MICHIGAN - Michigan Pork Producers Association

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MICHIGAN - Michigan Pork Producers Association
MICHIGAN
                                                                          2020, VOL. 45, NO. 3

                                          Michigan’s Pork Producers source for information.

       Pg. 4                   Pg. 7                            Pg. 10
            MPPA Celebrates            MPPA Cancels 2021                   MPPA and MSU
         National Pork Month                  Pork Expo                  Now Offer Virtual
                                                                              Farm Tours

Nov20magazine2.indd 1                                                                  11/9/2020 3:14:32 PM
MICHIGAN - Michigan Pork Producers Association
What’s On Your Plate?

                   Help empower tomorrow’s farmers, scientists,
                        communicators, and food processors.
                    Purchase a Michigan Agricultural Heritage
                      license plate! For just $35, you can help
                    prepare the next generation of agriculture
                         leaders by supporting FFA and K-12
                           agricultural education programs!

                            Get your plate today. Visit your local Secretary of State office or go to
                        www.michigan.gov/SOS and click on the “Owning a Vehicle” link for order forms.
                                               Questions? Call 517-432-2482.

           Now Offered for Commercial Vehicles

Nov20magazine2.indd 2                                                                                    11/9/2020 3:15:02 PM
MICHIGAN - Michigan Pork Producers Association
MICHIGAN
                                                                                                           Michigan Pork Producers Association
                                                                                                                        3515 West Road, Suite B
                                                                                                                  East Lansing, Michigan 48823
                                                                                                                                 (517) 853-3782
                                                                                                                               www.mipork.org

                                                                                                                                    2020, VOL. 45, NO. 3

          Michigan Pork is published
          quarterly by Michigan Pork
                                                                                 SPOTLIGHT
        Producers Association and has        MPPA Celebrates National Pork Month .............................................. 4
       a circulation of more than 2,500
                     copies.
        All editorial and advertising are                                   DEPARTMENTS
        screened along rigid standards,
           but publisher assumes no          President’s Page .......................................................................................6
         responsibility for accuracy or
           validity of claims, all rights    Across My Desk .........................................................................................8
                     reserved.               MSU Pork Quarterly .........................................................................center
         For any questions regarding         Capital Update .......................................................................................... 12
            Michigan Pork’s mailing          Pork Checkoff ........................................................................................... 14
          list, advertising or content
                                             Calendar of Events .................................................................................. 19
         please contact Emily Schmitt
           at schmitt@mipork.org or          Index to Advertisers ............................................................................... 23
                  517-853-3782.
                        MPPA Staff:                                               FEATURES
                  Mary Kelpinski
                                             Michigan Ag Heritage License Plate ....................................................2
              Chief Executive Officer
                 Managing Editor             MPPA Cancels 2021 Pork Expo ..............................................................7
              kelpinski@mipork.org           Lois Britt Memorial Scholarship ............................................................7
                  Emily Schmitt              MPPA Now Offers Virtual Swine Farm Tours ...................................10
                 Program Director            Mediation: A Tool for Michigan Farmers ............................................ 11
                      Editor
               schmitt@mipork.org
                                             MI County Preserves Acres from Development .............................. 16
                                             MPPA Membership Application ........................................................... 17
       ***On the cover: Michigan Pork
         Producers Association board         Swine Industry Loses Paul Matzet ...................................................... 18
       member Ryan Hunter prepares           Michigan Pork PAC .................................................................................20
      to cut pork loins to grill and serve   New Online Tool for Conservation Planning .................................... 21
         at the City Rescue Mission of
                   Lansing.***
                                             We’re Listening........................................................................................ 22

     2020, VOL. 45, NO. 3                                                                                                                                   Page 3

Nov20magazine2.indd 3                                                                                                                                       11/9/2020 3:15:06 PM
MICHIGAN - Michigan Pork Producers Association
Spotlight Page
          MPPA
     Celebrates
                                               I
                                                     n celebration of October being National Pork Month, Michigan
                                                     Pork Producers Association partnered with several other Michigan

       National                                      agricultural commodity organizations to provide dinner for those in
                                                     need at the City Rescue Mission of Lansing Oct. 28.

    Pork Month                                           The delicious aroma of grilling pork loin filled the streets of
                                               downtown Lansing as the pork association staff grilled dinner from the

     by Serving                                National Pork We CareSM trailer on Michigan Avenue. MPPA staff also had
                                               the opportunity to serve dinner at the men’s shelter, distributing nearly
                                               100 meals there. More than 50 meals were also delivered to the women’s
       Dinner at                               shelter to be served by volunteers.

    City Rescue                                   Men, women and children were served pork loin sandwiches, which were
                                               donated by MPPA. The meals also included buns, potato chips, apples, milk
                                               and salads which were donated by the Michigan Wheat Program, Michigan
      Mission in                               Potato Industry Commission, Michigan Apple Committee and United Dairy
                                               Industry of Michigan.
        Lansing                                  October originally became known as National Pork Month because it
                                               marked the time of year when hogs were traditionally harvested. Today, it
                                               serves as a time to celebrate and thank pig farmers and share their stories
                                               with consumers.
      By: Emily Schmitt                           To find out more about pig farming, visit realpigfarming.com. For more
                                               information on the City Rescue Mission of Lansing, visit
          MPPA PROGRAM                         www.bearescuer.org.

               DIRECTOR

         Pictured at right, MPPA CEO Mary
           Kelpinski, MPPA Board Member
             Ryan Hunter of Vicksburg, MI,
              his daughter, Kyla and MPPA
           Program Director Emily Schmitt
         gather at the City Rescue Mission
                 of Lansing to serve dinner.

     Page 4                                                                     Michigan Pork Producers Association

Nov20magazine2.indd 4                                                                                               11/9/2020 3:15:09 PM
MICHIGAN - Michigan Pork Producers Association
Pictured above, the National Pork We CareSM trailer
                                                   sits on Michigan Avenue in downtown Lansing. At left,
                                                    Mary, Kyla, Ryan and Emily stand near the pork trailer
                                                     before grilling pork loins for the City Rescue Mission
                                                     of Lansing. At bottom left, National Pork Board staff
                                                          member Glen Roest grills pork loins for dinner. ,

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                            (517) 937-5568 (mobile)
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     2020, VOL. 45, NO. 3                                                                           Page 5

Nov20magazine2.indd 5                                                                               11/9/2020 3:15:10 PM
MICHIGAN - Michigan Pork Producers Association
President’s Page

                            “Happy to see 2020 come to a close”

                            H
                                           ello all. As always, I hope this issue finds all of you, your
                                           families, and farms safe and healthy. And again, I will time
                                           stamp this article. I am writing this on November 1st. Ten
                                           months of the year 2020 are behind us. In our area the
                                           harvest has been moving along at a good pace. Hog prices
                            have been much higher than most of us expected they would be at this
                            point in the year. While 2020 has brought its share of surprises and
                            disappointments, the move higher in pork prices this fall has been a very
                            welcome one. Much like hog prices, commodity prices in general have not
                            followed the usual fall decline. While all of us may view this development
                            differently, my opinion is that it has been an overall positive development
                            for those in the agriculture business.
                               By the time you read this, election day will be behind us. I hope, and
                            pray, that by the time you read this, we know what the outcome is! While
                            I am not very good at predictions, I do know one thing for sure...
                            Regardless of the outcome, the men and women of American
                            agriculture, particularly those of us involved in producing pork, will
                            rise early November 4th and each day after, and continue our work,
                            producing a safe and nutritious product. Just as we do everyday.
                              And while you are doing that, know your organization is here for you.
                            MPPA works with politicians, bureaucrats, and activist groups that affect
                            your livelihood to educate and show them what you do everyday to feed
         By: Pat Albright   the world. I want to take this opportunity to thank Mary and Emily for
        MPPA PRESIDENT      “holding down the fort” during these past months. They are working
                            everyday to promote our product, and to advocate on our behalf.
                               Soon, the holiday season will be upon us. While we all have had plenty
                            of disappointment to deal with this year, I hope all of you are able to in at
                            least some way, spend some time with those that are important to you,
                            and relish those relationships.

