In Praise of Guinea Hogs

by Dan Oberdorfer of St. Paul, MN

There has been a lot generally written about the benefits of small-scale food production. I want to put a plug in for one more tool in that shed. If you are thinking about raising pigs in your operation, think about Guinea Hogs.

Guinea Hogs are an heirloom breed of American swine. Their origins are a bit clouded. The predominant thought is that they are the descendants of a mixture of pigs brought over from Africa with the slave trade and Appalachian English pigs. This may be true. The early African pigs were red, large and bristly. Modern Guineas are black, smaller, and bristly. A second thought is that ‘guinea’ is a term that was used in the south to denote small, as in guinea cattle. Guinea Hogs are small. This may be true. What we know is true is that Guineas are a breed of swine that is unique to North America. They were common in the American South prior to the civil war. When U.S. farming moved to confinement systems after the war, Guineas went into decline. They now number less than 100 animals that I know about, though I hope and believe that there are other breeders out there that I am unaware of. They have a long American history, and they have genetics distinct enough that the American Livestock Breeds Conservancy has them on the critical list in need of conservation.

Guineas are a landrace breed. This is not to be confused with Danish Landrace pink production hogs. Small ‘l’ landrace means that they developed by adapting to their environment – the way nature selects. In the 18th and 19th centuries Guineas were free rangers. They scrounged for their own food. Those that were good mothers had good litters. Rather than farmers choosing the characteristics to breed back, which we do now, Guineas bred in the woods. The capable survived. What this leaves us with is a lard breed of swine which does well on low grade forage; a smaller, good natured animal that does well outside. The perfect pastured pork for a smaller or homestead operation.

Guineas top out at about 200 lbs. This is not huge. You will not get rich selling Guineas to market. But it is a pig that will not cost you much on the front end. They have good parasite resistance. You don’t need a squeeze chute to give your boar a shot. One animal would, in a home grown or direct marketing situation, provide a good amount and variety of meat for one family. They are a lard breed. If you over feed them a commercial ration or rich food they will get fat. I feed mine on pasture and garden waste for half the year, and then a commercial ration and supplement with hay in the winter to fill them up. They are a friendly animal, as pigs go. Because of their friendly nature, petting zoos kept them and are one of the reasons this breed is not extinct. Presently there are only about five breeders who raise this pig. Past efforts to revive interest in the breed had relied on trends like the pet and exotic pig market. These sort of came and went. It is my belief that Guineas should be preserved and promoted for what they are good at, being good, small-scale, pasture raised hogs. If you are thinking about raising pigs on your smaller operation, give a thought to Guineas. If you live near a person who raises Guineas, give them a taste. For me anyway, this is a pig that matches my politics and is why I got into farming in the first place.