Why does some pork have an odour to it?
Pork odour, often called “Boar Taint” is harmless, despite being unappealing. It happens occasionally during the processing of pork when there is a high level of androstenone and/or skatole in males pigs. Male pigs are castrated at a young age to curb this effect, so it is an uncommon occurance. Causes of “Boar Taint” can be the animal was castrated too late; or sometimes a testicle is missed in castration. These animals are known as Ridglings. Some breeds are just prone to Boar taint more than others. The best thing to do when you purchase a cut with a strong odour is to let your meat manager know. He has no way of knowing that this is happening, as it generally does not come out until you take it home and cook it. Your meat manager can then go back to his supplier and alert them of the problem. Your manager should be quite happy that you have alerted him of the problem, as you are probably not the only customer having this problem.