                                                                      Denny Thelen, Regional Sales Manager
                                                                      Call: (989) 640-1091
                                                                      Email: dthelen@uproducers.com
                                         Fowler, Mich.                Web: www.uproducers.com

     Page 6                                                   Michigan Pork Producers Association

Nov20magazine2.indd 6                                                                                 11/9/2020 3:15:15 PM
MICHIGAN - Michigan Pork Producers Association
MPPA Cancels 2021 Pork Expo

      M
                     ichigan Pork                Due to complications from the         offers a tradeshow and education
                     Producers                COVID-19 pandemic, the MPPA              seminars designed for pig farmers
                     Association regrets      board of directors has decided           and pork industry stakeholders. We
                     to announce that         to cancel the 2021 show, which is        apologize for the inconvenience and
                     the 2021 Michigan        usually held at the Lansing Center       hope you can join us in February
      Pork Expo has been cancelled.           in February. The expo usually            2022 for our next pork expo!

      Lois Britt Memorial Pork Industry Scholarship

      T
                   he National Pork           Lifetime Achievement Award as            to ten $2,500 scholarships.
                   Producers Council is       some of her many achievements.
                                                                                          Ten $2,500 scholarships are
                   pleased to announce
                                                 With the marking of the 50th          awarded to students annually
                   the 2021 Lois Britt
                                              anniversary of the Live Hog futures      who intend to pursue a career in
                   Memorial Pork Industry
                                              in 2015, the number of scholarships      the pork industry with hopes that
      Scholarship is now accepting
                                              awarded annually was raised              they may emerge as future pork
      applications.
                                              from four to five. In 2017, the           industry leaders themselves.
         The scholarship program was          National Pork Industry Foundation
                                                                                          Details can be found online
      introduced in 1990 by CME Group,        became another sponsor of the
                                                                                       at http://nppc.org/programs/
      Inc. and NPPC to celebrate the 25th     Lois Britt Scholarship so we could
                                                                                       scholarships/. Applications
      anniversary of the CME Live Hog         double the scholarships from five
                                                                                       are due Jan. 4, 2021.
      futures. Four $2,500 scholarships
      were created to rewarded students
      who intended to pursue a career
      in the pork industry with hopes
      they emerge as pork industry
                                                          Customized Nutrition
      leaders themselves someday.                                  that Works for you!
         The scholarship was renamed
      in 2006 to honor the passing
      of NPPC Board of Director Lois
      Britt. Britt, a lifetime supporter of
      agriculture, spent 34 years with                                                          • Net Energy Formulation
      the North Carolina Cooperative
                                                                                                • Supplemental Enzymes
      Extension Service, finishing
                                                                                                  • Crystalline Amino Acids
      out her career for 15 years with
      Murphy-Brown LLC (Smithfield)                                                                   • Best-Cost Formulation
                                                  10015 Pierce St, Zeeland, Michigan
      doing Public and Government                 Ben Kamp (616) 291-3697
      Relations. She was inducted into
      the NPPC Pork Industry Hall of                                                                             Certified Distributor for:

      Fame, the N.C. Pork Council Hall of
      Fame, and awarded the N.C. 4-H

     2020, VOL. 45, NO. 3                                                                                                    Page 7

Nov20magazine2.indd 7                                                                                                        11/9/2020 3:15:15 PM
MICHIGAN - Michigan Pork Producers Association
Across My Desk

                                                        “Lessons Learned”

                                     I
                                           think everyone would agree, we have had enough of 2020. COVID-19
                                           has made life difficult for everyone especially pork producers. Plant
                                           closures in the spring and reductions in the food service industry have
                                           made it hard to secure a profit for pigs going to market.
                                              As gut wrenching as COVID-19 has been, let me try to shine some
                                     light on positives that have come out of this troubling time.
                                        COVID-19 caused disruptions in pork processing due to workers being
                                     concerned about catching the virus and disruptions at home. When
                                     processing plants started to reduce capacity or close completely, some
                                     farmers found themselves with too many pigs and no place to market them.
                                     I was amazed at the ingenuity and creativity of producers in Michigan. The
                                     farmers I talked to were all able to slow their pigs down by switching diets
                                     or find additional barn space to accommodate hogs until the plants could
                                     take them.
                                        Fortunately, this supply chain
                                     interruption was a result of               Plant closures in
                                     COVID-19 and not a foreign animal
                                     disease (FAD). If the U.S. broke with
                                                                                 the spring and
                                     a FAD, we would likely be unable             reductions in
                                     to export our product. With over
                                     25 percent of the pork we raise            the food service
                                     currently headed to other countries,
                                     that would be a lot of pork for us to
                                                                                  industry have
      By: Mary Kelpinski             consume.                                   made it hard to
                        MPPA CHIEF      For the past several years, we           secure a profit
                         EXECUTIVE   have been encouraging producers
                           OFFICER   to develop a Secure Pork Plan.              for pigs going
                                     We have held several meetings
                                     and participated in drills trying to           to market.
                                     prepare for the worst. COVID-19 has
                                     really helped us to make progress on

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     Page 8                                                            Michigan Pork Producers Association

