About a year or so ago, I started with the try-out version of my "pig breeding/raising/selling experiment"

The whole idea was to let the FIL prove his statement : You can win money with pigfarming.

I didn't know anything from pigs, or farming in general, since I have always been a real cityboy.

The closest I ever did was breeding Belgian Shepard dogs.

SO where to start ?

1) Study on the internet

2) Provide some money

3) Enjoy the experiance and prepare to lose the money

Now, a year further, I have to agree with my FIL. The whole family works very hard and we were able to win some money. The money is reinvested to expand the farm, so the new sty is in progress. Everything is done by the inlaws to keep the costs as low as possible.

What started out as an experiment, became an obsession. Every day I studied (and I still do) on the internet.

A lot of my "knowledge", I learned on PIGS 101, thanks to the imput of members like IsaanAussie.

Unbelievable how farmers share their knowledge and experiance with others. In Bussines-Life this wouldn't be impossible !

What is so special on this forum? It didn't teach me how to farm. It teached me how to farm IN THAILAND.

I remain a cityboy, letting his in-laws work on the farm. But my bussines-knowledge and European way of thinking and their Thai way of farming and thinking might be the right combination.

Anyway, thanks to all you posters

Sounds great Brabo.

Any chance of sharing some photos of your production...........they certainly add more flavour to a thread.

But also great to hear some positive comments about TV and the seemingly endless supply of helpful information.

Cheers.

Brabo, think most us us started with little or no farming experience. I managed a few tomatoes in the back yard once.

Think those who except that it will not be easy, but were willing to learn by their mistakes and not throw in the towel at the 1st 2nd and 33 mistake, kept on plodding along one step at a time. will or have made good inroads towards their goals.

It's the person himself that fails not the idea. Good for you. Jim

Jim,

Your point is well noted. Personally staying motivated amid all the challenges and side issues here is hard at times. Almost impossible at other times. Luckily a bright spot appears every now and then. I admire people who can set limits on their farming experiences and be prepared to walk away if that limit is exceeded. It shows resolve and self awareness. I couldn't do that, it is just not in my nature. Problems are to be solved, moved around, adaption made and direction changed. Right now I am undertaking a major realignment of what we are doing.

As for this forum, my view is most of us were newbies to farming and sharing of opinions and experiences costs nothing but helps others and ourselves. I know I have had as much benefit from reading these pages as anyone else. Keep plugging away guys!

Very curious Brabo, are your pigs raised solely for sales to Thais or do you eat some yourself. Reason I ask is all the pork raised in my area is about 99% fat and the Thais seem to like it like that. I do not know if it is because the pigs get no exercise or it is the breed but there is no way you could get a cut of pork like you would buy at Big C etc. Again, just curious and congrats on being a successful moo rancher.

I am sure many have lost their shirts, but there seem to be a few successful piggy farmers around here.

It would be nice to be able to buy bacon in this country that doesn't shrink massively in size like the CP stuff does that is clearly water injected and tasteless.

How much bacon do you want? I supply slaughtered pigs in primal cut form and select cuts into restaurants in Bangkok and produce bacon and sausages to order. We supply pigs at all sizes from suckling to market weight and specialise in up to ham weights of around 70Kg.

If you fancy trying farmhouse molasses and black pepper, or honey and mustard dry cured back, middle or belly bacon drop me a PM.

Very curious Brabo, are your pigs raised solely for sales to Thais or do you eat some yourself. Reason I ask is all the pork raised in my area is about 99% fat and the Thais seem to like it like that. I do not know if it is because the pigs get no exercise or it is the breed but there is no way you could get a cut of pork like you would buy at Big C etc. Again, just curious and congrats on being a successful moo rancher.

BB,

Village raised piglets are usually not the best of pedigree but the largest factor in the fat content is the feed. The pigs diet is low in protein and high in fibre and fats. Raising pigs is capital intensive and most of the cost is feeding them. Larger farms use more balanced diets tuned to the stage of growth. Their pigs are grown to achieve certain backfat and body score conditions to suit customers like Big C and Tesco.

I grow duroc pigs for the qualities of their meat which are markedly different to the standard white pigs.

Very curious Brabo, are your pigs raised solely for sales to Thais or do you eat some yourself. Reason I ask is all the pork raised in my area is about 99% fat and the Thais seem to like it like that. I do not know if it is because the pigs get no exercise or it is the breed but there is no way you could get a cut of pork like you would buy at Big C etc. Again, just curious and congrats on being a successful moo rancher.

BB,

Village raised piglets are usually not the best of pedigree but the largest factor in the fat content is the feed. The pigs diet is low in protein and high in fibre and fats. Raising pigs is capital intensive and most of the cost is feeding them. Larger farms use more balanced diets tuned to the stage of growth. Their pigs are grown to achieve certain backfat and body score conditions to suit customers like Big C and Tesco.

I grow duroc pigs for the qualities of their meat which are markedly different to the standard white pigs.

'BuckarooBanzai'

As IsaanAussie posted, the difference is made by the feed, the breed, the finishing boar, the envirement and treating ( as less stress for the pigs as possible ).

My in-laws even let them listen to music and claim the pigs like it. They are all washed ( =massaged ? LOL) by hand every day. All of this is normal for a VIP farm offcourse

This personal treatment is possible becourse of the low labourcost, compaired with Europe. The pigs are raised with love and I do beleive that this personal touch makes a big difference in meatquality.

