Farmer Brings Together Old and New Genetics to Improve Pork Quality
Wade Hendricks is a stockman at heart – always thinking about the next generation and how he can breed better Duroc hogs. Growing up, Hendricks developed a passion for showing pigs. Over the years he has slowly been raising his own competitive Duroc pigs for the show ring. But he’s never been able to shake a desire to raise Durocs to satisfy consumers’ pursuit for a premium meat product.
That’s why he jumped at the opportunity to get involved with the Certified DUROC Pork (CDP) program with the National Swine Registry, the association’s first branded pork program.
“Our family runs 25 Duroc sows near Elwood, Ind. Half of our sows are for raising competitive Duroc showpigs, the other half is for our Reach Back/Meat Quality program,” Hendricks says.
He utilizes frozen semen, old-line genetics, and modern genetics with economical traits to create Duroc breeding stock for niche markets and certified Duroc pork producers. He is developing different genetic lines focused on quality traits.
“We have been fortunate enough to sell a handful of boars and gilts to producers who are raising Durocs in a niche-market setting,” Hendricks says. “Raising Durocs that can be utilized for ‘real-world’ pork production has always been a dream of mine. We’re finally starting to make things happen.”
He believes the CDP program provides Duroc hog breeders an opportunity to breed quality livestock with a purpose.
“It gives breeders a chance to have another avenue to market their products,” Hendricks says. “It is also important for the breed, because it gives it a chance to showcase what Duroc hogs are all about. What other breed has a genetic population with the ability to make hogs that are efficient, grow fast, are durable, display maternal traits, and possess superior meat quality characteristics? My answer might be biased, but there isn’t one!”
Bias aside, he says the truth is there is a growing number of consumers who will pay for a premium pork product.
“There is a generation of people that want the best of everything and what they eat is one of those things,” he says. “Going forward we need to make sure that CDP has quality and consistency. If we lose the ability to distinguish the difference in Duroc pork, then it’s commodity pork. CDP needs that integrity.”
Read more:
Consumer Trends Drive a New Branded Pork Program to the Meat Case