Nov20magazine2.indd 8                                                                                     11/9/2020 3:15:17 PM
MICHIGAN - Michigan Pork Producers Association
several areas of that plan.             real-time disease status to help        Department of Agriculture
                                              facilitate disease trace-back and pig   and Rural Development; the
         We realized very quickly that
                                              movement among its users.               Department of Environment, Great
      USDA Veterinary Services were not
                                                                                      Lakes and Energy; and the Natural
      prepared with much equipment               With enough voluntary
                                                                                      Resources Conservation Service
      to help in case of an emergency.        participants, it will help the
                                                                                      to name a few. We spent many
      Not only were they short on             pork industry rapidly contain or
                                                                                      hours discussing different options
      supplies, they were also short on       regionalize a FAD outbreak to
                                                                                      for producers and some of the
      recommendations. There was not a        restore safe pork exports and get
                                                                                      challenges they might face.
      lot of research on the pork side to     business back as close to normal as
      help with mass depopulation.            possible more quickly.                     I think Michigan has survived
                                                                                      better than some other states.
          The National Pork Board made           AgView will be available to
                                                                                      We were fortunate to have a
      that research a priority and has        producers in November. To learn
                                                                                      large processing plant in the state
      worked with state associations and      more about this no-cost program
                                                                                      that was able to stay open and
      universities to develop equipment       visit pork.org/agview/.
                                                                                      continue to process hogs. We are
      and guidelines that will be available
                                                 Another positive that I quickly      also fortunate for all the small
      if needed.
                                              realize during this whole event         processors the worked extra hours
         We also realized we needed           is our ability to work together         to help with backed up hogs.
      more research on disposal sites.        as a state. I was impressed how
                                                                                         Normal is a distant memory but
      Since this was not a FAD, there         quickly we were able to get the
                                                                                      hopefully we have seen the worst
      were additional sites that could        right people together to work on
                                                                                      of COVID-19 and 2021 will be a
      be used, such as landfills and           finding solutions. I worked with
                                                                                      much calmer year.
      large central compositing sites. In     MSU Extension; the Michigan
      the case of a FAD, animals would
      not be able to be transported off
      the farm for disposal. Research
      is currently being done on the
      environmental impact of different
      disposal types.
         We also do not have a good
      way to identify farms. If this had
      been a FAD, all farms would have
      to be identified and control zones
      established to contain and eliminate
      the disease. We are working with
      MSU Extension on developing
      a database to help locate farms
      and have a central site for contact
      information.
         The National Pork Board has
      worked to develop AgView, a
      software program that will not only
      identify farms but also provide near

     2020, VOL. 45, NO. 3                                                                                         Page 9

Nov20magazine2.indd 9                                                                                             11/9/2020 3:15:19 PM
MICHIGAN - Michigan Pork Producers Association
MPPA now offers Virtual Swine Farm Tours

      M
                       ichigan Pork                “I believe in transparency in our         “This gives us the ability to
                       Producers                industry,” he said. “But as we have       broaden our audience,” Kevin said.
                       Association has          brought animals into confinement           “We have had legislators on the tour
                       partnered with           for their health and wellbeing, that      from all over the state without them
                       Michigan State           reduces our ability for transparency.     having to drive to a farm. People
      University to offer virtual swine         The virtual farm tours are a great        from anywhere can watch the tour
      farm tours to classrooms and other        way to educate people about where         and it is easier to work into different
      groups interested in learning about       food comes and the process of             schedules and with larger groups.
      pork production.                          raising pigs.”                            We look forward to hosting many
                                                                                          more.”
         MSU Swine Farm Manager Kevin              While the virtual tours negate
      Turner hosts the virtual farm tours       the need for visitors to follow              Virtual swine farm tours can be
      from the MSU Swine Teaching               biosecurity measures, they also           scheduled through Emily Schmitt
      and Research Farm on campus               open up tours to guests that might        at MPPA, schmitt@mipork.org or
      in East Lansing. He presents the          not live anywhere near pig farms.         517-853-3782.
      tours through Zoom, which allows
      groups or individuals to watch and
      interact with him, asking questions
      throughout the tour.
         While the COVID-19 pandemic
      has caused organizations to think
      innovatively when it comes to social
      distancing and holding in-person
      events, preventing the spread of
      disease is nothing new for the
      pork industry. Pig farmers have
      been using biosecurity practices
      for many years to help prevent the
      introduction and transmission of
      potential diseases into a swine herd.
         It is often difficult for visitors
      to enter swine farms because
      of the biosecurity measures the                      Pictured above, MSU Swine Farm Manager Kevin Turner performs his
      industry has established. Biosecurity               daily check on the pigs. The virtual swine farm tours he provides offer
      protocols could be as simple as                        viewers the chance to see the pigs at different stages of their lives.
      having staff and visitors wash
      hands, boots and equipment before
      entering a barn or as intense as
      showering before entering and prior
      to leaving the barn.
         Kevin said the virtual tours are
      a useful method to showcase the
      industry since it is often difficult to
      coordinate visitors just to enter the
      barns.

     Page 10                                                                        Michigan Pork Producers Association

Nov20magazine2.indd 10                                                                                                    11/9/2020 3:15:19 PM
Mediation: A Tool for Michigan Farmers

      T
                   he typical Michigan          Coordinator in East Lansing.         quickly and with less stress than
                   farmer’s toolkit contains                                         formal proceedings such as due
                                                  Michigan farmers considering
                   a jumble of production                                            process hearings. It helps Michigan
                                                mediation or wishing to learn more
                   and management tools.                                             farmers get back to growing food
                                                can call (800) 616-7863 or visit
                   One of those tools for                                            and fiber for the residents of
                                                www.agmediation.org. Mediation is
      farmers is the Michigan Agricultural                                           Michigan and beyond.
                                                designed to resolve disputes more
      Mediation Program (MAMP).
         With the MAMP, Michigan
      farmers have the option of                                    t
      mediating eligible disputes with                      o  ntac rk.org
                                                           C          o
      agricultural lenders, creditors or U.S.                i@  mip raffle
                                                          sk       se
      Department of Agriculture (USDA)              elpin rcha s.
                                                   K        u         t
      agencies. Mediation enables the                  to p ticke
      participants to talk informally about
      the issues and suggest solutions
      that align with the law and work
      for all concerned. A trained neutral
      mediator helps the participants
      build trust, communicate
      constructively and focus on the
      issues. The participants, not the
      mediator, make the decisions. There
      is no cost to producers for using the
      service.
         “Mediation is a great way to give
      everyone their time to be heard. It
      is a less formal way of discussing
      and educating,” according to Dr.
      Betsy Dierberger, State Resources
      Conservationist for the Natural
      Resources Conservation Service, a
      USDA agency, in East Lansing.
         The Farm Service Agency (FSA),
      another USDA agency, encourages
      farmers who have received an
      adverse determination to consider
      mediation through the MAMP.
         “While USDA program provisions
      are not subject to change through
      the mediation process per se,
      sometimes new information about
      the farm’s or farmer’s specific
      circumstances will emerge, which
      may result in a different outcome,”
      says Ken Schapman, FSA Mediation

     2020, VOL. 45, NO. 3                                                                                         Page 11

Nov20magazine2.indd 11                                                                                            11/9/2020 3:15:20 PM
MSU
                    Pork Quarterly
                                                                                 Students complete summer
                                                                                     swine experiences

                                                                                Dale Rozeboom, Michigan State University
                                                                                      Professor, rozeboom@msu.edu,
                                                                                 Kevin Turner, MSU Swine Farm Manager,
            Information for an Industry on the Move                                         turner67@msu.edu,
                                                                                 Christopher Rozeboom, MSU Operations
                         November 2020                      Vol. 25 No. 3             Supervisor, rozeboo4@msu.edu

