BOAR TAINT
IT IS REAL & A POSSIBILITY
By AKKPS Member John Von Roenn of Faithful Shepherd Farm
WHAT IS BOAR TAINT
BOAR TAINT INGREDIENTS
There are 2 main ingredients to "boar taint": Androstenone and Skatole. Androstenone is a sex pheromone that begins to accumulate in the fat of boars once they reach maturity. Skatole is a digestive by-product formed in the intestines, also accumulating in fat. There are many factors that contribute to the levels of androstenone and skatole, such as age, genetics, season, feed and feed availability, environmental cleanliness, and the presence of sexually receptive females. I'll touch a little on each of these. *This is simply information, not intended to scare you.
DO ALL BOARS HAVE TAINT
Roughly only 20% of boars exhibit boar taint and about 75% of humans can detect it. The risk is low, but for those who can taste it, if you happen to get one of the 20% with boar taint, it is completely repulsive, and most likely, inedible. Research suggests women are more susceptible to boar taint. The people I have met most sensitive to boar taint have all ironically been men, with women of the same household unaffected. You can also develop a sensitivity to boar taint with age. The more exposure you have to boar taint, the more likely you are to notice it.
Most boars reach maturity between 6-8 months of age, with slower growing breeds, such as Kune Kune, closer to the 12 month mark. The risk of boar taint cannot be completely eliminated by slaughtering boar pigs before they reach puberty, but it definitely lowers it
SO WHY RAISE BOARS AT ALL?
So why raise boars at all? If you are breeding, you simply can't avoid it unless you are utilizing aritificial insemination. Literature is consistent: boars are up to 32% more feed efficient than castrated male pigs, aka barrows, and will dress out much leaner than barrows on the same diet. Barrows can thrive on lower quality diets, not that I am encouraging it, but it could help offset their lower feed efficiency rates.
Some people will argue ethics of castration. I am not some people. Castration is the answer to avoid boar taint all together. It is ideal to castrate between 3-8 weeks of age. The smaller they are, the easier this will be on you, if you are performing the castration yourself. Vets can castrate pigs at any age under anesthesia, so if you have an older boar that's being retired to the freezer, this is something you can do a few months prior to processing if taint is a concern. Since pig testicles do not hang down like ruminants, banding is not an option. And since it came up recently, pig vasectomies do not exist. Testicles must be removed entirely to produce a barrow.
WHEN CAN YOU DETECT BOAT TAINT?
It is important to also note that boar taint is only evident when pork is heated. So if you already have a smelly pig on the chopping block, he would be an excellent candidate for charcuterie, since no heat is required.
The addition of spices can help in masking boar taint. Cutting a boar into sausage is a good choice as well. I can not 100% guarantee you won't still notice some boar taint even in sausage, as that will be heavily dependent on your sensitivity to it and the intensity of the taint.