Raising bacon
Feb. 25—For students in the Washington State University Student Swine Cooperative, raising pigs and learning about the pork industry is all about hands-on experience.
Kalvin Bowers, a junior at WSU, got involved in the cooperative in the fall of 2021 and has participated in every part of raising the animals and processing them for the group's semiannual bacon sale.
The spring sale, which runs from 3-5:30 p.m. on Thursdays at 2155 Wilson Road in Pullman, benefits every aspect of the group. The sale is scheduled through the end of the semester, Bowers said, and any changes will be announced on the cooperative's Facebook page.
The cooperative is involved in almost the entire process for making the bacon they sell. Bowers said they brine, cure, cut and package the meat. Bacon costs $10 per pound and bacon ends cost $6 per pound. Pork is also available and to see what the cooperative has in stock or to place an order email, wsustudentswinecooperative@wsu.edu.
"We are really big in the hands-on education and the student learning," Bowers said. "Any student who comes in is going to leave with lots of knowledge about the pork industry."
All proceeds from the sales go directly to purchasing animals, feeding, building maintenance, enrichment and operational costs.
Freshman America Oettel has been raising animals since middle school and showed goats and dairy cows as part of both 4-H and the National FFA Organization. She signed up for the cooperative last semester and said she wanted to join to meet new people and learn about the animals.
Belicia Guzman, a freshman at WSU, has been working at a pet urgent care in her hometown when not at school and joined the cooperative to gain new experiences and to challenge herself.
Guzman works with Bowers on social media and one of her favorite parts is learning about the marketing they do. Her work includes making flyers for sales, pamphlets and a possible website.
Oettel and Guzman learned about the cooperative through the fall festival organized by the university's College of Agricultural, Human, and Natural Resource Sciences. Oettel thought it sounded like a good way to meet new people in college and get involved on campus. She said that while she did not have experience with raising pigs, it was a fun experience working with the other members to learn.
For updates on upcoming sales and hours, Bowers said the cooperative has pages on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.
"I enjoy raising livestock and taking care of them," Oettel said. "It's a little piece of home I get to work on here."
Nelson can be reached at knelson@dnews.com.
