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Swine > General QUESTION With a 250 lb. hog live weight, how many pounds of meat approx. will one take home from the packing house? ANSWER A 250 lb. live weight hog will dress approximately 72%, thus 180 pounds of carcass. That 180 pound carcass will yield approximately 65% in retail cuts, thus approximately 120 pounds of "take home" meat. If the pig is a real lean genetic pig, the yield would be 2-5% higher; if it is a fatter pig, the yield would be somewhat less. Gilbert Hollis Extension Swine Specialist « Back to Swine
As the slow food movement grows, more and more families are either deciding to grow their own pork, or buy their pork from a local farm. For the last 5 years we have raised our own pigs. We have found pigs to be an excellent addition to the homestead, and a lucrative farm enterprise. Thinking about raising or purchasing a whole pig? Want to know what you will get back in meat? We picked up our pigs from the butcher today. Here is what we got from one pig in the bunch. Hanging weights were around 200 Lbs. Usable meat: 160 Lbs Chops, Ribs and Steaks- 61 LBs
Ham 30 lbs Sausage 25 Lbs 25.0 Bacon 19 Lbs
Oddiments – 24 LBs
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Dressing PercentageTo better understand the amount of meat you may expect from a market hog, the first step is understanding the difference in live weight compared to carcass weight. When a market hog is harvested certain parts of the animal such as the feet, blood, and viscera (internal organs) are removed. The remaining bone, adipose (fat), and lean (meat) makes up the post-harvest hanging weight (hot carcass weight). Dressing percentage is the percentage of meat and bone on the animal compared to its live weight and is influenced by many factors such as muscle score and fat cover to name a few (Table 1). Dressing Percentage = (Carcass weight/Live weight)*100 Table 1
Locker plants have variable methods of harvesting hogs. Some processing plants will remove the skin and leave the head for the chilling process and others may remove the head and leave the skin. The different methods will impact carcass weight and dressing percentage but will not impact the amount of edible lean. Carcass FabricationDuring carcass chilling and fabrication, some carcass weight will be lost from the hanging, boning, and trimming process. The percentage of carcass weight remaining as “take-home” retail meat cuts is called the carcass cutting yield. Chilled Carcass Weight * Carcass Cutting Yield = pounds of “take-home meat” Carcass cutting yield is variable and depends on the carcass’s fat thickness (leaner carcasses increase yield), muscling (increases yield), and the amount of bone-in versus boneless retail cuts (boneless decreases yield). (Table 2). Table 2: Average Carcass Cutting Yield
Requesting closely trimmed and boneless chops and roasts and ground pork/sausage will result in less pounds of take-home product because the excess fat and bone will be removed. This may be advantageous depending on freezer space availability and eating preferences. It is important to understand that the amount of edible lean will be the same regardless if the retail cuts are boneless or bone-in. Choosing to bring home organ meats such as liver, heart, and tongue will also influence the pounds of meat product you take-home, increasing your cutting yield. It is important to note that even though trim carcasses have an increased carcass cutting yield, pork carcasses that are too trim can have negative consequences such as poor belly quality (bacon) and lack of tenderness. Understanding Primal vs Retail CutsA whole pork carcass is first divided into 6 distinct primal cuts (Figure 1). Each primal cut is then further fabricated into different retail cuts. For example, the loin may be broken down into rib, loin, butterfly, and sirloin chops/roasts. The shoulder (Boston butt and shoulder picnic) could be broken into arm steaks, blade chops and a shoulder picnic. Ground pork and sausage comes from trimmings of multiple primal cuts throughout the carcass. Figure 1. Pork Primal Cuts Table 3: Approximate Cut Out Weight per Primal Cut
Further ProcessingSeasoning can be added to ground pork to make sausage. Ground pork can also be further processed and stuffed into various casings to make sausage links, summer sausage, bratwursts, and ring bologna to name a few. Fresh chops and roasts can be cured/smoked by injecting a brine and allowing the cuts to slowly cook at a set temperature and humidity. It is common practice to cure/smoke the hams and belly (bacon).The loin and shoulder can also be smoked to fit the consumer’s preferences. Purchasing Locally Raised PorkMany farmers and locker plants sell pork by halves or whole hog. When buying a half a hog that is exactly what you will get. Once a hog has been harvested the carcass is split down the spine into two halves for easier storage in the cooler for the chilling process. When determining roughly how much meat you should expect from half of a hog, take the pounds of meat previously calculated for the entire carcass and divide by two. Example Meat Yield Calculations
250 lb x 70% = 175 lb
175 x (100% – 3.5%) =169 lb
169 lb x 67% = 125 lb Freezer SpaceTo ensure you have enough freezer space for your pork keep in mind that 35-40 pounds of retail product should fit in one cubic foot of freezer space. This may vary depending on bone-in versus boneless cuts or any odd shaped packages of meat. For More InformationContact your local Extension Educator; Wisconsin Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection; or Wisconsin Pork Association. ReferencesAberle, Elton David. Principles of Meat Science. 4th ed., Kendall/Hunt. 2001. National Pork Board ad EMI Analytics. (2017, August15) Pork Checkoff. Typical Market Pig Today. Retrieved from pork.org/facts/stats/consumption-and-expenditures/typical-market-pig-today/ Access Date: August 27, 2020 Ray, Federick K. Buyig Beef for Home Freezer.Oklahoma Cooperative Extension Service AnSi-3401. Print. Access Date: July 16, 2020. Rentfrow, Gregg. How Much Meat to Expect from a Carcass a Consumer’s Guide to Purchasing Freezer Meats. University of Kentucky College of Agriculture Cooperative Extension Service ASC-179. Print. Access Date: July 23, 2020 Thiboumery, Arion; Kristine Jepsen; and Kristi Hetland. 2013. Beef and Pork Whole Animal Buying Guide. Iowa State University Extension and Outreach. Print. Access Date: June 10, 2020. Download Article How much meat do you get from a 260 pound pig?A whole hog is approximately 120-140 pounds of meat, while a half is approximately 60-70 pounds (though this varies, depending upon the size of the pig and processing options). A 250 lb. live Hog (on the hoof) which yields 180 lb. dressed.
How much ham is in a 250 pound pig?Figure 1 (left) Rough ham. Figure 2 (right) 401 bone-in ham. The ham comprises about 9% of the live animal and about 12% of the pork carcass.
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Table 1. Pounds of ham components from a 250 and a 290 lb pig.. What is the hanging weight of a 250 lb pig?Market hogs weighing between 250 – 325 pounds will dress on average 70% (range 68 to 72%) with the skin-on and the head-off, resulting in a hanging carcass weight range of 175 - 228 pounds.
How much meat is on a 300lb pig?A live 300 lb hog yields a hanging weight of 216 lbs (108 lbs per half). Hanging weight is the weight once the hog is slaughtered and organs are removed. This hanging weight includes the bones, head, cartilage, skin and other bits.
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How much meat is on a 250lb pig?
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