Giving Compass' Take:

• Brad Weiss at Pacific Standard explains the challenges of supporting alternative pork production where the meat comes from pasture-raised pigs. 

• How can funders support farmers that want a more sustainable future for pork production? 

• Read more about the connection between sustainable farming and quality meat production. 

North Carolina, where I used to live and do my research, is at the heart of the United States' pork production industry: According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, it holds nearly nine million farmed hogs, putting it second only to Iowa. This vast, industrialized system for the production of meat has long been controversial.

While advocates say Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations are the most efficient way to raise pigs for Americans, opponents note that the system is designed to maximize the profit of big business owners. And as those profits increase, small farmers go into debt, animal rights advocates continue to be appalled at the treatment of livestock, and vast amounts of waste accumulate in lagoons that spread their toxicity when accidents—or hurricanes—breach their walls.

Such problems have inspired some to look for alternatives. Livestock farmers, scholars of animal science, and environmental activists from across the state and region have come together to promote the production and marketing of "pasture-raised pork"—meat that comes from pigs raised outdoors on grassy pastures rather than in confinement.

Advocates for this pastured system describe it as sustainable. In contrast to CAFOs, it puts much less stress on the animals, uses their manure to enrich soils, and can avoid the unnecessary use of antibiotics. Pasture-based systems never lead to the build-up of toxic waste associated with hog lagoons, and the farm laborers' working conditions are almost always better.

Read the full article about the sustainable future of pork by Brad Weiss at Pacific Standard