Mangulica (also Mangalitsa or Mangalitza)
We breed our Mangulica on a private farm, just a few kilometers away from the first settlement, in the environment or centuries-old oaks. In the centuries passed, this breed was a part of every household, and it made the backbone of a Slavonian’s daily life. During the Austro-Hungarian monarchy, it was the main source used for meat and lard processing. We can find many history records on transporting the Mangulica pigs from the Spačva Forest to Vienna, where they were further processed to meet the needs of the entire Monarchy.
We exclusively feed our Mangulica with organic grown food from our own, as well as other local farmers’ production. They are not offered pig fattening foods, swill or any other inadequate sources of food. Corn, wheat, barley, clover, and triticale with the addition of seasonal squash, pumpkin, watermelon, cabbage, whey, and grass is all they are fed with. The only processed foods we occasionally use is dried bread and salt. We do not use any soy in the feeding process!
No antibiotics, hormones or other vitamin preparations are used during cultivation. Farrowing takes place naturally without human interference, where the sow independently chooses a suitable place, most often in a forest or a thicket in a protected hiding place. As it is an extremely non-aggressive breed, it is not necessary to subsequently separate sows and piglets from boars and other pigs.
Mangulica meat is of inconceivably better quality than the meat of pigs from conventional breeding, it is dotted with bacon, and looks reminiscent of Japanese Kobe and Wagyu beef.
HDL cholesterol
Mangulica fat is full of saturated fatty acids and is rich in HDL cholesterol.
LDL ("bad", i.e., low-density lipoprotein) cholesterol transports fat from the liver to the body's cells, which is needed for the production of various hormones and vitamin D. If the amount of fat is too large, the cells can no longer absorb it, so it remains in the blood, where it stays in the form of plaque deposits in arteries and capillaries.
HDL ("good", i.e., high-density lipoprotein) cholesterol binds to LDL cholesterol and removes deposits from arteries and capillaries, thus preventing the deposition of fats in blood vessels. That's why HDL cholesterol is called healthy cholesterol.
Various studies confirm that HDL prevents arteriosclerosis, and reduces the risk of heart attack or stroke, so we can say that an elevated level of HDL cholesterol, which is abundant in the Mangulica meat, is an indicator of protection against cardiovascular diseases.
You can learn more about HDL cholesterol at the links below:
