Pork producers showing ‘We Care’

The We Care responsible pork initiative is a joint effort of the Pork Checkoff, through the National Pork Board, and the National Pork Producers Council, to help demonstrate that producers are accountable to established ethical principles and animal well-being practices.

The pork industry already offers numerous programs, including Pork Quality Assurance Plus® (PQA Plus®) and Transport Quality Assurance® (TQASM), to support animal well-being and maintain a safe, high-quality supply of pork.

Nebraska pork producers and others within the industry can register for PQA Plus and TQA training now at www.nepork.org.  The 22 training down-linked sites are conveniently located across the state.

The We Care initiative ties everything together to help the public view the pork industry as a self-regulated business that earns the trust of others.

Other programs that producers can take part in to support the We Care responsible pork initiative include Operation Main Street, Neighbor to Neighbor and NPPC’s LEADR program.

Operation Main Street is an intensive training program for producers to help spread the message about the pork industry.  Look for Operation Main Street coming to Lincoln, Neb. on July 9 and 10, 2009 at Lincoln’s Cornhusker Marriott.  For further detail, contact NPPA at (888) 627-7675.

Nebraska youth take action in pork industry

U.S pork producers and the pork industry have been faced with unfathomable challenges over the past year.

Given the additional emerging issues facing the pork producers, the NPPA intern and nine NPPA mentors continue to pursue their goal of educating others and positively promoting Nebraska pork producers by traveling to Iowa for training and the World Pork Expo.

Mallory Wittstruck, the Nebraska Pork Producers Association intern, attended the National Pork Board’s Internship training in Iowa, June 1 and 2, as well as the World Pork Expo.

Along with Wittstruck, the 2009 Pork Queen and Princess  and 23 interns and ambassadors representing several states heard informative speakers from different areas of the pork industry.

Kavan represents Nebraska in Pork Leadership Academy

Aaron Kavan was selected for the Pork Leadership Academy, a program sponsored by the Pork Checkoff to identify and train pork industry leaders.

The 20 Pork Leadership Academy (PLA) participants were selected by their individual states and represent different production styles.  The PLA program through Checkoff strives to build new leaders who will work with both consumers and other producerrs and Kavan wants to do just that.

“Through this program I hope to expand my knowledge of the pork industry and further develop my communication skills that are never more important as we move into this culture of increasing scrutiny of not only the pork industry, but animal agriculture as a whole,” Kavan said.

Within PLA, Kavan will be trained as a spokesperson who can inform the public about the accomplishments of the pork industry and communicate with producers one-on-one about issues facing the pork industry.  PLA also provides leadership training as well as long-term support in preparing presentations and interviews.

“By getting a larger feel for how everyone sees or portrays the pork industry we can develop new ways of marketing to expand the consumption of pork, but also to develop new ways of defending the industry,” Kavan said.

During PLA’s first meeting at the World Pork Expo in Des Moines, Iowa, Kavan learned about Pork Checkoff investments and how to work with agriculture media as well as being better prepared for a crisis on farms.  PLA participants, including Kavan, also received Pork Quality Assurance Plus (PQA Plus) training.