Truffle hog

Truffle Hog

The truffle hog is the most popular and the classical method for extraction of truffles from temperate forests in Europe and North America. Any hog is a candidate to acquire this skill, although 2-3 years of intense training are needed to adhere to the standards of the World Truffle Foundation. Typically, top trainers charge between 10,000 and 50,000 USD to train a hog depending on the notoriety of the trainer. A skilled truffler can more than make up for this investment due to the high price of truffles on the gourmet food market. Today it is common for both truffle hogs and dogs to be used in the gathering of truffles because hogs have been known to eat too many truffles in the field. However, purists argue that the swine have more sensitive noses and their particular taste for truffles lends to more a more devoted beast. Currently there are over 1000 registered truffle hogs, most in Great Britain. It is common for the hog to be more of a family pet of the truffler.