As you’re planning your foodie calendar for 2011, you might want to take a moment and pencil in Cochon 555. We all know that pork is often the favored meat of underground foodies (think about how many things wrapped in bacon you’ve been offered over the last couple of months), so it’s no big surprise that the meat would get its own national tour.

A cooking competition that celebrates all things pork related, Cochon 555 is “5 chefs, 5 pigs and 5 wineries in a friendly competition for a cause.” They’re focused on family farms, connecting niche farmers with social media tools that help them connect with like-minded farmers, chefs, and of course, media. It’s not just about pork, it’s about promoting the conscious part of an entire industry.

Next year’s tour, which will be the third annual, will hit 10 different cities, including some of the foodie metropolises like San Francisco, New York City and Chicago.

But you won’t find foodie hotspot Portland on the list; Cochon 555 co-founder Eric Bechard got arrested after a supposedly alcohol induced brawl outside of a Portland strip club. Reason? Bechard was apparently upset over the fact that non-local pigs were allowed into the competition.

That’s what you call a committed locavore.

Learn more about Cochon 555 and the 2011 tour on their website.

Editor’s note: This is the latest installment of Anna Brones’s column at EcoSalon, Foodie Underground. Each week, Anna will be taking a look at something new and different that’s taking place in the underground food movement, from supper clubs to mini markets to culinary avant garde.

Image: Cochon 555

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You heard it from the vegetarian: bring on the hog farming.

Russ Kremer, also known as the Pope of Pork, is holding his own as a smalltime Missouri hog farmer. Unlike the huge industrial meat operations that have put a lot of small farmers out of business, Kremer treats his animals ethically and with respect, makes sure they have plenty of space to be healthy and active and feeds them a natural hog diet – drug and antibiotic-free. Kremer really is a pope of sorts – the former successful factory farmer is so deeply invested in his purpose, he hasn’t had time to get married or raise children.

Kremer and other pork farmers in his region formed a cooperative and began distributing their natural meat  – processed the old-fashioned way, without chemicals – under the label Heritage Acres.

This is great news for conscious meat eaters everywhere, and for vegetarians like me. Although I don’t eat meat, it’s great to see that those who choose to eat meat are looking for compassionate, sustainable options. The story is really worth reading, because “formed” is an awfully small word to accurately convey the difficulties these determined farmers had to deal with in order to raise meat in a fashion that used to be the norm.

Image: jontidmarsh

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