17 



difficult to change them back to the bacon type again under any system of breed- 

 ing and feeding. On the other hand, breeders of bacon hogs know that it requires 

 careful selection and feeding to maintain the type. Even under the most favor- 

 able conditions there is a tendency for the bacon type to change gradually in the 

 direction of the fat type, unless care is exercised in selection. It is safe to say, 

 therefore, that it is easier to increase the proportion of fat in a hog's carcass than 

 it is to increase the proportion of lean, and that the extent to which the lean may 

 be increased by the character of the feed is very limited and is fixed by the in- 

 dividuality of the animal. Further, any attempt to increase the amount of lean 

 through feeding must be started when the pig is very young in order to be 

 successful. 



Causes of Soft Bacon. — In the manufacture of "Wiltshire sides" Can- 

 adian packers have experienced a great deal of difficulty with sides turning soft 

 in the process of curing. In a soft side the fat is soft and spongy, and sometimes 

 the lean is affected. A really soft side is practically worthless, and even a slight 

 degree of tenderness detracts very seriously from the value of the bacon. 



The Ontario Agricultural College, Guelph, and the Central Experimental 

 farm, Ottawa, Canada, have conducted exhaustive experiments in connection with 

 the causes of soft bacon, and following are the principal points brought out in the 

 investigation : 



1. Lack of Maturity. — Generally speaking, the more immature a hog is, the 

 greater the tendency to be soft. Almost invariably the largest percentage of soft- 

 ness occurs among the light sides of bacon. 



2. Lack of Finish. — Thin hogs have a marked tendency to produce soft bacon. 

 Marketing hogs before they are finished is, no doubt, responsible for a great deal 

 of softness. 



3. Unthriftiness in hogs, no matter what the cause may be, almost invariably 

 produces soft bacon. 



4. Lack of exercise has a tendency to produce softness, but this tendency can 

 be largely overcome by judicious feeding. 



5. Exclusive meal feeding is perhaps one of the most common causes of soft- 

 ness, especially wheri hogs are not given exercise, ^ome kinds of meal are more 

 injurious than others, but wherever csclusive meal feeding is practised and the 

 exercise is limited, more or less softness is always sure to result. 



6. Corn. — Of the grains in common use, corn has the greatest tendency to 

 produce softness. Its injurious tendency can be modified by mixing it largely with 

 other meal, or by feeding skim-milk, green feed, and roots, but its tendency to 

 produce softness is so strong that it must be regarded as an^ undesirable food for 

 bacon hogs. 



Corn appears to give a good quality of meat in the case of the lard hog, but 

 it" must be remembered that the bacon hog is marketed at lighter weights and in 

 thinner condition than the lard hog, and possibly this may explain why corn is 

 unsatisfactory for feeding bacon hogs. It is possible also that the difference in 

 the methods of curing may have an infiuence. 



7. Beans seem to have a more marked effect than corn in producing softness, 

 and should not be used for finishing bacon hogs. 



Various Grains, Meals and By-products. 



Corn. — Corn is essentially a fat forming feed, and is not a good bone and 

 muscle former. The evil effects of exclusive corn feeding are most con- 