                                                                               The purpose of this article is to highlight MSU
      In This Issue...                                                      students who worked on swine farms this past summer,
                                                                            to share that MSU is committed to helping students
                                                                            arrange summer internships and other work experience
                 1 Students Complete                                        opportunities, and to help farms find future employees.
                   Summer Swine                                                Summer work experiences for MSU students continue
                   Experiences                                              to be valued by both students and the employers for
                                                                            whom they work. These experiences may be internship
                                                                            for credit at MSU or they can be summer employment
                                                                            without MSU connection. The two most significant
                3 How did COVID-19 and                                      benefits of these work experiences are the knowledge
                  Industry Disruption                                       gained by the student about modern pork production
                  Accelerate Michigan’s                                     and the opportunity of the employer to source a
                                                                            potential future employee.
                  Secuure Pork Supply
                  Preparedness?                                                Arrangements for a summer internship or
                                                                            employment come about in several ways. A student
                                                                            may have worked previously on a farm when in FFA
                                                                            or 4-H. The employer and student may have met 8
                6 The New Michigan Manure                                   to 9 months in advance of the summer (prior fall)
                  Hauler Certification                                       at a Career Fair hosted by the student’s university.
                                                                            Postings by the employer on an online career service
                  Program is now live online!                               are frequently viewed by students, especially those
                                                                            who begin their search for an internship or summer
                           This newsle er is edited by:
                   Ronald Bates, MSU Extension Swine Specialist
                                                                            job just one or two months before summer. A summer
                         (517) 432-1387 batesr@msu.edu
                                                                            work experience could also be the result of a referral
                    & Megan Sprague, Michigan Pork Producers
                                                                            by another student or former student. And lastly, the
                                                                            advice of a MSU instructor or academic advisor, in the
                                                                            Animal Science Department or another department,
                   This newsletter is edited by:                            may be the way the student finds that summer
                                                                            internship or job.
            Casey Zangaro, MSU Extension Swine Pork
                    Team, zangaroc@msu.edu                                     In the summer of 2020, we were aware that eleven
             & Emily Schmitt MPPA, Program Director                         MSU students held summer positions on different
                                                                            farms in the U.S. Four MSU Animal Science students

     Page 1                                                                                                   MSU Pork Quarterly

Nov20magazine2.indd 02                                                                                                      11/9/2020 3:15:21 PM
registered at MSU for credited swine internships:           internship program on your farm, and about who at
      Hannah Cummings, Pipestone, MN; Tammy Kessel,               MSU can help make connections between students and
      Kalmbach, OH; Cal Mitchell, Forest Ridge Farms, MI;         farms. Regarding those connections, the authors of this
      and Veronica Polniak, H & H, MI. Internships meet the       article remain very willing to help students and farms
      experiential learning requirement of the Animal Science     arrange internships or summer employment. Feel free
      Department at MSU. Zac Hultnik also worked on a             to contact us. Dr. Jackie Jacobs is currently the official
      swine farm for MSU credit. He completed a four-week         instructor of the Animal Science Internships course, ANS
      independent study for credit with Carthage Veterinary       493. Contact Dr. Jacobs at jacob175@msu.edu. Lastly,
      Services, IL. Alli Walker and Claire Vincent followed the   Jill Cords works in the MSU College of Agriculture &
      advice of instructors at MSU while being recruited by       Natural Resources as a Career Consultant to assist
      recent MSU graduates and worked this past summer for        students and employers. She organizes career fairs
      Swartz Farms Inc., MN. Their experience did not involve     and instructs others in how to use an online internship
      credit towards their degrees at MSU. The same was true      and job posting service called Handshake. At that site,
      for five other MSU students who were employed on             students can learn of internship and job postings, and
      swine farms for the summer, four with Kalmbach in Ohio      employers can view student resumes. Registration for
      and one with H & H near Vicksburg MI.                       Handshake is at msu.joinhandshake.com. Contact Jill at
                                                                  jcords@msu.edu.
         The list above reflects the variety of ways that
      summer work experiences can be arranged. This list             Summer work experiences on swine farms help
      may be incomplete, as MSU instructors are not always        students gain practical industry experience and
      informed by the student and (or) employer of their          become better aware of future career opportunities in
      employment arrangement. The majority of work                pork production. These summer experiences help the
      experiences by MSU students on swine farms this past        swine farms get to know a potential future employee
      summer were not credited MSU internships. That is           and provide the farm additional labor during summer
      acceptable and maybe better for employers, as they          vacation time or a time focused on a project that has
      look for alternative ways to source potential employees.    needed to get done. Summer work experiences can be
                                                                  internships, but do not need to be. MSU instructors,
        The June 2017 issue of the MSU Pork Quarterly was
                                                                  academic advisors, career consultants and swine farm
      entirely about labor on the swine farm. Included was
                                                                  employees are committed to helping students and
      an excellent article about internships. Much was written
                                                                  farms obtain the best outcomes from summer work
      about the benefits of internships for both the student
                                                                  experiences.
      and the employer, about how to develop a successful

     2020, Vol. 25 No.3                                                                                            Page 2

Nov20magazine2.indd 03                                                                                              11/9/2020 3:15:21 PM
How did COVID-19 and Industry Disruption Accelerate
                     Michigan’s Secure Pork Supply Preparedness?
                                          Written by the MSU Extension Pork Team

         The year 2020 will go down in the history books,         outreach to veterinarians, development of additional
      with many farmers remembering this year as one of           mortality management options, a review of mass
      turmoil, adaptiveness and uncertainty. During the           disposal methods and increased communication
      spring months of 2020 (March through May) the pork          between state government agencies, industry
      industry was in an unprecedented situation. Pork            representatives, academia and educators. As a result
      processing plants were shut down and processing line        of the monumental loss of food, and the financial and
      capacity dropped by 25 percent as a direct result of        emotional cost to producers and consumers, Michigan’s
      employees infected with COVID-19. The limited space at      Secure Pork Supply Planning has accelerated, not due
      the processing plants caused disruption for all animal      to disease in pigs, but due to a disruption in the market
      protein industries but for the pork industry this was       of them.
      an exceedingly difficult situation, as the pork industry
                                                                     The framework for Secure Pork Supply in Michigan
      is based on a fixed (barn) space, with a calculated
                                                                  is being developed by the Michigan Department of
      flow of animals entering and exiting barns. Changes in
                                                                  Agriculture and Rural Development (MDARD) with
      flow take months of planning. When processing plants
                                                                  support from MSU Extension, USDA and Michigan Pork
      were closed, and even though farmers in the Midwest
                                                                  Producers Association (MPPA). Farmers will also need
      slowed pig growth by lowering ration protein (holding
                                                                  to develop the framework for Secure Pork Supply plans
      diets), the pigs continued to grow in limited space, and
                                                                  for their individual operations. This includes taking
      subsequently, farmers where scrambling for options.
                                                                  preparedness steps to address specific requirements
      Some farmers had no other option but to euthanize and
                                                                  that will be in plan during a foreign animal disease
      dispose of barns full of healthy hogs.
                                                                  (FAD) event. Like industry disruption, addressing
         As the industry started to wince, Michigan’s pork        disease outbreak includes focusing on preparing and
      industry farmers, MSU Extension, state government,          training the industry for the steps needed to address
      industry organizations and associated agricultural          situations, environmental impact from increased
      businesses, gathered current experiences and made           mortality and economic stability of farming operations.
      strategic preparations for disastrous disruption.
                                                                    Outreach to Veterinarians
      Farmer preparation included feeding holding diets
      and collaboratively working with other Michigan                It is understood that herd veterinarians are essential
      farmers, utilization of the local processors, and           to the operations of swine industry. They provide
      reviewing coordinated pigs flow options. In the interim,     needed oversight and direction when responding to
      stakeholders developed parallel partnerships of Secure      health issues, build biosecurity plans and provide input
      Pork Planning (SPS) to review current situations such       on daily operations. The role of the veterinarian was
      as depopulation, mortality management, and mental           apparent in guiding their producers through difficult
      well-being of farmers. Gratefully, the slaughter capacity   decisions in swine depopulation during the disruption
      in the United States returned to near normal levels by      and will be as integral during a major disease outbreak.
      May 2020.
                                                                     To this point; in the devastating event of detection
          Through industry disruption, our state saw increased    of a FAD such as African Swine Fever (ASF) or Classical

