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==Agriculture== |
==Agriculture== |
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[[File:Medieval pig slaughter.jpg|thumb|A pig is stunned]] |
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Pig slaughter is a necessary activity to obtain pig meat - [[pork]]. It regularly happens as part of traditional and [[intensive pig farming]]. |
Pig slaughter is a necessary activity to obtain pig meat - [[pork]]. It regularly happens as part of traditional and [[intensive pig farming]]. |
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===Act of slaughter and the butchering of carcass=== |
===Act of slaughter and the butchering of carcass=== |
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[[Image:Zabijacka.jpg|thumb|right|Stirring of blood in order to prevent its coagulation. Collected blood will be further used. (Moravia, Czech republic)]] |
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Traditionally, the pig is slaughtered with a knife and then put in a wooden or a metal [[trough]] and showered with [[boiling]] water to remove the hair. The pig is then removed from the trough and any remaining hair is removed with a knife or a [[razor]], and then it is again washed with boiling water. |
Traditionally, the pig is slaughtered with a knife and then put in a wooden or a metal [[trough]] and showered with [[boiling]] water to remove the hair. The pig is then removed from the trough and any remaining hair is removed with a knife or a [[razor]], and then it is again washed with boiling water. |
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The bulk of the meat is cut and ground to produce various [[sausage]]s, which are traditionally wrapped into the intestines of various sizes. |
The bulk of the meat is cut and ground to produce various [[sausage]]s, which are traditionally wrapped into the intestines of various sizes. |
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The bulk of the fat is cut into small pieces. Some of it is stewed to produce [[cracklings]]. |
The bulk of the fat is cut into small pieces. Some of it is stewed to produce [[cracklings]]. [[Lard]] is made by [[Kitchen rendering|rendering]] - heating fragments of fat in a large iron pot over a fire until it is reduced to simmering grease which congeals when cooled. Lard is then stored in lard tins with tin covers. The typical tins in the US are five gallons. |
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[[Lard]] is made by [[Kitchen rendering|rendering]] - heating fragments of fat in a large iron pot over a fire until it is reduced to simmering grease which congeals when cooled. Lard is then stored in lard tins with tin covers. The typical tins in the US are five gallons. |
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The intestines are stripped by drawing them through a clenched fist. They are then washed, cut into short pieces, and fried to make [[chitlin]]s. |
The intestines are stripped by drawing them through a clenched fist. They are then washed, cut into short pieces, and fried to make [[chitlin]]s. |
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The meat is hung on racks and hooks in the smokehouse; and later smoked. Fragrant hardwood, such as [[hickory]], [[beech]], or [[cherry]] is allowed to smolder slowly in a pit below the hanging meat. This gives added flavor and color to the meat as well as serving to dry cure the pork. |
The meat is hung on racks and hooks in the smokehouse; and later smoked. Fragrant hardwood, such as [[hickory]], [[beech]], or [[cherry]] is allowed to smolder slowly in a pit below the hanging meat. This gives added flavor and color to the meat as well as serving to dry cure the pork. |
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===Country-specific customs=== |
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====United States==== |
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In the family hog pen of yesteryear, the "[[pièce de résistance]]" was the pork loin which was often eaten the first night.{{Citation needed|date=May 2011}} For days after fresh [[Common sage|sage]]-flavored [[sausage]] graces the breakfast table.{{Citation needed|date=May 2011}} |
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====Serbia and Croatia==== |
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The traditional method of slaughtering pigs in [[Serbia]] and [[Croatia]] is variously called ''kolinje'', ''prašćina'', ''svinjokolj'', ''svinjokolja'' or ''svinjokolje'' or ''posjek''. The names literally mean "pig-slaughtering" (''svinja''=pig, n., ''klanje''=slaughter, n.). The event takes place every autumn and includes slaughter and butchering of pig meat. It is a custom specific to the parts of the countries in the [[Pannonian plain]]. |
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After WWII, in [[Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia|Yugoslavia]], a state holiday fell on November 29, with that and next day being non-working, so most slaughters were held on that occasion. |
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The entire duration of the slaughter can be as long as three days. Because people were traditionally stocking up on supplies before winter, it became customary to slaughter more than one pig, which increased the amount of time necessary for the meat to be processed. Some families visit their relatives (often grandparents) and friends at that time of the year, in order to help. Also, little [[mechanization]] is used, with meat being cut manually. Any grinding is done with relatively small manually operated, mechanical grinding machines. |
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The traditionally produced ham (''šunka''), bacon (''slanina''), the sausages (''kobasica'') such as [[blood sausage]] (''krvavica'') and [[kulen]] are well-known as delicacies. Some of them, notably kulen, are classified under the laws of [[protected designation of origin]]. The non-meat products such as cracklings (''čvarci'') or [[švargl]] and [[hladetina]] are also respected as parts of traditional cuisine. |
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To complement the activities, [[rakija]] or [[wine]] is drunk by participants during the butchering. |
