We take animal welfare very seriously. We believe that quality starts at the farm and that healthy pigs reared to the highest welfare standards provide the very best pork. All our pork comes from outdoor-bred British pigs where their comfort and safety are paramount.

We work with suppliers who share our commitment to responsible and sustainable farming. We are predominately a ham producer and whilst we have added other products like bacon and sausage to our portfolio, we still use a lot more “back legs” than we do the rest of the pig.

All our pork is British and sourced from RSPCA Assured farms where the pigs are well treated, and most importantly that every stage of the supply chain is regularly audited by vets and inspectors.

We take the sourcing of all our other meats just as seriously. For instance, our poultry is all produced to the highest levels of free-range standards - there is never an excuse for distressing, intensive or inhumane farming methods that cause animals to suffer.

No! Unlike most "supermarket" ham, ours is never "formed", "reformed" or "reconstituted".

There is a huge spectrum of quality available in supermarkets, but one thing is unavoidable: to get homogeneity the pork has to be “formed” into an unnatural shape. To do this, boneless pieces of meat are injected with brine (water, salts, sugars and other ingredients designed to help the meat retain water) and then “tumbled”. Imagine the world’s biggest tumble drier (without the heat!) filled with wet meat. As it is churned for several hours the brine is forced into the meat, and gradually the protein in the meat starts to dissolve, creating a slimy pink goo all over the meat. Most manufacturers are delighted by this technology as it reduces a process that used to take weeks or months into one that takes a few hours, and to them time is money!

Once this process is complete the meat can be filled into moulds of any shape the manufacturer wants (the most common and efficient for slicing being circular logs about a metre long. The logs are then cooked, and thanks to the proteinaceous properties of the goo, it sets into a firm, albeit rubbery, shape. Cheap sliced ham has a mixture of the cheapest bits of the carcass, more water and more clever chemistry aimed at getting the most protein out of the meat and the most water locked away in it; expensive formed ham will use much less water, better whole cuts of meat and fewer “nasties” generally, but the general principle of manufacture is the same.

We do not tumble our ham at DukesHill! This means that our hams come in all shapes and sizes (yes, just like the pigs they come from), and when we slice them, every slice is different. Because we haven’t relied on massaging and tumbling to extract copious amounts of soluble protein, our cooked ham doesn’t have that rubbery wobble and bite you’ll find elsewhere. It’s more like what it is…real meat!

A common question and one which we are somewhat reluctant to answer definitively! So much depends on who is carving, what else you are serving, and how hungry everyone is! As a rule of thumb, we suggest that a large, whole ham of around 4kg will serve 35+, and a half ham joint about 15+.

The “Use By” date on your ham refers to the life of the chilled ham, whilst still in its vacuum pack. Once opened, its life depends to a great extent on how it is treated. One of the main attractions of ham is that it keeps well, providing countless meals for your family and friends.

Although we use traditional cures that in the past were considered suitable for keeping a ham well for a couple of weeks at least, current legislation obliges us to advise you to consume the ham within a few days (see the label), and to freeze any leftovers for future use.

A number of factors can shorten the life of the ham, particularly leaving it out in a warm environment. If your ham has served a spell on a buffet table for a few hours in a warm room or marquee for example, its capacity to keep will be considerably reduced.

During storage, the cut the face of the ham may become a bit tired or dry out. Under normal circumstances, you should be able to cut this away until you reach fresh ham again. Your nose and common sense can guide you.