Purchase Moore Hamann Bacon. You may have heard the phrase and seen the videos. On the third episode of The PORK Podcast, hosted by Farm Journal’s PORK editor, Jennifer Shike, you’ll hear a little more about how a play on words and a viral photo turned into a successful campaign promoting the Iowa pork industry.
Iowa State University (ISU) linebacker Caleb Bacon and Iowa Pork Producers Association’s Communications Director Kevin Hall joined Shike to discuss football, all things pork and how the industry used this opportunity to promote pork while giving back to local communities through pork donations.
Bacon, who hails from rural Lake Mills, Iowa, says he always wanted to play for Iowa State and walked on to the team and played as a linebacker in 2023. Unfortunately he was injured at the beginning of the 2024 season, but is on the mend and continues to serve as a team leader.
“It’s definitely different leading when you’re injured, but it’s still just being there for your teammates, not treating it any different than if you’re playing right now,” Bacon says. “They respect the leaders. You give them respect back and it all meshes together.”
Working with the players has been a great experience, Hall says.
“They’ve been great ambassadors for the pork industry, as well as great ambassadors for Iowa State University, and really the whole state of Iowa,” he shares.
Producers have been pleased with the campaign as it’s been a fun and out-of-the-box way to bring pork to the minds of consumers.
“It’s been a joy to see the ‘Purchase Moore Hamann Bacon’ campaign go viral and touch people across our state and country,” Trish Cook, a pig farmer from Winthrop, Iowa, told Shike before the podcast. “It has put smiles on producers’ faces to see such a creative way to showcase our products.”
A partnership with Hy-Vee grocery stores has also been an added element to this year’s campaign, Hall notes.
“This year we’re going to be able to track it better and get some results back from Hy-Vee on how much pork they are able to sell during this fall tailgating season,” Hall says.
One of Bacon’s favorite parts of the campaign has been the creativity of joining with his teammates to make the videos. He also enjoyed being able to visit his hometown to present $1,000 worth of pork to the local food bank.
“To see some of the people at the food bank light up, it was really cool,” he says. “That $1,000 definitely made an impact.”
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