I've had butcher's tell me as soon as they start grinding the hog they can tell if it was raised on concrete or dirt,and if they could choose they would eat one raised on dirt.

Why?

I've had butcher's tell me as soon as they start grinding the hog they can tell if it was raised on concrete or dirt,and if they could choose they would eat one raised on dirt.

You can tell from the first cut with a knife too. I have always raised hogs on dirt and never knew any different until a cousin got some hogs from a concrete floor operation. We killed his two the same day as a few I had ready and hung them overnight. The next morning when we started cutting the dirt raised hogs was much more solidly muscled than the floor hogs. The hogs off of concrete had good muscle, but it was mushier than that of the dirt raised hogs. The dirt hogs was a darker color of muscle as well. As for sausage we could tell no difference, but the chops taste better from the dirt raised hogs. Both are good eating, but I prefer dirt raised hogs.