The true nature of pigs

Plump and cuddly. Sloppy and lazy. These are the conflicting, long-held views of people about pigs since time immemorial.

The National Federation of Hog Farmers, Inc. (NFHFI) is undertaking a campaign that will educate and inform hog-raisers as well as the general public about the true nature of pigs.

The NFHFI, a non-stock and non-profit organization formed to enhance the opportunities for growth, efficiency, equity and sustainability of the hog farming industry, sets the record straight on the porcine persona with little known facts such as these:

• No one sweats like a pig. Anyone who sweats at all isn’t "sweating like a pig" as the old idiom suggests. Unlike us, pigs do not have sweat glands and are thus unable to enjoy the benefits of cooling down their body temperature by sweating. This is why pigs love to roll, wallow, and coat themselves in mud to protect against heat, sunburn and insect bites.

• This room looks like a pig sty. If the pig had a choice, its sty wouldn’t look (nor smell) the way it does. It is indeed unfortunate that pigs are raised in small pens that limit their movement and fast track their growth to slaughtering weight. Given a choice, as well as a lot of space, pigs refuse to excrete anywhere near their living or eating areas.

• You’re a lazy pig, you will never find work. You can drop this line on a male pig in a pen or that "male pig" lounging on the couch all day. In the United States and Europe, female pigs or sows can find gainful employment in truffle hunting. Truffles are expensive black mushrooms that grow on the base of certain trees and are extremely difficult to find. Back in 1994, a pound of truffles sold for as much as $350 to $500 a pound in the international market.

Edible truffles are collected in the forests of Oregon and Washington in the US and France and Italy in Europe. In these areas, mushroom gatherers use sows to sniff out the exact location of the truffles. German research says that truffles contain a pheromone similar to that produced by male pigs during pre-mating and this is what attracts female pigs. Given the natural appetite of pigs for anything edible, truffle hunters carry a sturdy staff to ward off the sniffing sow after the truffle is located lest they come home with an empty mushroom basket.