Meet the American Guinalista. This is a combination of the American Guinea Hog and a Mangalitsa. Here’s a little about these two heritage breeds, and why they created such a sought after meat pig.
American Guinea I is uniformly black. This breed comes from
Two amazing and lesser known breeds. The I and the American Guinea Hot.
The I is reared for meat; it is slow-growing, but the pork has good flavour. The I was depicted in the traditional Đông Hồ paintings of Bắc Ninh province as a symbol of happiness, satiety and wealth.
The I is a small pig, with an average weight of approximately 50 kg, and an average height of about 36 cm. It is uniformly black, with heavily wrinkled skin. It has a pronounced sway back and a large sagging belly, which in pregnant sows may drag on the ground. The head is small, with an up-turned snout, small ears and eyes, and heavy sagging jowls.
The I is robust and has good resistance to disease and to parasites. It is usually raised extensively, and forages well on the rice straw and water plants of its native area. It is particularly well adapted to the marshy and muddy terrain on which it usually lives: it has plantigrade feet, with weight borne on all four toes of each foot.
Two principal types are recognised within the breed: the I-mo or Fatty I is the typical small short-legged pig, with small upward-pointing ears and a short snout; the I-pha or Large I is taller, has longer legs and a longer snout, with bigger ears held horizontally.
The American Guinea Hog is a small, black, landrace swine breed unique to the United States. Prior to 2006, this pig was referred to as Guinea Hog, Guinea Forest Hog, or “yard pig.” The American Guinea Hog Association (AGHA) changed the breed name to American Guinea Hog when the association was formed in 2006. It was known as the “poor man’s pig” and was raised on small farms in the southeast. Unlike imported breeds, there was no consistent system of registration, herd books, or pedigrees retained on them consistently prior to 2006, although attempts to organize were made in 1956, 1988, and 1990. The American Guinea hogs are unique to the United States and this heritage breed of pigs has a delectable, amazing flavor profile. Their fat is a creamy, melts-in-your-mouth delight! Bite into a freshly-cooked AGH pork chop and you will encounter morsels of crisp, yet succulent fat and layers of luscious, tender meat. While Some breeds produce large amounts of meat (130 to 150 pounds per pig), which may be too much for a small family's needs. A small breed such as the American Guinea hog may be the best choice for many homesteads. One Guinea hog will yield 60 to 80 pounds of pork. Although the guinea hog is slow growing, they are excellent foragers and gain weight easily. This means keeping them around for a year (or more) to reach a desired weight is not an issue for most homesteaders. Many have butchered them from as young as 6 months to 5+ years old. How’s their temperament you ask? Well, the American Guinea Hog is exceptionally calm and friendly making it an excellent choice for small sustainable family farms. They have exceptional mothering skills. Females with piglets are easily managed, as are adult males.
Small-scale farmers looking to diversify their livestock should consider mangalitsa pigs, a heritage breed prized for flavor. Mangalitsas aren’t suited for large operations or industrial farms. They seldom produce more than eight piglets when they farrow, and it takes over a year for them to reach market size. But gourmet chefs and devoted gastronomes are willing to pay more for the meat, which many believe is the best-tasting pork in the world.
The breed was developed in the nineteenth century by Austrian emperor Franz Josef, who crossbred wild boars with several Hungarian and Serbian breeds. “Mangalitsa” means “hog with a lot of lard” in the Hungarian language, and the breed was popular in Hungary until the middle of the twentieth century, when larger farms and a demand for leaner meat led to dwindling numbers of mangalitsas. Hungary had fewer than 200 in the early 1990s, when animal geneticist Peter Toth began a breeding program and encouraged farmers to raise mangalitsas in order to preserve the breed’s gene pool. The motto “Eat them to save them” helped Hungary rediscover delicious mangalitsa sausage seasoned with paprika, and there are now thousands of mangalitsa sows in Hungary. Many have been exported as well. The first arrived in the US in 2007, and they’ve gained a devoted North American following. Mangalitsas are also the only remaining wooly breed of pig. There were others that are now extinct. Covered with a sheep-like fleece that can be black, red or blond, mangalitsas have a distinctive appearance. Their wool is coarse and doesn’t have a practical use beyond keeping the pigs warm in cold weather. The wool makes them hardy in cold climates, but mangalitsas are currently being raised as far south as Florida. In warmer areas they shed more. And even in colder climates where they can thrive during extreme winters, the pigs need access to shelter where they can escape the elements when they choose.
This breed is extremely intelligent and easy to train.
With the combination of these two breeds not only will the meat be of an amazing quality and flavor, but they will also be easy to house train as a new family member, Should you choose.
We have several ages available.