Pig Husbandry and Pork Consumption in Medieval England

Abstract

Abstract The tradition of keeping a family pig in a sty at the back of the house— widespread in the last century—is of long standing. It was the product of changes in agriculture and land management through the last millennium, which caused a series of transformations in the manner of keeping swine in Britain. Several different forms of husbandry were practised over the centuries, but pigs always played an important role in economy and society, and, with their meat and lard, provided key components in medieval and modern diets. Although they were useful for the production of manure and had unselective eating habits that assisted in cleaning backyards and town streets, pigs were almost exclusively reared for their meat. Unlike cattle and sheep, pigs do not provide important sec- ondary products, such as wool or traction. Pig milk was used in Hittite rituals, but such exploitation is unknown in historic Europe. Their inability to provide as wide a range of products as other domesticates is compensated for by their productivity as a source of food, in terms of energy intake. This productivity is partly a consequence of the fecundity of the species. Even when no selection of breeds had occurred, nine to twelve piglets—and sometimes more—could be produced every year.