Ordering a half hog share is the best value we offer, providing a substantial discount compared to buying the same cuts at retail prices. By working directly with the butcher, you save on processing costs—almost half or more—compared to pork prepared for individual resale. These savings allow us to offer you premium pork at an affordable price.
If you don’t have enough freezer space for a half hog, or if you want a variety of meats like pork, chicken, and lamb in smaller quantities, consider our Clover Club Butcher Box program.
How Much Meat is in Half a Pig?
From a 100-pound half pig (hanging weight), you can expect about 65 pounds of standard cuts, enough to fill 3–4 grocery bags. The difference between hanging weight and standard cuts is mostly edible if you choose to keep items like:
- Trimmed fat (perfect for rendering lard)
- Bones (ideal for stock)
- Organ meats (delicious and nutritious)
- Other edible parts (great for nose-to-tail cooking)
Want specific items like the head, tail, heart, or liver? Let us know when ordering. We’ll do our best to accommodate your request. (Heads-up: our WDA inspected processors can’t save lungs, stomachs, intestines, or blood.)
Example Cuts from Half a Pig
Here’s an example of the standard cuts you can expect from a half pig (weights approximate):
- Boston Shoulder/Butt: ~8 lbs. (Roasts, steaks, shoulder bacon, or grind for sausage)
- Picnic Shoulder: ~10 lbs. (Roasts, steaks, stew meat, or grind for sausage)
- Loin: ~14 lbs. (Pork chops, back ribs, tenderloin, country ribs, loin roast)
- Side: ~10 lbs. (Bacon, spare ribs, pork belly roasts)
- Ham: ~13 lbs. (Cured ham, ham steaks, fresh ham, or grind for sausage)
You’ll also receive ground pork or sausage (usually ~5 lbs. from trimming). Want more sausage? Ask the butcher to grind cuts like the picnic shoulder or ham for additional sausage.
Custom Cuts
We can help you personalize your order before sending it to the butcher. Love unique cuts? Consider:
- Double-thickness pork chops
- Pork belly roasts
- Bone-in loin roasts
- Shoulder bacon or jowl bacon
- Country ribs or crown rib roasts
Estimated Cost for a 100-Pound Half Pig
Hanging weight price: $6.95/lb.
Butcher processing costs: ~$150
Total estimated cost: ~$850
If you eat “nose-to-tail,” rendering lard, making broth, and exploring recipes for offal, the effective cost is about $10.00 per pound. Choosing more cured items or link sausage may increase the cost, while opting for fewer processed cuts may lower it.
Why Buy From Us?
The pork quality we offer is unmatched and comes only from farms like ours, where pigs are raised naturally outdoors. Unlike industrial farms, which often confine pigs and feed them processed waste (like outdated bread and donuts), we prioritize healthy, sustainable practices including locally-milled, non-GMO feed without corn or soy, natural (organic) food scraps like pumpkins, apples, pears, and whey from a local dairy and of course foraging in woods and pastures for a varied diet. We raise the Gloucester Old Spot breed of heritage pig and it naturally has more fat on it. It is not lean pork. You are welcome to ask the butcher to trim off as much fat as you want, but please keep in mind that these pigs have been bred to have flavorful pork fat and not to be lean. If you really want lean pork you may want to look at getting pork from somewhere else. Custom butchering is also your friend, here. If you like fatty, flavorful pork roasts but you want leaner bacon, then ask for the pork belly as a roast, and have the butcher make bacon out of a different, leaner cut of pork, such as shoulder bacon or back bacon.
Our pigs live healthy, active lives, resulting in pork that’s flavorful, nutritious, and ethically raised. Experience the difference for yourself!
