KuneKune Smoked Bacon from Raising ’em Right Homestead, Hastings, Michigan
At Valor Provisions, we partner with American farms that can show you exactly how the animal was raised. Raising ’em Right Homestead in Hastings, Michigan is a first-generation family farm raising purebred KuneKune pigs on 30 acres of rolling pasture. This is their Smoked Bacon: heritage pork from a slow-growing, grass-grazing breed, cured and smoked for a deep, rich bacon unlike anything from a commodity hog.
What Makes KuneKune Bacon Different
Most bacon starts with a fast-growing commercial hog raised on corn. KuneKunes are the opposite. They are a heritage breed built to graze, and the Rauser family rotates their herd across open pasture and feeds a daily fermented ration of non-GMO barley, wheat, oats, alfalfa and beets, with no corn. They skip corn on purpose: it keeps the balance between the marbling inside the meat and the fat cap on the outside. The result is a deep red, heavily marbled belly with silky fat that carries a slightly sweet undertone. It takes roughly two years to raise a KuneKune to weight instead of six months, and you can taste the difference in every strip.
Why You’ll Love It
Heritage KuneKune Pork – KPPA certified purebred herd, every pig with its own pedigree.
Pasture Raised and Rotationally Grazed – 30 acres of Michigan hills, managed to rebuild the soil, not strip it.
Non-GMO, Corn-Free Ration – Fermented barley, wheat, oats, alfalfa and beets.
Rich, Marbled and Sweet – Deep red meat and clean-tasting fat that renders slow and crisps beautifully.
Family Raised – Josh and Jessica Rauser and their four kids, first-generation farmers since 2020.
How to Cook It
KuneKune bacon carries more fat than commodity bacon, so give it time. Start strips in a cold skillet over medium-low heat and let the fat render slowly, or lay them on a rack and bake at 350°F for 25 to 35 minutes depending on how crisp you like it. Save the rendered fat; it is some of the best cooking fat you will ever have. Always cook bacon thoroughly before serving. Approximately 0.9 lb per pack.
The Raising ’em Right Story
Josh and Jessica Rauser were city kids. In 2020 they moved their growing family out of Minneapolis and started over on seven wooded acres in central Michigan with a garden, a couple of goats and a few KuneKune pigs. They outgrew it fast and settled on 30 acres in Hastings, where they now run one of a small number of KPPA certified, AKKPS registered KuneKune farms in the country. They opened a store on the property so more than 30 neighboring families could sell what they grow and make. Every pack of this bacon keeps a Michigan family farm, and the community around it, in business. That is the Valor mission on a plate.
