HOG STATISTICS 355 



Great Britain, Denmark, and Canada, and is being adopted 

 in the United States as a result of the systems of breeding 

 and feeding adjusting themselves to market requirements. 



" A hog of this type must be long in body and deep in 

 side, with comparatively narrow back, light and narrow hams 

 and shoulders, and light, muscular neck. This form is 

 desirable because it is the side of the hog that furnishes the 

 best and most expensive cuts, and it is necessary to have as 

 much as possible of this at the expense of the other parts. 

 This hog must also afford indications of having firm flesh, 

 must be well covered with lean meat or muscle, and must not 

 have an excess of fat on the outside of the carcase. The fat 

 on the outside should not be more than I in. to ij in. thick, 

 and should be evenly distributed over the entire carcase. 

 The weight must be between 160 Ibs. and 200 Ibs., in order 

 to afford the most desirable cuts as to size, firmness, and 

 flavour. A hog smaller than the specified weight would 

 furnish a side of bacon too thin, and one larger, a side too 

 thick. A hog old enough, that with good care and breeding 

 will weigh from 160 Ibs. to 200 Ibs., furnishes the best- 

 flavoured bacon. A hog lighter than this would probably be 

 too young, and one heavier than this too old, to yield bacon of 

 the best flavour. In firmness of flesh, also, the bacon hog of 

 1 60 Ibs. to 220 Ibs. is likely to be the most desirable. A hog 

 younger than is required to produce this size would have too 

 much water in its flesh, for the younger the animal the more 

 water it has incorporated in its system ; and this excess of 

 water not only detracts from the firmness of the flesh, but 

 reduces the food value, because the meat has less ' sub- 

 stance.' When a hog is heavier than 220 Ibs. he is not so 

 good for bacon purposes, because when over the age 

 required to produce this weight there is a greater tendency 

 to lay on fat, not only on the outside of the carcase, but 

 intermixed also with the lean meat, thus producing too much 

 fat in proportion to lean meat for the best bacon. After this 

 age, there is, moreover, an increased tendency to lay on fat 

 unevenly and in patches ; where this occurs it is impossible 

 to produce good bacon." 



According to the latest available statistics, hogs of the 

 known or scheduled parts of the world number a grand total 

 of 117 millions. The United States is credited with 47 