We sell to Thai but Farangs in the neighborhood prefere to buy our pigs to when they have a party. Even if the price is a bit higher, compared with the village raised pigs. Indeed I was told that Thai like more fat on there pigs, but our customers tell us, they like our pigs becourse of the high quality meat and not to much fat.

For fattening pigs we use F1 sows with a Duroc or Pietrain finishing boar.

Foto 1: How the experiment started, verry basic

Foto 2: Ready to start with 1 Sow

Foto 3: Litter 1

Foto 4: Life is tough at VIP farm

Foto 5: Enjoying their meal

Foto 6: A refraiching shower

Foto 7: 1/2 Pietrain 1/2 Duroc

Foto 8: Fase 2

I will post more when I have the new pics from fase 2 ( if you guys like)

Thanks to you both for your answers. Great pics of happy pigs!

Very curious Brabo, are your pigs raised solely for sales to Thais or do you eat some yourself. Reason I ask is all the pork raised in my area is about 99% fat and the Thais seem to like it like that. I do not know if it is because the pigs get no exercise or it is the breed but there is no way you could get a cut of pork like you would buy at Big C etc. Again, just curious and congrats on being a successful moo rancher.

BB,

Village raised piglets are usually not the best of pedigree but the largest factor in the fat content is the feed. The pigs diet is low in protein and high in fibre and fats. Raising pigs is capital intensive and most of the cost is feeding them. Larger farms use more balanced diets tuned to the stage of growth. Their pigs are grown to achieve certain backfat and body score conditions to suit customers like Big C and Tesco.

I grow duroc pigs for the qualities of their meat which are markedly different to the standard white pigs.

'BuckarooBanzai'

As IsaanAussie posted, the difference is made by the feed, the breed, the finishing boar, the envirement and treating ( as less stress for the pigs as possible ).

My in-laws even let them listen to music and claim the pigs like it. They are all washed ( =massaged ? LOL) by hand every day. All of this is normal for a VIP farm offcourse

This personal treatment is possible becourse of the low labourcost, compaired with Europe. The pigs are raised with love and I do beleive that this personal touch makes a big difference in meatquality.

We sell to Thai but Farangs in the neighborhood prefere to buy our pigs to when they have a party. Even if the price is a bit higher, compared with the village raised pigs. Indeed I was told that Thai like more fat on there pigs, but our customers tell us, they like our pigs becourse of the high quality meat and not to much fat.

For fattening pigs we use F1 sows with a Duroc or Pietrain finishing boar.

I found out that my wife will choose 30/70 (fat/meat %) to buy, some Thai like 40/60...Laos people like it 50/50 but must be heavy weight pig of 120kg-140kg.

Very nice pictures Brabo and congratulation on the phase 2 progress... looks majestic !

Jim,

Your point is well noted. Personally staying motivated amid all the challenges and side issues here is hard at times. Almost impossible at other times. Luckily a bright spot appears every now and then. I admire people who can set limits on their farming experiences and be prepared to walk away if that limit is exceeded. It shows resolve and self awareness. I couldn't do that, it is just not in my nature. Problems are to be solved, moved around, adaption made and direction changed. Right now I am undertaking a major realignment of what we are doing.

As for this forum, my view is most of us were newbies to farming and sharing of opinions and experiences costs nothing but helps others and ourselves. I know I have had as much benefit from reading these pages as anyone else. Keep plugging away guys!

IA in some cases, there is nothing to go back to. When it's all or nothing, the motivation is greater.

At a certain age it's too late to start again, it really is do or die. Jim

Hi Brabo

I promised you I would dig out my pigs thread from 6 years ago:

http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/97305-pigs/

Rgds

Khonwan

Great thread and story Brabo. Maybe the moral is start small and don't expect too much too soon. The pics are great too.

I bought 40 Rai near by Sa Keo two years ago and start my Rubber Tree Farm with 00 experience .I plant 8 month ago ,in December .Ok, is the wrong time but my land have a small river (Klong) and 12 month full of water and i cane watering .Now my tree going very well. The price of rubber is now falling but i don't care.Let see after 5 years how is going.--i build a small hut ,bring water to my land and get special electr. power .I prepare 2 rai for my future house and dig a pond of 1 rai. My only help is my father in law and some local worker to cut the grass and give Fertilicer .I Plant a so many Fruit Trees. Now i am sooo Happy ,because everything of my dream coming true.

What's a finishing boar?

Is it like one boar gets the sow all ready and other comes in at the last minute when the lights are off?

^Moench

I love your place, thanks for the photo's, its easy to see why you are so happy.

May you enjoy many more years of happiness "livin the dream".

I think most of us didn't have any farming experiemce in the west.

But over there we would have needed huge bank-loans, tons of paper work to start a farm (or any other business). We would have been competing against intensive-high capital farms.

Here in thailand we can do things more slowly with less risk. We canbenefit from the experience from small thai village farmers and build on it using our foreigner contacts (like this forum) and things like the internet which the average thai farmer doesn't use .

But the main thing which enables us to succeed in farming as a farang is the fact that we left our comfortable, safe life style in the west for the totaly unsure life in a foreign culture. We are willing to take risks, change howcand what we think and are are prepared to work for it. Also we like the challenges. And love every minute we live here in los.

If you can do all that establishing a farm is not that difficult compared to rhe other challenges you face here.

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