The American Landrace is an American
breed
A breed is a specific group of domestic animals having homogeneous appearance (phenotype), homogeneous behavior, and/or other characteristics that distinguish it from other organisms of the same species. In literature, there exist several slig ...
of
domestic pig
The pig (''Sus domesticus''), often called swine, hog, or domestic pig when distinguishing from other members of the genus '' Sus'', is an omnivorous, domesticated, even-toed, hoofed mammal. It is variously considered a subspecies of ''Sus s ...
. It is white in color, with a long body, fine hair, a long snout and heavy, drooping ears. Like all
landrace pigs
The term Landrace pig or Landrace swine refers to any of a group of standardized breeds of domestic pig, and in this context the word ''Landrace'' is typically capitalized. The original breed by this name was the Danish Landrace pig, from which t ...
, it derives from the
Danish Landrace.
History
The American Landrace derives from the
Danish Landrace, which in turn derives from
cross-breeding in the late nineteenth century between local Danish pigs and
Large White
''Pieris brassicae'', the large white, also called cabbage butterfly, cabbage white, cabbage moth (erroneously), or in India the large cabbage white, is a butterfly in the family Pieridae. It is a close relative of the small white, ''Pieris ra ...
stock imported from Britain. In 1934 twenty-four of these pigs were imported from Denmark by the
United States Department of Agriculture
The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) is the United States federal executive departments, federal executive department responsible for developing and executing federal laws related to farming, forestry, rural economic development, ...
for cross-breeding and research purposes, with a condition that they not be used to create a purebred commercial stock. That restriction was lifted in 1949 and a
breed association Breed clubs are associations or clubs with activities centered on a single, specific breed of a particular species of domesticated animal. The purpose of the association will vary with the species of animal and the goals and needs of the members o ...
, the American Landrace Association, was established in 1950. The new breed was founded on stock that was either purebred Danish or had a small percentage of
Poland China
The Poland China is an American breed of domestic pig. It was first bred in Warren County in Ohio, in the American Midwest. Its origins lie in a small number of pigs of Chinese type bought in 1816, which were cross-bred with a variety of breeds o ...
blood. To reduce
inbreeding
Inbreeding is the production of offspring from the mating or breeding of individuals or organisms that are closely related genetically. By analogy, the term is used in human reproduction, but more commonly refers to the genetic disorders and o ...
, thirty-eight pigs of Danish,
Swedish
Swedish or ' may refer to:
Anything from or related to Sweden, a country in Northern Europe. Or, specifically:
* Swedish language, a North Germanic language spoken primarily in Sweden and Finland
** Swedish alphabet, the official alphabet used by ...
and
Norwegian Landrace
The term Landrace pig or Landrace swine refers to any of a group of standardized breeds of domestic pig, and in this context the word ''Landrace'' is typically capitalized. The original breed by this name was the Danish Landrace pig, from which t ...
descent were imported in 1954 from Norway.
Characteristics
The American Landrace is a long, lean, white pig with 16 or 17 ribs. The head is long and narrow, the ears are large and heavy and hang forward close to the snout. The back is only slightly arched or is nearly flat. The side is even and well-fleshed and the ham is plump but not over-fat. The sows produce plenty of milk, the lactation peaking at five weeks, which is rather later than is the case in most breeds. They are prolific with good mothering abilities.
References
{{Landrace pig breeds navbox
Pig breeds
Pig breeds originating in the United States