What are the Benefits of Buying Free Range Pork?

If you love eating pork dishes for lunch or preparing delicious pork meals for your family, you know just how versatile this meat can be. There are several different pork recipes out there that can please a crowd, or that you can make for just you and a friend or spouse. You can make slow cooker pulled pork chili, pork verde enchiladas, or honey garlic baked pork bites. These are just three tasty meal ideas that you can make with pork, but the possibilities are endless! You can easily find pork at your local grocery store, but have you ever heard of “free range pork?” If you have seen this kind of meat online or in stores but don’t know how being free range impacts the animals and the earth, we are here to explain.

What does free range actually mean and how is it different from other ways animals are raised?

You can easily buy free range pork online. Before you do that though, you might be wondering just what that means. Animals that are “free range” means that the way they are raised is different. Many of us have seen horrific articles, videos, and documentaries that highlight that ways animals are shoved into pens and cages and treated poorly when they are raised. They are not cleaned, it can breed disease, and it’s an overall ethical nightmare. Whereas grass fed and free range chicken, grass fed beef, and free range pork products are all different, much more ethical, and better for the earth.

Does it change the taste of the meat?

It does! The pork actually tastes better because they are exposed to less stress, and depending on the diet the pig is given, it can alter the way it tastes when you cook the meat. Since pigs that are raised in a free range environment get to roam around and develop muscles, the meat is juicier than that of pigs who are raised in using conventional farming methods. These methods often include pigs being stuffed into pends where they are not allowed to roam very much.

Where can I buy free range pork?

You can buy free range pork online or in some health grocery stores like Whole Foods. Online probably has better options and you can really find the farm you would like to buy free range pork online from.

What are the health benefits of free range pork?

Free range pigs are given more tender love and care than those that are raised using conventional farming methods. They have better hygiene and safety precautions, and the food they are given is at many times, completely horrifying. In fact, a 2011 study published in the journal Clinical Infectious Diseases estimates that 47% of all meat and poultry products in supermarkets contain Staph bacteria. Aside from this, free range pork have better quality fat, and a healthier omega 6 to omega 3 ratio.

What is your favorite pork dish to cook? Let us know in the comments below!