      Page 3                                                                                         MSU Pork Quarterly

Nov20magazine2.indd 04                                                                                              11/9/2020 3:15:22 PM
Swine Fever (CSF) in Michigan, it is expected that
       MDARD would require an accredited veterinarian to
       inspect a farm biosecurity plan and to provide an
       affidavit of the farm’s enhanced biosecurity plan prior
       to animal movement from the farm site.
          For clarity, an accredited veterinarian is licensed to
       provide health certificates or affidavits. However, with
       the exception of swine and poultry veterinarians, there
       are only a few, among Michigan’s 1,700 accredited
       veterinarians, trained in “enhanced biosecurity”,
       especially when contrasted against the need of more
       than 2,000 pig farms in Michigan. Therefore, it is vital
       that all accredited veterinarians, assisting farms to
       establish their enhanced biosecurity plans, have a
       fundamental understanding of critical control points to
       mitigate risk of disease entry, and a method to share
       expectations with their clients, this when combined will
       enhance the preparedness and resiliency in the State of     While the Clemens Food Group pork processing
       Michigan. For these reasons, funding was sought and         plant in Coldwater, MI did not close down during
       has been appropriated from the Michigan Veterinary          the early months of the COVID-19 pandemic,
       Medical Association’s Michigan Animal Health Fund,          many other plants like this did close, causing
       allowing the MSU Extension team with assistance
                                                                   supply chain disruptions across the country..
       from USDA and MDARD to develop a comprehensive
       Michigan enhanced biosecurity training program.
                                                                   depopulation of animals, producers need to think
          This team, led by Dr. Madonna Benjamin is                through what their disposal options are for specific
       working to provide interactive educational training         situations. The accessibility of different approved
       such that veterinarians have the opportunity to             disposal options in Michigan are dependent on the
       complete significant training in the areas of enhanced       reason for mass depopulation, with certain disease
       biosecurity, FAD response plans and the process in          outbreak situations requiring disposal on-site. With
       which affidavits will be signed to support movement         a push from industry disruption, a review of the
       of animals in outbreak areas. This type of preparation      disposal options in Michigan occurred, with specific
       will allow accredited veterinarians and farmers to have     “need-to-know” information being summarized for
       an established biosecurity plan and checklist, prior to     producers, along with the identification of potential
       a required veterinary on-site inspection. With early        pitfalls or holes that the different disposal options
       implementation of enhanced biosecurity practices,           could have. This also led to exploration of the
       there will be less room for error during an outbreak as     availability of carbon sources for composting and the
       the farm operations will be refining practices instead of    development of a network of suppliers that could be
       introducing new ones.                                       utilized if this were to occur. This work continues with
          Mortality Management                                     a combined partnership of MDARD, MPPA and MSU
                                                                   Extension continuing the exploration of the different
          Anytime an industry situation could result in mass       disposal methods.

     2020, Vol. 25 No.3                                                                                               Page 4

Nov20magazine2.indd 05                                                                                                11/9/2020 3:15:22 PM
Also, as a direct result of the COVID-19 pandemic and   for this method of disposal. Currently, operations
      supply chain disruptions that were heavily experienced     accumulating more than 20,000 pounds annually
      from March-May 2020 was the discussion regarding           are required to compost in or on a liner meeting the
      alternative disposal options. With the potential for       National Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) 313
      mass depopulations being high, options for mortality       standards. Knowing that this would be a sufficient
      disposal were being examined closely by state              method in the disruption situation or if a FAD outbreak
      regulators and educators. A newer mortality option that    were to occur, a request was made by the Michigan
      has been researched in other states was brought to the     Pork Producers Association (MPPA) to have this
      table. Mesophilic static pile composting (MSPC) is a       requirement waived for this specific emergency.
      combination of burial and static pile composting that is   Moving past the state of disruption, this request is
      an easily implemented method for producers, all while      still gathering support and has been presented to
      looking to protect the environment. More research is       governmental agencies for review, to help bolster the
      needed to see how this option would work in Michigan       mass carcass disposal plan for the state.
      as not only a potential emergency mortality option,
                                                                   Summary
      but also a normal/routine mortality management for
      Michigan producers.                                           COVID-19 and industry disruption has revealed
                                                                 the urgency for preparedness for the pork industry.
         Working together to provide more options for
                                                                 Whether the cause be disruption because of pandemic
      producers Erica Rogers (Lead), Dale Rozeboom, Steve
                                                                 situations or an outbreak of a FAD, the results and
      Safferman, Sarah Fronczak, and Sue Reamer (NRCS)
                                                                 goals are similarly aligned. Minimizing economic
      have submitted a research proposal and subsequent
                                                                 disruption and distress, as a consequence of the
      research study to examine the potential environmental
                                                                 pervasive negative effects resulting from an emerging
      and economic impacts of using MSPC as a viable
                                                                 pandemic situation and/or foreign animal disease
      mortality disposal option for Michigan farms. Outreach
                                                                 outbreak, requires strong synergies across a group of
      regarding this new mortality disposal option will
                                                                 first line personnel or ‘field partners’. These individuals,
      continue with stakeholders (like EGLE and MDARD)
                                                                 including farmers, veterinarians, veterinary students
      regarding research findings and efforts will be made to
                                                                 (through on-farm visits), transporters, and butchers
      include MSPC as a potential normal/routine mortality
                                                                 serve livestock throughout the food supply chain on
      disposal option in BODA.
                                                                 a daily basis. It is this group of individuals, along with
        As the taskforce group continued to review disposal      those working in support of the industry such as, state
      options, they recognized that composting on farms          government, industry representatives and academia,
      can be done if other, more convenient options are not      which will need to develop the needed preparedness
      available or disposal on-site is required. However, in     steps so that our state and its farmers can be best
      the case of mass disposal, limitations were identified      prepared for these types of situations.

