Local Pork Producers

The Austin area is blessed to have several dedicated suppliers of traditionally pastured, old-breed, all-natural pork, either selling their products as whole or partial carcasses or as cuts of pork by the pound. This is the pork of your great-grandparents' dinner table.

Countryside Family Farm

376 Jones Rd., Cedar Creek, 512/363-2310  

Sebastien and Esther Bonneu espouse Old World traditional husbandry and butchering of farm-raised ducks, geese, rabbits, chickens, pheasants, turkeys, pigeons, peafowl, and quail. They are also connected with a group of local farmers who similarly raise pigs, cows, goats, and sheep and also offer feral hog. Available as whole carcasses or as parts, selling at the Austin Farmers' Market Saturdays and Wednesdays.

Peach Creek Farm

375 Peach Creek Rd., Rosanky, 512/332-1945, www.peachcreekfarm.us

At their farm in String Prairie, about 18 miles south of Bastrop, Rose and James Page produce free-range Berkshire pork, pasture-raised beef, chickens, ducks, eggs, and seasonal vegetables. You can purchase at the farm, online, or at the Austin Farmers' Market Saturdays and Wednesdays.

Richardson Farms

2850 CR 412, Rockdale, 512/446-2306, www.richardsonfarms.com

Veterinarian Jim Richardson and his wife, Kay, with son Lance Clark and his wife, Cheryl, specialize in humanely raised, pastured pork; grass-fed beef; pastured poultry and free-range eggs; and limited seasonal vegetables. As for their pork, Rich­ardson says: "We raise Duroc, Berkshire, Yorkshire, and Hamp­shire. We value the heritage breeds and use them to promote their sustainability." Look for them on Wednesdays at the Manor Farmers Market, Wednesdays and alternating Satur­days at the Austin Farmers' Market, and Saturdays at Sunset Valley Farmers Market (call the farm for the current schedule).

Full Quiver Farms

6238 FM 3396, Kemp, 903/498-3884

Mennonites Michael and Debbie Sams and their nine children operate an organic family farm in Kemp, southeast of Dallas, milking 30 dairy cows and producing superb cheeses, while pasturing 200 chickens and 20 pigs. Their main thing is making cheese, but they feed the pigs the leftover whey. They raise a cross of Yorkshire-Hampshire-Duroc and sell pork cuts, cheeses, poultry, and eggs at the Sunset Valley Farmers Market on Saturdays.

Flying Pony Farm

Smithville, 512/237-3561

Sean and Lisa Frackowiak offer limited naturally raised pork products by the pound at the farm and occasionally through the Bastrop Producers Market. They raise a Berkshire-Hampshire cross, and their primary focus is to produce high-quality 40- to 50-pound feeder pigs for small family farmers to raise at home. They have a small operation but have plans for expansion in the future. Call Lisa for availability.