The Whole Hog: Celebrating Local Food and the People Behind It

The Whole Hog: Celebrating Local Food and the People Behind It

There’s nothing like empty grocery counters to bring the importance of Ontario’s food supply chain into sharp focus.

With memories of pandemicdriven food shortages still fresh, a group representing Ontario farmers began reaching out to people across the supply chain to strengthen connections between various points in the supply chain.

Two simple questions kicked off a year-long conversation focused on food grown close to home and the care that goes into getting it to Ontario dinner tables: What do you wish people knew about pork grown in Ontario? What’s your favourite way to enjoy pork?

For 12 months, those two questions were posed to farmers, veterinarians, nutritionists, truck drivers, factory workers, butchers, retailers, chefs and Instagram grillers from one end of the pork supply chain to the other.

From those conversations, Ontario Pork curated The Whole Hog, 200 pages of family stories, recipes and tips, tapping into surging consumer interest in nose-totail local food and reinforcing the end-to-end quality, commitment, versatility and value of local pork.

“It really reminded us that we’re all in this together,” said Stacey Ash of Ontario Pork. “More than just farmers, behind every order of ribs, every holiday ham, bacon sandwich or pork chop dinner is a team of people who care deeply about raising healthy animals and preparing amazing food.”

Proceeds from the book sales will be donated to the Feed Ontario network of food banks, building on a 10-year partnership between the two organizations. With an online price of $39.99, including HST, the book can be purchased at shop. ontariopork.on.ca and is available for sale at select retail partners.

The book includes interviews with and recipes from leading Ontario chefs, including wellknown television personality Chef Emily Richards, Chef Michael Hunter of Antler Restaurant, Chef Eva Chin of Avling, cookbook author Chef Michael Olson, and Chef Chris Zielinski of Maple Leaf Sports and Entertainment.

“What I loved was that contributors used pork in a way that I had never used before and I think that people who pick up the cookbook are going to see that and want to try different cuts, different flavours,” Richards said.

Featured chefs share the spotlight with farmers, vets, truckers, butchers, grillers and more—and in some cases, they can connect directly with the farmers and butchers providing the meat they prepare and serve. The connections provide insight into the care given to animals and the sustainable practices being used by farmers.

Oxford County pork producer TJ Murray said, “I believe all farmers are on the same page when it comes to protecting our animals, our land and our water. As much as the book is a series of recipes, I hope it provides much-needed education to what goes into our farms and your food.”