     Page 5                                                                                          MSU Pork Quarterly

Nov20magazine2.indd 06                                                                                              11/9/2020 3:15:23 PM
The NEW Michigan Manure Hauler Certification Program is now
                            live online!
      Michigan State University Extension and Michigan Farm Bureau work together to launch
                        the Michigan Manure Hauler Certification Program

                         Erica Rogers, Michigan State University Extension Educator, rogers392@msu.edu,
                         Charles Gould, Michigan State University Extension Educator, gouldm@msu.edu

         Michigan State University
      Extension (MSUE) and Michigan
      Farm Bureau (MFB) are pleased to
      announce that the Michigan Manure
      Hauler Certification Program has
      been officially launched online.
      This program is for farm owners
      and employees as well as for-hire
      manure applicators (firms) in the
      state of Michigan. The goals of the
      program are to:
         • Prevent manure application
           problems before they occur.
         • Increase nutrient management
           plan implementation.
         • Improve professionalism among
           manure applicators.
         • Demonstrate responsible
           manure application and
                                                Manure injection into wheat stubble. (Photo credit: Charles Gould)
         • Increase the base level of
           manure management
           knowledge of all employees.          Successful completion of Level 2        are found on the front page of the
                                                retains the 5% reduction plus other     website as well as complete details
         The certification program is
                                                incentives. Successful completion       about the certification program.
      comprised of three levels. Each
                                                of Level 3 increases the insurance
      level includes manure application                                                     It is important to note that
                                                premium reduction to 10%.
      equipment inspection and ongoing                                                  if you are currently Livestock
      education. Farms and firms who                To get started, go to the Michigan   Systems verified with the Michigan
      complete Level 1 and are insured by       Manure Hauler Certification Program      Agriculture Environmental Assurance
      Michigan Farm Bureau Insurance            website, www.canr.msu.edu/              Program you have half of Level 2
      qualify for a 5% reduction on the         animal-agriculture/Manure-Hauler-       completed (the other half is the
      liability and farm personal property      Training/. Instructions on how to       manure application equipment
      sections of their insurance policy.       set up a MSU Desire2Learn account       inspection) and approximately 90%

     2020, Vol. 25 No.3                                                                                              Page 6

Nov20magazine2.indd 07                                                                                               11/9/2020 3:15:23 PM
of the Environmental Management Systems Plan for            dropped 80% in the first three years in the program in
      Level 3 completed.                                          Wisconsin. Over time, through a proven track record of
                                                                  reduced risk and safer operations, Wisconsin for-hire
          Manure Management Summit
                                                                  manure applicators have been able to increase the
         The Manure Management Summit will be held                discounts received through their program.
      annually for all levels of certification to attend. The
                                                                    Benefits of the Program
      summit will cover regulatory updates, scientific and
      research updates, as well as other related manure              The most obvious benefit is the insurance premium
      management information. Participants will be expected       reduction. Perhaps more importantly however, the
      to pass the knowledge check test at the end of the          certification program demonstrates how animal
      summit to maintain their certification.                      agriculture is working towards environmental
                                                                  sustainability. The certification program creates a more
          Economic Advantage
                                                                  positive perception of land application of manure as
         The insurance industry is willing to offer significant    well as giving an element of credibility to manure
      premium discounts to firms and farms with a properly         applicators. Finally, it fulfills a request from Michigan
      trained workforce and who follow through with               livestock producers for a list of manure applicators
      program requirements. As an example, the manure             who they can trust to apply manure responsibly and
      applicator association in Wisconsin and the University of   appropriately.
      Wisconsin-Madison Department of Extension partnered
                                                                    Questions about the Certification Program?
      with the insurance industry to create a market-based
      incentive program to encourage for-hire manure                 MSU Extension: Charles Gould at gouldm@msu.edu
      applicators to participate in a training and certification   or (616) 994-4547 or Erica Rogers at rogers392@msu.
      program. The insurance industry prefers clients who are     edu or (989) 875-5233 Ext. 5296 or Sarah Fronczak at
      proactive and are willing to reward those who go above      froncza3@msu.edu or (517) 439-9301 Ext. 315.
      and beyond the basics with significant savings on their
                                                                    Michigan Farm Bureau: Contact Tess Van Gorder (Ag
      insurance premiums. Insurance industry data showed
                                                                  Ecology Department) at tvangor@michfb.com or (517)
      that “claimable incidences” by participating applicators
                                                                  323-6711.

  Page 7
                                                                                                     MSU Pork Quarterly

Nov20magazine2.indd 08                                                                                              11/9/2020 3:15:24 PM
All comments and suggestions should be directed to the:

                                MSUPork Team
      Dale Rozeboom: Extension Specialist
      (517) 355-8398, rozeboom@msu.edu

      Madonna Benjamin: Extension Swine Vet
      (517) 614-8875, gemus@cvm.msu.edu

      Melissa Millerick-May: MSU, Division of
      Occupational and Environmental Medicine
      (517) 432-0707, melissa.may@hc.msu.edu

      Erica Rogers: Environmental Extension Educator
      (989) 875-5296, roger392@msu.edu

      Casey Zangaro: Extension Swine Educator
      (989) 875-5292, zangaro@msu.edu

                                                                                    .
      Roger Betz: Southwest District Farm Mgt.
      Finance, Cash Flow, Business Analysis

                                                                                     .
      (269) 781-0784, betz@msu.edu                                                                Alma

      Dave Thompson: Extension Swine Educator
      (269) 832-8403, davethompson729@gmail.com

      Beth Ferry: Southwest Pork Educator                                        ...         Marshall
                                                                                           Coldwater
                                                                                                     Lansing

                                                                                     Berrien Springs
      Management, Quality Assurance Programs
      (269) 876-2745, franzeli@msu.edu

                                Want to stay updated on various MSU Extension topics? Sign up for news digests online!
          Sign Up for        Visit bit.ly/MSUENews, and follow the prompts to get customized email digests. Digests
        the Latest           are electronic newsletters of recent articles published on the MSU Extension website. You
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                                                                                                               Page 8
     2020, Vol. 25 No.3

Nov20magazine2.indd 09                                                                                           11/9/2020 3:15:24 PM
Capital
                                                      Update                 All activities reported under this heading
                                                                             are financed by non-checkoff funds.e

      NPPC PETITION LEADS TO U.S.                                  affordable pork to more than 100 countries annually,
                                                                   unjustified restrictions have kept U.S. pork locked out
      TRADE SANCTIONS AGAINST
                                                                   of Thailand’s large market.
      THAILAND
                                                                   NPPC OUTLINES U.S. PORK EXPORT
      The U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) recently
      announced it is suspending $817 million in trade
                                                                   BARRIERS
      preferences for Thailand under the Generalized System        NPPC recently provided comments to the Office of
      of Preferences (GSP) program because the country             the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) on significant
      hasn’t made sufficient progress providing the United         barriers that U.S. pork exports face in various countries.
      States with “equitable and reasonable market access”         “The United States is the top global exporter of pork,
      for pork products. The decision follows a 2018 petition      shipping nearly 2.6 million metric tons, valued at over
      by the National Pork Producers Council (NPPC) asking         $6.9 billion to more than 100 nations in 2019. Gaining
      the USTR to review Thailand’s eligibility for the GSP        and expanding access to markets around the world is
                                                                   paramount to the continued success of the U.S. pork
      program, one that offers duty-free treatment to certain      industry,” NPPC wrote in its comments. Among the
      goods entering the United States.                            trade barriers outlined in the comments, Brazil has
      “For years, Thailand has taken full advantage of special     a de facto ban on U.S. pork that lacks any scientific
                                                                   justification and must be eliminated, U.S. pork exports
      U.S. trade benefits, while imposing a completely              to China face a 33 percent tariff and India remove its
      unjustified de facto ban on U.S. pork. This is hardly a       de facto ban on U.S. pork and pork products. USTR
      reciprocal trading relationship,” said NPPC President        is compiling comments as it begins drafting its 2021
      Howard “AV” Roth, a hog farmer from Wauzeka,                 National Trade Estimates Report on Foreign Trade
      Wisconsin. “We thank the administration for taking           Barriers.
      this action and hope it results in fair access to the Thai
      market for U.S. hog farmers.”                                U.S., U.K. BEGIN FIFTH ROUND OF
      The United States is Thailand’s number one export
                                                                   TRADE TALKS
      market, with almost $4 billion of products annually sent     The U.S. and the U.K. began recently their fifth round
      to America under the GSP. Yet Thailand maintains a           of trade talks in the hopes of soon completing a deal.
      de facto ban on U.S. pork imports through high tariffs       “We’re intensifying negotiations, so we’re in a good
      and several non-tariffs barriers. Thailand does not          position to move forward after the U.S. election,” British
      accept uncooked pork and pork offal from the United          Trade Minister Liz Truss wrote on Twitter. “These things
      States, and it rarely, if ever, grants import licenses for   take time…but we are making great headway and we
      U.S. pork. Even if such permits are granted, Thailand        have got 30-some groups negotiating and negotiating
                                                                   bitterly right now,” U.S. Trade Representative Robert
      imposes a fee for imported pork equal to about $220
                                                                   Lighthizer told the Atlantic Future Forum this week.
      per metric ton compared with $7.50 per metric ton for        In October 2018, the Trump administration first
      domestically produced pork.                                  announced its intention to negotiate a trade agreement
                                                                   with the U.K. NPPC is supportive of negotiations,
      While the United States ships high-quality, safe and
                                                                   provided the agreement eliminates tariff and non-tariff

