The National Pork Industry Forum (Forum) kicked off on Wednesday in Orlando, Fla. Admittedly the scenery of sunny Florida in March is a beautiful sight for producers – but National Pork Producers Council CEO Bryan Humphreys says the forum in itself is a beautiful concept, too.
“Forum is about this industry coming together. It is a definite sign of unity that we can come together, we can talk about the hard issues. It is truly inspiring to be a part of it,” Humphreys says.
For Humphreys and his team at NPPC, it provides an opportunity to find out what pork producers want their trade associations to work on.
“It allows us to get answers to important questions,” Humphreys says. “What are the challenges they see? What are the opportunities they see? How can we as staff, on their behalf, go out and deliver on that?”
From there, organizational leaders can better understand the challenges and issues producers face and how they can respond, he says.
“It’s the only time of the year that all the pork producers get together to offer the direction and the guidance for the organizations to defend their freedom to operate,” Humphreys says.
Heather Hill, an Indiana pork producer and president of the National Pork Board, believes that coming together for this big event provides invaluable opportunities for producers to grow, too.
“If you’re lucky enough to be a delegate, or just come in as a producer, it’s so important to interact with your fellow producers and see the business that needs to be decided on while we are at National Pork Industry Forum as well as learning, especially from a National Pork Board side, how those Checkoff dollars have been spent in the past year and the plans for the next year,” Hill says.
Although the topics discussed aren’t always easy ones, Lori Stevermer, a Minnesota pig farmer and NPPC vice president, says it’s one of the few times producers are together to talk about the tough issues.
“Whether it’s sustainability or African swine fever, the best and brightest minds come together and we talk. We talk in the delegates session. We talk in the hallways. We talk at night. Then we give direction to organizations to say here’s what we want you to do. We’re charting that course, looking forward to the future and putting our resources together,” Stevermer says.
In addition to sharing of ideas and directing future priorities, it’s also where the next leaders are elected.
“National Pork Industry Forum is the platform in which we elect our board of directors. It gives producers input and the opportunity to interview and select those candidates that ultimately lead our organizations or associations,” says Terry Wolters, NPPC president and a Minnesota pig farmer. “Also, state bodies bring forward proposed resolutions and bylaw changes. It gives us the opportunity to discuss and interact because the issues in one state or one area in the country are not the same for others. We can debate that in an active format, and then ultimately make decisions that guide the organization on which way we need to go.”
NPPC Chief Legal Strategist Michael Formica says as a staff member, it’s incredibly helpful to have so many producers together in one place to learn from.
“As Washington DC staff, we’re often engaging with policymakers. We’ve got committees at NPPC and our board and officers that we’re engaged with, but we don’t have opportunity often to be at an event with hundreds of producers,” Formica says. “It allows us to hear a variety of opinions, and not just opinions, but also different approaches to the same challenges that everyone has. Whether that is learning from someone in North Carolina about how they’re dealing with manure management issues or listening to someone discuss disease management in a different part of the country. It’s all right here and we learn a lot.”
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