July 22, 2012

Pigs in south China's Hainan province will be helped by meat eaters paying up to 20 times the normal price for pork to lead a pampered life - until they end up on the butcher's slab that is.

They enjoy daily exercise, have music piped into their living quarters, eat nutritious meals and even have their own special toilet area. The result is pork selling at nearly CNY800 (US$125.58) per kilogramme.

The expensive pork hit the Beijing and Shenzhen markets Wednesday (July 18), compared to the normal variety on sale at around CNY40 (US$6.27) per kilogramme.

The miniature pigs raised in Hainan's Chengmai County are fed organic feed containing spirulina, Jasmine flowers and nutritious leaves and insects, which result in a low cholesterol content and a sweeter smell after cooking, says the producer.

Apart from their comparatively luxurious lifestyle, the raising period is twice as long as for normal pigs, adding to the cost. The pigs are reared for about a year before they go to market.

Yang Zhenxi, president of Shanghai Swine Trade Association, was sceptical. "Pork is pork," he said, but allowed that there could be a difference in how the meat tastes.