College educated Arianna Martinez traveled from her home in Xalapa, Veracruz, Mexico to the United States in search of new opportunities. She found her future caring for pigs at The Maschhoffs’ facility in Holbrook, Nebraska.
“I pursued my studies in agricultural engineering at the Universidad Veracruzana and never really thought I would work with animals,” Martinez says. “Pigs are very intelligent, very playful animals and I really like working with pigs.”
Four years after migrating to the U.S., Martinez leads the farrowing team for The Maschhoffs’ Holbrook Farrowing farm.
“The most important job we all have is animal care. Our goal is to produce more, but our priority is to keep the animals healthy and make sure they have what they need,” she says. “We keep our animals in the best possible conditions. To achieve this, we make sure that the pigs have good ventilation and heating, food, water, dry soil and that their piglets are well fed.”
As a team leader Martinez’s day starts before the sun rises, at about 4:30 a.m. She begins her day by organizing her team members, assigning tasks for the day and providing support as needed. Each day is different, but what remains a constant is the way Martinez leads by example.
“I do a little bit of everything, including washing the rooms,” she says. “I love making decisions and organizing people and what excites me most about this job is that we continue learning.”
While she stresses team unity, Martinez understands that each team member brings unique skills and strengths to the task of raising healthy pigs.
“When I started to work with pigs, as a woman, I felt a little inefficient because I did not have the strength. The work was a little heavy, but little by little, I learned techniques and realized that maybe it is not necessary to be a very strong person. You just need to know how to do things,” Martinez says.
What is important, Martinez says, is that teammates are recognized for what they do well and are motivated by praise when it is earned.
“Some of us are more skilled in certain areas than others, but I believe that being a woman does not impede performing any task that a man can do,” she says.
A home away from home
Many members of Martinez’s team are also of Hispanic descent.
“The Hispanic community has been growing,” she says. “We arrive here alone but meet people who are from our state, from our city and even colleagues from the same university. That makes it a little more comfortable for us because it is very difficult to live in a country where you do not speak the language and you do not know anyone.”
Working with people from similar backgrounds who speak the same language makes Martinez feel more at home in the pig barns of Nebraska.
“It’s more enjoyable because you can talk, joke and understand each other,” Martinez says. “Having a Hispanic community here makes us feel less alone while we are working hard to achieve our goals and keep the pigs healthy.”
To learn more about how Zoetis can help your farm advance pig health through personalized care, visit https://www.zoetisus.com/pork/heritage-feeds-tomorrow.
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