A Pig Celebration: The Story of Gete the Butcher

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Metzgete is an old tradition of late autumn. In French-speaking Switzerland, the festival is affectionately called “la fête du cochon” – “the pig festival” in German. You are right. The growling animal is at the center of this ancient tradition.

It is not known when the first butchering ceremony took place. The origin of the tradition dates back to before industrialized agriculture and professional pig farming. At that time, pigs were considered domestic animals and were kept not only on farms but also in cities. Omnivores were fattened with leftover food throughout the year or taken into the forest accompanied by swineherds to eat. There was a practical reason for timing the massacres before the onset of winter. Because only very few people could afford to feed the animals during the harsh winter.

Metzgete represents not only the slaughter of pigs but also the feast that follows. Craftsmanship, community and enjoyment come together here. What had previously been celebrated on farms spread to pubs and inns with the professionalization and industrialization of meat production in 1940.

Ajoie is the richest dish served in the Jura region. The St. Martin’s Day feast, around November 11, consists of a menu of 8 to 12 pork dishes, from bouillon and aspic to black pudding, adrio and roasts. Elsewhere, hearty meat products are served on a hearty plate or buffet style, where everyone can eat as much as they want.

Sustainability in a traditional way

In the past, perishable parts of the pig were used directly on the day of slaughter. The head, tail, tongue and insides are cooked for several hours and served as boiled meat or used as the basis for liver and sausages. Blood sausages are made from blood. “Noble” parts such as the abdomen, breast, ribs and neck were salted, smoked and stored for the winter.

Claudia Blum (57) from Landgasthof Ochsen in Roggliswil LU explains that nowadays the possibility of refrigerating meat products offers guests more culinary diversity: “Blood sausages, liver sausages and offal are no longer only available on the day of slaughter.”

Boiled potatoes, rösti, sauerkraut, baked beans and apples are traditionally served with meat as mash or schnitzel. Claudia Blum observes a growing interest in the ancient tradition. Hearty pork products used to be particularly popular with farmers. “These days I see more people from all social classes and all ages biting into a black pudding with gusto.” The innkeeper explains this trend, among other things, by the sustainable aspect of this tradition, in which the whole animal is used.

Demand for pork is high all year round: more than 2.5 million pigs were slaughtered last year, according to the Swiss meat association Proviande. But butcher season is special for meat lovers. Metzgete is celebrated as a culinary festival and the heritage of Swiss agriculture and can certainly be described as a pioneer of sustainable meat consumption.

Source : Blick