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The pig [[liver]] is customarily roasted the same day of the slaughter. |
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The meat can then be salted and stored in a cellar, to be taken out after ten days, when the [[blood]] is squeezed out. The meat is then stored again and left until May of the next year.<!-- who does this? --> |
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Men and women were traditionally assigned different jobs during the slaughter. It was commonly the men who were doing the actual slaughter, the larger part of butchering, and the grinding of meat. Because the society is traditionally [[patriarchal]], the women were in charge of a relatively menial tasks, such as waiting and cooking for the whole crew throughout the event, keeping the environment clean (washing and scrubbing), as well as the emptying the pigs' bowels in order to make them suitable for holding sausage meat. |
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==Religious practices== |
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*In India, the reigning deity of Kantamal in Boudh district of Orissa, is [[Kandhen Budhi]]. The main attraction of the annual festival in this goddess's honor, is the [[Ghusuri Puja]]. Ghusuri means pig, which is sacrificed once every three years.<ref>http://orissa.gov.in/e-magazine/Orissareview/2009/September/engpdf/20-24.pdf</ref> |
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*In [[Bali, Indonesia]] holy men sacrifice pigs during the Melasti festival.<ref>http://www.bali.world-guides.com/bali_events.html</ref> |
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*In [[Hittite Anatolia]], pigs were sacrificed to insure the well being of the community, the fertility of people, and the success of crops. <ref>http://emory.academia.edu/BillieJeanCollins/Papers/99622/Pigs_at_the_Gate_Hittite_Pig_Sacrifice_in_Its_Eastern_Mediterranean_Context</ref> |
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*Many Greek religious festivals involved sacrificing pigs to different gods in different ways. <ref>http://www.credoreference.com/entry/ogirholidays/greek_calendars</ref> |
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===Problems=== |
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====Cruelty==== |
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[[File:Medieval pig slaughter.jpg|thumb|In recent times, pig slaughter is perceived by many to be a cruel activity]] |
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Recently, [[animal rights]] protesters in Croatia have complained about the slaughtering process arguing that it is cruel and causes unnecessary suffering to the livestock. |
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The recommended practice of dazing pigs by shooting them with a [[Captive_bolt_pistol|bolt pistol]] to the forehead prior to killing has both a practical and a humane rationale - it reduces the animal stress which helps meat quality, and it prevents the situations where the animal is first wounded and then brutally put down. |
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====Hygiene==== |
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There are worries that the [[Accession of Croatia to the European Union|entry of Croatia into the EU]] may see stricter legislation governing the treatment of animals and food hygiene come into force. This could mean that the practices around svinjokolja will be made illegal with all butchery moving to controlled, inspected facilities. |
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The standard of hygiene long recommended by veterinarians has included various requirements for the people, tools and space used in the process. |
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All people involved in the slaughter and butchering must be healthy, dressed with a hat, apron and boots, and clean hands. The tools (knives, axes, saws etc.) are sharpened, cleaned and disinfected before use, and they should be kept in a clean place throughout the process, preferably in a clean toolbox around the butcher's belt. The location of the killing needs to be a clean concrete surface with a sewer canal, meaning that the space can be easily cleaned. The trough used should have a zinced surface which is easy to clean and disinfect; the wooden troughs absorb water and microorganisms which makes them unsuitable. |
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==See also== |
==See also== |
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* [[Animal sacrifice]] |
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* [[Animal slaughter]] |
* [[Animal slaughter]] |
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* [[Humane Slaughter Act]] |
* [[Humane Slaughter Act]] |
Revision as of 19:39, 20 May 2011
Pig slaughter is the work of slaughtering domestic pigs which is both a common economic activity as well as a traditional feast in some European countries.
Agriculture
Pig slaughter is a necessary activity to obtain pig meat - pork. It regularly happens as part of traditional and intensive pig farming.
Pigs are slaughtered at different ages. Generally they can be divided into piglets, which are 1.5 to 3 months old; the fattening pigs, intended for pork and bacon, which are 4 months to one year old; and finally the older pigs, such as sows (female pigs) and boars (uncastrated male pigs). The meat obtained from piglets is subdivided into more meaty or more fatty, determined by the thickness of bacon. Male hogs are usually castrated a month before slaughter. Their meat quality is determined on the mass of halves and the thickness of bacon on the back.
Before slaughter, pigs are first rendered unconscious using one of the following means: stunning using electric current applied with electrodes, or stunning using captive bolt pistol, or inhalation of CO2. They are then hoisted on a rail, after which they are exsanguinated, usually via the carotid artery and the jugular vein. After the blood is gone, the carcass is drenched in hot water in a device called a pig scalder which helps in the removal of hair, which is subsequently completed by using scissor-like devices and then if necessary with a torch.
