Landrace
The various strains of Landrace swine are the descendants
of the famous Danish Landrace hogs that were developed in Denmark. The
development of the breed began in about 1895. It resulted from crossing the
Large White hog from England with the native swine. It was largely though the
use of the Landrace that Denmark became the great bacon-exporting country, with
England as the chief market.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture received a shipment of
the Danish landrace in 1934 from their native country. Many of those hogs were
used in cross breeding by the Department and by Agricultural Experimental
stations to which they were made available, and became ancestors of a number of
new breeds. The foundation stocks of the American Landrace were those hogs that
were bred pure or carried a small infusion of Poland China blood. The
Department of Agriculture followed its policy of selling desirable seed stock
to private individuals. Thirty eight head of boars and gilts were imported from
Norway that carried Norweigan, Danish and Swedish Landrace blood. Their blood
is being blended into the American Landrace and gives a broader genetic base to
the breed.
Large White
There were 3,990 Large White swine registered in England in 1981, ranking
them as the top breed of their native country. Furthermore, it is easily the
leading breed of the world if one considers that swine called Yorkshires in the
United States and Canada are the direct descendants of the Large White.
Virtually every country in the world that values swine has made importations of
the Large White. The extent of importation seems to reflect the importance
placed on swine production by the various countries.
Large Whites are distinguished by their picturesque bearing, erect ears,
slightly dished faces, white color, pink skins, and long deep sides. They have
been valued for their bacon production since the inception of the breed. As
their name suggests, they are characterized by large size.
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