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Tamworth Pigs

Now a rare breed, with breeding females numbering under 500, the Tamworth is a breed of pig that deserves note for several reasons: its history; its foraging nature; and the lean and tasty pork it produces.
Although its origins are far from clear, the Tamworth is widely held to be one of the closest breeds, possibly the closest, to the original domesticated European pig, the animal with the closest ties to the European wild boar. Sir Robert Peel of Tamworth is credited with maintaining the breed on his farm in the early 19th century, crossing it with Irish Grazers to improve the breed, but otherwise preventing the dilution of the gene pool. In contrast to the pigs bred with oriental animals, the Tamworth has retained its long snout, ideal for rootling in meadows and woodlands to give the animal the varied diet upon which it thrives. The red or gingery colour of its hair is another clue to its antecedence, the wild boar having similar colours in its coat.
It is perhaps this proximity to the wild boar that has scored against it in modern times: boars in the wild will not attain the fatness desired at one time in pigs, having a narrow front profile and rather tall frame, and the Tamworth is a slender enough animal that it is easy to envisage pushing its way through woodland undergrowth. As times have changed the leaner meat produced by the Tamworth has become more sought after, and its other natural advantage, as a good rearer albeit of medium sized litters, has made its genes of interest to breeders.
In the recent past the Tamworth was considered more of a bacon pig than a pork provider, mainly because its lower level of fat suited bacon curing. In taste tests in the 1990s, however, pork from the Tamworth scored well above commercial and rare breed rivals. Enthusiasts are keen to promote this taste difference, and the meat can now be found with luck at better farmers' markets and farm shops.
The Tamworth breed shot to public notice in 1998 in Britain, when two Tamworths escaped from a Wiltshire abattoir, evading capture for six days in one case and a further two in the other. Our ambivalent attitude to animals - we love them, but with pigs we love their bacon too - came to the fore, with British fair play demanding a reprieve for the escapees, paid for by a national newspaper who forked out a considerable sum for the photo rights before the pigs were sent to a petting farm

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