Hog farming, an important part of North Carolina agriculture
since colonial days, has grown into a massive industry with a
gross value in excess of $2 billion annually. In the latter
years of the twentieth century, it also represented a
significant environmental problem, with the dangers of hog
lagoons-which store hog waste for later use as fertilizers-
consistently threatening water supplies and raising health
concerns in several hog-producing counties. Purebred hog breeds
played a major role in upgrading the quality of hogs in the
state and have continued through the years to be the primary
source of breeding stock. The Berkshire breed appeared in North
Carolina in 1881, when John O'Hagan of Wilson brought a boar
from Maryland. In the late 1880s Julian S. Carr  was declared
the first constructive Duroc Jersey breeder in the state.
Chester Whites came to North Carolina in 1898, and by 1910 there
were Tamworths, Hampshires, and Yorkshires. More than 10
purebred swine breeders have been inducted into the North