A Localvore’s Dilemma

Generally I try to eat local: I pick up the green stuff at one of the farmers markets in my town; select milk, eggs and yogurt from one of our fine local producers; and try to limit meat purchases to the free-range local items (which I can’t always afford).

The latest Edible San Francisco’s Sustainable Pork Smackdown made me question my choices. In this debate, Samin Nosrat argues that hogs raised in the Midwest and shipped out as meat are more sustainable: Rather than shipping four pounds of Midwestern grain to produce one pound of pig, the pigs themselves eat local.

Original Gangster rancher Bill Niman (of Niman Ranch and BN Ranch) agrees, pointing out that the long-established pork industrial machine in the Midwest ensures that no part of the animal goes to waste.

On the other hand, Bonnie Azab Powell asserts that pork local to your area (in our case, the San Francisco Bay area) offers transparency to buyers who care to visit the ranch, and righteously points out that pigs don’t need to eat Midwestern grain — they can eat grains local to your area, vegetables or forage.

Whatever side you fall on, look into one of these excellent purveyors:

La Quercia. My Madrid-born cousin swears this Iowa-based operation produces the only American pig product that tastes like pork to her. Expensive and worth it.

TLC Ranch. An Aptos, Calif.-based operation that produces the best eggs I’ve ever tried also raises hogs. Eggs with my ham? I do like it, Sam-I-Am.

Riverdog Hog. An offshoot of Riverdog Farm in Guinda, Calif., this organic family farm raises pigs people rave about.