How to Raise Pigs and Make Money

Ensure that your pigs have enough room to move around to maintain good health. Allow for about 1/10 of an acre of pasture area per pig if you are going to let them graze. Allow for about 100 square feet per pig if you are going to raise them in an enclosure such as a barn; grazers will likely be happier, but their meat will be tougher due to the amount of muscle tissue they develop. Raise pigs in an enclosure to have better control over their food, raise more tender pork products and to easily collect any waste material you wish to sell.

Have plenty of food available for your pigs. Pigs will graze similar to other barnyard animals, so plant some pasture grass such as rye grass or fescue on your pig farm. You should also have several troughs set up, especially for pigs being kept inside. Feed your pigs specially-designed pig feed made of ground corn, ground oats and soybean meal, among other items; pigs under 125 pounds should be fed a starter feed while pigs more than 125 pounds should be fed a finishing feed.

Have a good water supply for your pigs. Arrange for water troughs for grazing pigs if you do not have a natural or man-made body of water on your property for them to drink from and wallow in. Set up a watering system in your enclosure for pigs being kept inside keep them hydrated and to wash them.

Allow your pigs to breed and you can sell the litters to other pig farmers for profits as well. Set up a farrowing house or area in the enclosure to keep the sows and piglets from the general pig population. Contact a veterinarian to check over the health of your pigs -- each pig should be inspected at least every six months for any health issues, including skin diseases and parasites.

Determine whether you are going to slaughter your pigs yourself or have them processed at a slaughterhouse. Arrange for an inspection of your facilities by a representative of the Food Safety and Inspection Service of the USDA to ensure that your facilities meet government standards and that your pigs are healthy and disease free; otherwise, have your pigs slaughtered at a facility that meets the same standards, including Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point System standards. Contact your local extension office for a list of USDA-approved slaughterhouses in your area.

Set up an area to slaughter your pigs yourself; although some of the major pork producing plants buy their hogs live, they tend to purchase most of their stock from huge factory farms who have supplied them for years. Contact local markets and butchers in your area and arrange for a tour of your facilities, if necessary, to interest them in your product. Advertise in local newspapers, websites and directories. Set up fabrication facilities, such as a smokehouse, so you can produce pork products, such as hams and bacon, on your own.

Set up a website to sell your pork products online direct to the consumer. Contact a webmaster to set up the website for you or use an online site to create your website, which should have a home page, an about us page (complete with pictures of your pigs and facilities) and a product page, with prices (including shipping and handling). Create a limited liability company for your farm through your state secretary of state's office to protect you against any financial liability from selling your pork products on your own.