     Page 12                                                                     Michigan Pork Producers Association

Nov20magazine2.indd 12                                                                                               11/9/2020 3:15:25 PM
trade barriers on pork, the U.K. acknowledges meat         disease prevention programs. U.S. Bureau of Customs
      industry standards as equivalent and they agree to         and Border Protection agriculture inspections at U.S.
      import product from all federally inspected facilities.    ports of entry are funded by Agricultural Quarantine
                                                                 Inspection (AQI) program user fees. Due to the
      NPPC HOSTS LEGISLATIVE ACTION                              COVID-related economic downturn and significant
      CONFERENCE; COVID RELIEF,                                  reductions in travel, collection of these user fees has
      FOREIGN ANIMAL DISEASE                                     dropped precipitously.
      PREVENTION AMONG TOP ISSUES                                   “Without a prompt resolution, there will be an
                                                                 estimated $630 million shortfall in AQI funding through
      A COVID-relief package that includes much-needed
      assistance to hog farmers in crisis and foreign animal     the end of fiscal year 2021. It is imperative that this
      disease prevention top the list of five critical issues     funding shortfall be addressed to protect the U.S. swine
      at the National Pork Producers Council’s (NPPC)            herd and all of agriculture from foreign animal and plant
      Legislative Action Conference (LAC). Pork producers        diseases,” Roth added.
      from across the country gathered virtually to address
      these and other issues with lawmakers. Among LAC              Additionally, NPPC is advocating for a COVID
      speakers were House Agriculture Committee Chairman         assistance package that includes the following
      Collin Peterson (D-Minn.), Rep. Ron Kind (D-Wis.), Rep.    provisions: 1) compensation for euthanized and
      David Rouzer (R-N.C.), and USDA’s Animal and Plant         donated hogs; 2) additional funding for animal health
      Health Inspection Service Chief Veterinary Officer Dr.     surveillance and laboratories, which have appropriately
      Burke Healey.                                              assisted and shared resources with their public health
                                                                 partners; 3) modification of the Commodity Credit
         “The considerable economic contributions of a
                                                                 Corporation charter so a pandemic-driven national
      highly competitive, innovative U.S. pork production
                                                                 emergency qualifies for funding; 4) additional funds for
      system, as well as the livelihoods of thousands of
                                                                 direct payments to producers without restriction and;
      hog farmers, are at risk without effective solutions
                                                                 5) extension of the Paycheck Protection Program with
      to multiple challenges facing our producers,” said
                                                                 modifications to make it accessible to more producers.
      NPPC President Howard “AV” Roth, a hog farmer
      from Wauzeka, Wis. “U.S. pork producers are already           NPPC’s members also addressed these priorities with
      suffering considerable losses due to the impact of         lawmakers during LAC:
      the COVID-19 pandemic, and cannot afford another
                                                                   •   A U.S.-U.K. free trade agreement that eliminates
      catastrophic blow should African swine fever (ASF) or
                                                                       all tariff and non-tariff barriers;
      other foreign animal diseases enter our country.”
                                                                   •   Moving regulatory oversight of gene editing
         Germany recently reported its first case of ASF in a
                                                                       in animals from the U.S. Food and Drug
      wild boar. The swine-only disease continues to spread
                                                                       Administration to the U.S. Department of
      in parts of Europe and Asia, and the United States
                                                                       Agriculture; and
      needs to remain vigilant to ensure ASF and other
      animal and plant diseases don’t enter the country.           •   Timely reauthorization of the Livestock
                                                                       Mandatory Reporting Act, set to expire on Sept.
          NPPC is urging Congress to fully fund foreign animal
                                                                       30.

     2020, VOL. 45, NO. 3                                                                                         Page 13

Nov20magazine2.indd 13                                                                                            11/9/2020 3:15:25 PM
Pork
                                                       Checkoff                   Reports on checkoff-funded
                                                                                  promotion, research and consumer
                                                                                  information programs.

      NATIONAL PORK BOARD LAUNCHES                                   can feel good about feeding their family – will be a
      REAL PORK                                                      critical part of how Real Pork comes to life.
                                                                        The first introduction of Real Pork to consumers
         In an environment where shoppers continually                came this September, and focuses on “Pork as
      question what brands and products they can trust.              a Passport,” which celebrates pork’s position as
      Where increasingly diverse consumers seek to connect           a culturally relevant protein around the world. It
      with the familiar flavors of their heritage. And home           encourages small adventures for weary quarantine
      cooks are weary – both from meal preparation and an            cooks by showcasing delicious pork dishes from next
      inability to travel to other cities, states and countries to   door and across the globe.
      experience authentic flavors. The National Pork Board is
      helping America wake up and get real.                             Pork as a Passport will help consumers travel through
                                                                     their taste buds via inspiration that will be found in
        Through its new master-brand strategy, the Pork              digital, social media, video, and a new landing page
      Board invites consumers to experience the authenticity,        at www.pork.org/realpork. A few examples of planned
      flavor and ability to bring people together that Real           activities include:
      Pork provides.
                                                                       •   Matching pig farmers with global chefs to
         “Real Pork not only celebrates the authentic flavors               connect over pork product
      of pork, it encompasses the values and beliefs of the
      pork industry from farm to fork,” said Angie Krieger,            •   Highlighting globally-inspired pork recipes with
      vice president of domestic marketing at the Pork                     modern photography
      Board. “Our work began on this master-brand strategy             •   Engaging a family psychologist to provide insight
      before the coronavirus appeared the United States, but               about the importance of family meals
      the shift in buying and cooking habits the pandemic
      created certainly accelerated our efforts. Six months in,        •   Sharing information on global recipes and flavors
      consumers are weary of meal preparation, they want                   using pork through social media influencers
      new experiences and to travel.”                                  •   Connecting U.S. chefs with international chefs to
        During the pandemic, retail sales of pork have                     cook and together, create rich sharable videos
      surged as consumers are cooking more at home,                        for online and social media
      purchasing different products than they normally do              •   Highlighting pork in the most authentic, real and
      and experimenting with new recipes. Supported by                     delicious way possible, through street food in a
      extensive consumer research, Real Pork aims to not                   multicultural effort called Menu Urbano
      only sustain the growth from pandemic purchasing but
      extend it long term by highlighting pork’s advantages.            As activities come to life, they will be posted on the
                                                                     new landing page, www.pork.org/realpork and the
        Those advantages begin in the barn, so telling the           National Pork Board Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and
      authentic stories of pig farmers and pig farms – and           Pinterest accounts.
      how pork’s sustainability creates a protein consumers

