaughter the cattle and sell the meat in carcass boxed form.
The Australian Yorkshire is a breed of domestic pig from Australia that was originally a part of the Yorkshire breed of pigs from Yorkshire, England. It is said to be the most common and popular breed of pig in Australia due to economic and nutritional advantages.
The National Pork Producers Council is a trade association representing U.S. pork producers and other industry stakeholders. It lobbies on behalf of its affiliated state associations from its headquarters in Des Moines, Iowa.
Countries regulate the marketing and sale of beef by observing criteria of cattle carcasses at the abattoir (slaughterhouse) and classifying the carcasses. This classification, sometimes optional, can suggest a market demand for a particular animal's attributes and therefore the price owed to the producer.
This article incorporates public domain material from Jasper Womach. Report for Congress: Agriculture: A Glossary of Terms, Programs, and Laws, 2005 Edition (PDF). Congressional Research Service.
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