EFLAND - Ben Bergmann grabbed a garden hose and squeezed through a metal gate on his farm. On the other side, about a dozen black-spotted large pigs ambled up from deep in a 5-acre wooded lot.

"Hi, guys. Want to get wet?" he called to them as he refilled their barrel-sized watering dish.

Bergmann splashed the water on their heads and along their backs, cooling their bodies. The pigs shook their heads vigorously, their ears slapping loudly against their jowls. A white pig with black spots opened his mouth to sip from the hose.

As he watered the pigs, Bergmann talked about how they contribute to the sustainability of Fickle Creek Farm.

The 61-acre farm he owns in Efland with his partner, Noah Ranells, is also home to sheep, goats, laying hens, steers and broilers, or chickens for eating. They also produce eggs and vegetables sold at farmers markets.

Next month, Bergmann and Ranells will start teaching others interested in raising meat and poultry on small farms. The course, one of several being offered through the N.C. Cooperative Extension's Farmer-to-Farmer Mentoring Program, will include hands-on experience and discussions on subjects such as marketing, nutrition and herd health.

"Farmers are always trying to figure out how to increase their farm income," said Karen McAdams, an Orange County extension agent. "We hope that people will come away with the basics of small farm livestock and poultry production."

Demand for local meat is increasing from both consumers who want to buy it directly and local grocery stores, McAdams said.

Statewide, the three-year-old program aims to show farmers they can still make money farming, said DeShon Cromartie, the program coordinator.

"A lot of young farmers don't see that they can make a successful living by farming," he said.

Farmers can make money if they produce a good and consistent product, said Bergmann, but they won't get rich.

The mentoring program has offered courses on cut flowers, growing muscadine grapes and running organic and sustainable farms.

Bergmann and Ranells strive for sustainability. They use their herds to clear and fertilize land for future vegetable patches.

They grow basil, squash, eggplant, tomatoes, cucumbers, beans, okra, carrots, arugula and potatoes in two plots that Bergmann called fairly small for commercial growing. They plan to grow more vegetables once they have enriched more of the soil with organic matter from the animals, he said.

"The course is mainly about livestock, but you can't talk livestock without talking the whole system," he said.

Local products

As Bergmann watered his pigs, he talked about just how local a product they are. They were purchased as piglets from a nearby farm. Their feed comes from a local mill. And when it is slaughtering time, they'll travel only 40 miles for that, he said.

Bergmann, who also teaches sustainable farming at Central Carolina Community College and N.C. State University, said many farmers make the mistake of picking just one animal to raise, such as pigs or goats. That can lead to animals foraging through insufficient undergrowth for food, he said.

"You want the animals to have the best life possible," he said.

Before Bergmann left the pigs, one rubbed its long body against his knees.

"Hey, guy, how are you?" Bergmann asked gently as he scratched the pig's back.

"I know, you like that," he said. "You're such a big baby."

It was time to gather eggs and check on the rest of the livestock.

Before he turned the water off, Bergmann directed the hose at each pig as he wished them farewell with a cheerful, "Goodbye. Goodbye."