     Page 14                                                                       Michigan Pork Producers Association

Nov20magazine2.indd 14                                                                                                  11/9/2020 3:15:25 PM
NEW REPORT: PORK INDUSTRY                                   farms daily.”
      MAKES GAINS IN SUSTAINABILITY                                 When producers are looking at benchmarking and at
                                                                  ways to improve, Ketchem offers these rules of thumb:
         As America’s pig farmers continue to fight back
      from the negative impact of COVID-19 and the ups               Farrowing rate: A 1% change in farrowing rate equals
      and downs of markets and bad weather, a new study           a 0.34 pig increase or decrease in pigs weaned/mated
      released by the National Pork Board, Production             female/year. Example: A change of 4% in farrowing rate
      Analysis Summary for U.S. Pork Industry: 2017-2019,         equals an increase or decrease of 1.36 pigs weaned/
      shows that America’s pig farmers continue to make           mated female/year.
      strides in overall sustainability by being more efficient     Piglet survival: Based on 15 total pigs born per litter, a
      every day.                                                  change of 1% in piglet survival equals a 0.36 increase or
         The 15-page report, prepared by Minnesota-based          decrease in pigs weaned/mated female/year. Example:
      MetaFarms and its subsidiary SMS (Swine Management          A change of 4% piglet survival equals an increase or
      Services), looked at sow, nursery, finish and                decrease of 1.44 pigs weaned/mated female/year.
      wean-to-finish data over a three-year period. The results      Female death loss: A 1% change in female death loss
      reconfirmed long-term trends of increasing efficiency,       equals a 0.25 pig increase or decrease in pigs weaned/
      which has the additional benefit of reducing production      mated female/year. Example: A change of 4% in female
      costs – an especially welcome conclusion in 2020.           death loss equals an increase or decrease of one pig
         “One of the greatest benefits of this Pork                weaned/mated female/year.
      Checkoff-funded study is the benchmarking ability it           Key productivity indexes (KPIs) are used throughout
      offers producers who always want to improve their           the analysis of sow, nursery, finish and wean-to-finish
      efficiencies,” said Chris Hostetler, animal science         data to draw attention to specific areas of focus within
      director for the Pork Board. “It’s also a great way to      production stages. The retrospective study, the eighth
      show today’s consumers that America’s pig farms are         of its kind funded by the Pork Checkoff since 2011,
      becoming more efficient all the time and that pork          breaks the KPIs into a month-to-month format to show
      is a sustainable choice when it comes to choosing a         the effects of seasonality on the data. The findings also
      protein.”                                                   identify possible improvements in genetics, nutrition,
        Brad Eckberg of MetaFarms and Ron Ketchem of              health, management practices, among other areas.
      SMS, helped analyze much of the data in the study.              According to Hostetler, the goal of the study’s
         “The ability to benchmark allows producers to            production analysis is to aid the pork industry in
      compare their production numbers to other farms and         improving profitability, which has to be part of the
      systems, regardless of what record program they are         sustainability equation. “We hope that producers will
      using, what genetics they have or their farm size,” said    dig into the specific parts of this study and use it to
      Ketchem, a longtime industry number cruncher. He            help improve their own farm businesses,” he said.
      continues to be surprised by the increasing range of        “If you’re happy with your numbers in one area of
      production numbers between farms year after year.           production, look at another area and see where more
                                                                  progress can be made. It’s all about getting a little
        “Every year, more variation occurs with new highs         better every day.”
      and lows being set,” he said. “This shows the impact in
      genetics and the ability of producers to manage their         Visit pork.org/news/new-report-pork-industry-
                                                                  makes-gains-sustainability/ to view the study.

     2020, VOL. 45, NO. 3                                                                                            Page 15

Nov20magazine2.indd 15                                                                                               11/9/2020 3:15:26 PM
Michigan county preserves acres from development
      The Kruithoff family permanently protected 148 acres of their land in Ottawa County.

     T
                         he Kruithoff family has raised hogs, beef
                         cattle and crops in Kent and Ottawa
                         counties in Michigan for 50 years.
                      Tim Kruithoff started farming with his
                   father 29 years ago. He is joined by his
     wife, Christine, and two of their three children also farm
     full time with them. And now the Kruithoffs have made
     certain their grandchildren, great-grandchildren and
     beyond will have that same opportunity.
       Tim Kruithoff also serves as a board member for the
     Michigan Pork Producers Association.
        On July 27, they permanently protected 148 acres
     from development in Wright and Chester townships in
     Ottawa County.
        The Kruithoffs are the third multigenerational farming
     family to protect their land through Ottawa County’s
     Purchase of Development Rights program. This program
     uses a combination of state or federal grant funding,              KRUITHOFF FAMILY: Three generations of the Kruithoff
     private donations and landowner contributions to                   family celebrate protecting 148 acres of their farmland.
     purchase the development rights to farmland, creating
     a permanent agricultural conservation easement. The
     Kruithoff easement brings the total number of acres             strengthen the program by addressing beginner farmer
     protected by the PDR program to 238.                            needs, increasing succession planning efforts and
                                                                     employing numerous other programmatic efforts.
        “Preserving farmland with Ottawa County ensures
     land protection and local food security for generations,”          These efforts have been noticed, landing Ottawa
     says Becky Huttenga, Ottawa County economic                     County on the National Agricultural Land Network’s
     development coordinator. “And the COVID-19 pandemic             Advisory Committee. The National Agricultural Land
     has underscored the importance of local food supply             Network is an initiative of American Farmland Trust
     chains. In the face of crises, we need our farms.”              and strives to further strengthen the collective capacity
                                                                     of public agencies, planning entities and land trusts
        In August, with the help of a grant from the Michigan        working to protect agricultural land.
     Agriculture Preservation Fund, the county added
     a 168-acre parcel to its list of protected farms. To              “Ottawa County’s continued success in farmland
     better visualize the program’s expanding collection of          preservation is a testament to the strength of its PDR
     protected agricultural land, the county has created a           program and understanding the needs of farmers in the
     virtual tour at https://storymaps.arcgis.com.                   county,” says Cris Coffin, AFT’s National Agricultural
                                                                     Land Network director and senior policy adviser.
        Ottawa County’s farmland protection program
     is about more than just permanently protecting                    This article was originally published by Michigan
     acreage. The county’s farmland preservation specialists         Farmer.

     Page 16                                                                       Michigan Pork Producers Association

Nov20magazine2.indd 16                                                                                                  11/9/2020 3:15:26 PM
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