In the United States, the four main primal cuts of pork are:
Other parts of the World also consider two other primals:
Regardless of where you're from, very little of the pig actually goes to waste.
Excess fat can be rendered down into lard, pig intestines are processed for sausage casings, pig's feet are usually pickled, etc.
The following are the standard primals of a pig:
The pork shoulder primal consists of the pork butt (the upper shoulder, behind the head) and the pork picnic ham (the lower shoulder).
These cuts are commonly used for things like:
Sub-primal and Retail Cuts from the Pork Shoulder:
The pork leg or "ham" are essentially the rear legs and the rump of the animal.
The pork leg or "ham" is quite lean and lacks connective tissue. This part of the animal is typically cured to make ham.
It can also be dry cured and aged to make prosciutto.
Sub-primal and Retail Cuts from the Pork Leg:
The pork loin comes from the back of the pig. Specifically, it's found between the back fat and the baby back ribs.
Aside from the tenderloin, the pork loin is the leanest cut on the entire pig as the loin isn't exercised much and it isn't used for movement.
Sub-primal and Retail Cuts from the Pork Loin:
Pork belly is quite literally the underside of the pig and it is the fattiest part of the entire pig.
Butchers make up a lot of their money from the belly as this is where bacon comes from; It's what's called a "value added product."
For this same reason, when spare ribs are removed from the animal, very little meat is left on top of the bones. This is because the more meat you leave on, the less meat you can dedicate to bacon.
Sub-primal and Retail Cuts from the Pork Belly:
Different parts of the head can be segmented to create things like pork cheeks.
These parts of the animal aren't popular in the United States.
Pork cheek and jowl are quite popular in Italy where it's cured to make Guanciale - which is cooked the same way you fry belly bacon.
Pigs ears are commonly given as treats for dogs.
A lot of these parts are also used to make things like bologna. Like the feet, ears, and other "byproducts" from trimming.
Sub-primal and Retail Cuts from the Pork Head:
Similar to pork head, the trotters or pigs feet aren't commonly sold in the United States.
Typically the only way you really find them sold are in jars as pickled pig's feet (these are typically the rear as they're bigger).
Similar to the ears, they're also commonly sold as dog treats.
Pig's feet are also commonly rendered down for things like stock because they're filled with collagen.