AFTER starting up last year, Grenville-based agroecological pig farm Ethical Swine is inviting the community through their gates as part of their Lunch n\u2019 Launch grand opening.<\/p>\n
The event will comprise a tour of the farm and operations that\u2019ll will culminate with a barbecue and co-owner Amy Pagett said \u201cit\u2019s going to be a party.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re opening the place up both to the paying public as well as our members who regularly support the farm,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe want people to see what ethical farming looks like, and how our pigs are raised. People will be able to see the pig paddocks out in the forest and then we\u2019ll come back up for a feast.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019ll have some of our mates who are up and coming market gardeners and artisanal bakers, so we can serve seasonal veg as well as all different kinds of meat as well.\u201d<\/p>\n
Local businesses and Melbourne-based breweries will be involved as well, and various cuts will be served by Ethical Swine co-owner, operations manager and in-house chef, Raign \u2018Buck\u2019 Buckingham.<\/p>\n
The idea for the farm began in 2019 when Ms Pagett and Buckingham were both interning at Jonai Farms in Eganstown, and were inspired by its similar approach to agroecological farming.<\/p>\n
Ethical Swine operates on what Buckingham calls their \u201cone bad day\u201d model in which the pigs are bred in a natural low-maintenance forest environment.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe only bad day they\u2019ll ever have is when they go to the abattoir, where we do the butchering ourselves to make sausages, bacon, p\u00e2t\u00e9 de t\u00eate, things like that,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe sell everything direct to our customers, and we feed our pigs every day on a waste stream system so we don\u2019t buy any industrial feed, it\u2019s all from local businesses.\u201d<\/p>\n
With a rotation of over 60 pigs, Ms Pagett said Ethical Swine is very much \u201cagainst the grain\u201d compared to other pig farms.<\/p>\n
\u201cFrom what we know and what we\u2019ve read, the pigs that are kept in those very industrial conditions are pumped full of feed and antibiotics, their movement is very limited, they\u2019re kept in small pens\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019d say the way those pigs live their ways versus the way ours do are remarkably different, and I think customers are becoming increasingly discerning in terms of where their animal proteins come from.\u201d<\/p>\n
The Lunch n\u2019 Launch will take place from 11am to 3pm on Saturday, 30 April, with tickets at $65 or at $145 alongside a three-kilo pack of assorted pork cuts.<\/p>\n
To book a ticket, or to browse through the meats, bit.ly\/3v7HdYf.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
AFTER starting up last year, Grenville-based agroecological pig farm Ethical Swine is inviting the community through their gates as part of their Lunch n\u2019 Launch grand opening. The event will comprise a tour of the farm and operations that\u2019ll will culminate with a barbecue and co-owner Amy Pagett said \u201cit\u2019s going to be a party.\u201d […]<\/p>\n