The pig is then eviscerated, the head is usually removed, and the body is cut into two halves. The remaining halves are washed to remove any remaining blood, bacteria or remains of bone, and then cooled down in order to help with the process of cutting and deboning.
Tradition
Pig slaughter is a tradition known in numerous European countries: Croatia (see below), Serbia (see below), Hungary (disznóvágás), the Czech Republic (zabijačka), Slovakia (zabíjačka), Greece, Italy (maialata), Moldova, Romania (tăiatul porcului, Ignat), Slovenia (koline), Portugal (matança), Spain (matanza), Ukraine and others.
The family hog pens have also existed in the United States on small family farms up to and including the early 1900’s, but in modern times it's practically obsolete.
Traditional autumn activity
The slaughter traditionally takes place in the autumn and early winter, and the timing has several practical considerations. It can start as soon as it gets cold, as the cold is required as a natural method of preserving the relatively large quantities of meat during the butchering. Yet, because people often do the work in the open, it is preferable that the temperatures aren't too much below freezing during this time, hence the slaughter rarely extends into winter. Also, slaughter activities typically need to produce results before the Christmas season, to provide for the festive cuisine.
In the past, this was also the only time of the year when people could afford to eat larger amounts of meat. In modern times, almost any family in Europe that is so inclined can afford to slaughter, yet there is also an abundance of pre-processed meat in the shops, so the traditional method of slaughtering is becoming more and more of a folk custom rather than a necessity.
The slaughter requires numerous preparations, including troughs, large quantities of boiling water, large wooden barrels for storing meat, pots, sharp knives, and in modern times also artificial intestines (hoses for various sausages).
Historically, butchering was a trade passed from father to son. Today the initial slaughter is normally performed by a professional butcher. After that, the meat is butchered by laymen, and the process is accompanied by various local rituals.
Act of slaughter and the butchering of carcass
Traditionally, the pig is slaughtered with a knife and then put in a wooden or a metal trough and showered with boiling water to remove the hair. The pig is then removed from the trough and any remaining hair is removed with a knife or a razor, and then it is again washed with boiling water.
Today, the animal is rendered unconscious by electrical or carbon dioxide stunning and then immediately bled by cutting the throat. For quality reasons, mechanical means of stunning such as a captive bolt pistol are not recommended.[1]
Then, the pig's intestines are removed. These days, the pig can also be obtained as a half (Croatian: polovica or polutka), without intestines or blood.
In modern times, because of the danger of Trichinosis, people are required to have critical parts of the fresh meat tested by a veterinarian before any further contact with potentially infected meat.
Very sharp knives and a cleaver are required for butchering. The carcass is cut into hams, shoulders, bacon sides, pork bellys, ham hocks, loins, pork chops, and other cuts of lesser importance.
Processing of animal parts
After it's cut into pieces, the meat from the animal is then processed further into edible products.
The buttocks are salted and pressed in order to eventually produce ham. The ribcage meat is salted and smoked in order to get bacon. Salt is rubbed thoroughly into each piece of meat and all surfaces are covered. Some formulas also include lots of black pepper. The bulk of the meat is cut and ground to produce various sausages, which are traditionally wrapped into the intestines of various sizes.
The bulk of the fat is cut into small pieces. Some of it is stewed to produce cracklings. Lard is made by rendering - heating fragments of fat in a large iron pot over a fire until it is reduced to simmering grease which congeals when cooled. Lard is then stored in lard tins with tin covers. The typical tins in the US are five gallons.
The intestines are stripped by drawing them through a clenched fist. They are then washed, cut into short pieces, and fried to make chitlins.
The various "leftovers" are put into various forms of headcheese jelly, etc. Most parts of the pig are used in this traditional process, even parts of the skin that would normally be thrown away are preserved to be cooked with beans.
The smoke house
The smoke house is essential for the preservation and long term storage of hams, shoulders, bacon sides, and pork bellies.
The meat is hung on racks and hooks in the smokehouse; and later smoked. Fragrant hardwood, such as hickory, beech, or cherry is allowed to smolder slowly in a pit below the hanging meat. This gives added flavor and color to the meat as well as serving to dry cure the pork.
See also
- Animal sacrifice
- Animal slaughter
- Humane Slaughter Act
- Traditional diet
- Cutting It Short, a Czech film that includes depictions of traditional pig slaughter (zabijačka)
External links
- Link about svinjokolja in the past (in Croatian)
- Slovak Pig Slaughter and Sausage Making - article in English with detailed pictures of a Slovak family slaughtering a pig in 68 steps
- Moldavian Pig Slaughter - article in English with detailed pictures of a Moldavian family slaughtering a pig
References
- ^ Humane Slaughter of Pigs, by the Humane Slaughter Association, England