Although this wasn’t Lori Stevermer’s first Legislative Action Conference (LAC) in Washington, D.C., she says it was certainly a memorable one. Pork producers from 21 states gathered to call on Congress to deliver an urgent legislative fix to California’s Proposition 12 in Farm Bill 2.0, to open up trade access and to discuss the Make America Healthy Again (MAHA) report.
“I always leave our legislative action conferences energized,” says Stevermer, National Pork Producers Council (NPPC) immediate past president and a Minnesota pig farmer. “It’s great to see all the producers fly in from all the states. They’re eager and excited to go talk to their legislators.”
She says this was one of the largest conferences she remembers with 24 first-timers in attendance. The feedback was positive overall. She credits this to the state of the pork industry with many producers seeing some profitability now.
Farm Bill 2.0 was a key point of emphasis in conversations between producers and legislative staff.
“We had a variety of responses,” Stevermer notes. “The Republicans are generally optimistic that a Farm Bill 2.0 will happen. Chairman Thompson is still very much advocating for it. From our Democratic members of Congress, the response was more varied. Some are cautiously optimistic something could happen yet this fall and some are less optimistic.”
With pork exports down slightly this year, she says retaliatory tariffs were also a big topic of conversation.
“Some countries are up, but exports to some of our long-time trading partners like Japan and South Korea are down,” Stevermer says. “That’s concerning. We are always asking for market access and new market access.”
MAHA on the Mind
Other topics including U.S.-Mexico-Canada-Agreement (USMCA) being up for renewal in 2026 and labor shortages with a request for labor reform legislation that provides year-round access to the H2-A visas were also discussed. Stevermer says producers also engaged in many conversations about MAHA throughout the fly-in.
“As pork producers, the definition of ultra processed foods is on our mind,” she says. “If bacon and sausages are classified as ultra-processed foods, that could hurt that breakfast food market.”
Of course, she loves the fact that protein is having a moment. It’s a nuanced topic, she admits. When it comes to wholesome, nutrient-dense proteins, pork and beef win.
“We’ll lean into that,” Stevermer says. “But if you read through that report a little bit further, there’s some discussion on moving from a risk-based science that we here do in the U.S. to more of a hazard-based science. When we started explaining these concerns, the legislators and staff did sit up and take notice.”
Bacon-Lined Walls and Food Trucks
NPPC also hosted its popular Baconfest reception, which brought together congressional leaders, staff and industry stakeholders to celebrate America’s pork producers and showcase the vital role pork plays on dinner plates across America.
With close to 1,000 people attending the event held at the Library of Congress Thomas Jefferson Building, Stevermer says it was an awesome showcase of bacon and pork.
“It’s always great to see what the chefs come up with,” she says. “But the best part was hearing staffers say, ‘I hear a lot about Baconfest. I want to be there.’ I think the event generates a lot of positivity and awareness for pork. Plus, it gives us another chance to talk to those members of Congress or their staff.”
NPPC also rolled out a food truck on Capitol Hill, serving breakfast to lawmakers, staff and media. Branded with the message “Breakfast is Essential. So is Fixing Prop 12,” the truck spotlighted how a patchwork of state laws, spurred by Prop 12, threatens affordable access to everyday staples like bacon, ham and sausage.
“America’s pork producers take pride in providing safe, nutritious, and affordable pork to families across the country,” NPPC president Duane Stateler, an Ohio pork producer says. “The patchwork of laws set in motion by California’s Proposition 12 threatens our mission by raising prices for consumers, reducing choices, and putting thousands of family farms at risk. Congress must act now to ensure a patchwork of regulations does not further threaten this industry we have worked so hard to build.”
