Feeding pigs fish

Hi everyone,

I have a ton (literally, a ton) of out of date organic fish food - not the nicest stuff, but something that I don't want to waste as I believe when it was bought years ago it cost quite a lot of money. I'll be getting some pigs in the next month or so (first time pig owner) and I was thinking to supplement their feed with the fish food.

Do people think this is a good idea nutrition wise, also I have concerns about tainting the meat.

Thanks!

In nature its mostly birds and other fish that eats fish. So I would model that.

Fish are fed to pigs in some countries. People in those countries don't seem to mind the flavor. People who visit those countries often find it highly objectionable. One solution is to feed corn for the last month or so and only feed fish in the first few months of the pigs's life.

Studies I've read say that the flavor is laid down in the last two weeks of life in the fat and that a one month final finish out time is safe. My own personal experiments show that the pigs's diet has a strong influence on the final flavor of the pork and that it takes more like two to three months to set the flavor right.

Cheers,

-Walter Jeffries
Sugar Mountain Farm
Pastured Pigs, Sheep & Kids
in the mountains of Vermont
http://SugarMtnFarm.com/

I have a good friend who lived on Cape Cod and had a pig he fed lots of fish scraps, when he harvested the pig, the fish taste had permiated the entire animal and he ended up throwing out the whole thing. Stick your head in the food you will feed the pig, if it smells fishy so will the pork.

Thanks everyone, after all your wise advice I think if I do feed them it, it would only be in small amounts for the first few months that I have them.