Since 1939 we’ve been making one product: ham.
Our equipment and people have changed, but our techniques and recipes have not. There are few independent, small-scale ham makers left in Wisconsin, or the country, that make the products we do. Our way is unique and worth preserving.
You can’t make good ham without good pork.
We hand inspect and trim our meat to ensure the highest quality product. We are one of the last ham makers able to still cut, bone, and trim our product for production left in the state—maybe even the country.
We use USDA Inspected, fresh ham that is raised without hormones.
The pigs we use are raised and harvested in the United States (it comes from our neighbors in throughout the Midwest and is harvested by JBS in Minnesota).
Our meat is never frozen
Curing is the addition of salt to meat. It’s what makes ham, well ham.
Our cure is a top-secret family recipe. Our mix of salt, real maple, cane sugar, and natural flavoring is one of the main reasons Badger Ham tastes like Badger Ham!
There are no artificial sweeteners, ascorbate, dextrose, or fillers added to our product.
Our curing process is slower than our competitors, and we make a significant effort not to "rough up the meat" to allow for a fantastic, juicy texture! So when you eat our product, you should enjoy a nice slice of ham—not the consistency of a watery sponge or chewy hot dog.
Portioning
We make a variety of different size hams. From 2.5lb portions to whole bone in holiday hams
Products can be put into a mold and cooked in water (it’s how the hand ends up as a “box” shape) or hand stuffed into netting depending on the product.
Cooking
When we smoke, we never use liquid smoke—ever. We smoke our hams with a secret hardwood blend (sorry, we can't tell you what wood, it's a family secret!)
We are the last independent small family-owned operation in the state (that we are aware of) that makes a traditional "boiled" deli ham. Our "Cooked Hams" are cooked in water tanks—essentially, sous vide cooking. You can manage temperatures accurately by cooking ham in water, preserving quality, juiciness, and flavor. We make all Badger "cooked" hams the old fashion way, the same way we have since 1939.
Sometimes, we hand do a glaze of our hams, topped with brown sugar and cloves—these are our Baked Hams.
Packaging
We are using state-of-the-art packaging equipment for food safety and shelf life. You can find our product throughout the state in the Delis and Meat Departments.
We are proud to be a Wisconsin business focusing on serving our local, regional customers.