There’s no question it’s an interesting time in history to be preparing for the workforce and looking for a job. Farm Journal’s PORK asked five youth pig enthusiasts from across the country questions ranging from the biggest misconception of their generation to how the industry can attract future leaders to animal agriculture.
Blythe Bolender, 18
Greenfield Ohio
I am a 2022 graduate of McClain High School. I plan to attend Wilmington College and major in animal science.
Q. What’s one thing you wish people understood better about your generation?
A. My generation is definitely a unique one. I wish people understood that while we are an entire generation, we are not all entirely the same. We have unique skills and traits that we bring to the world because we have grown up as technology has taken off and advanced rapidly. This knowledge and experience will allow my generation to bring it into the workforce and world to make it more effective and efficient.
Q. What do you think is your generation’s strongest asset to offer the future of pork production?
A. As time goes on and years progress, technology advances. My generation is going to be at the forefront as technology progresses. The better the technology, the better communication can be throughout the industry with veterinarians, farmers, etc. Technology could also contribute to animal welfare through better medication, testing and sire selection. Better animal welfare ultimately means more pork produced.
Q. What’s the biggest misconception your friends have about the pork industry?
A. There are groups of people in this world who believe farming, especially commercial livestock production, is inhumane. This is why educating people and advocating for the pork industry is instrumental in allowing others to understand the industry better. It’s not at all inhumane, but a necessity to put food on the table.
Q. Why did you become involved in the pork industry?
A. My life with livestock started at birth. I grew up on a small family dairy farm and spent the first five years of my life around cattle. Upon selling the cattle in 2008, my life with livestock was halted, but the interest was not sold away with the cattle. My mom got a job at a farm through AMVC Management Services and was quickly moved to farrowing lead. After job shadowing and falling in love with pig farming, my mom and the farm’s production manager, Mike Mullady, helped me get an interview and start my first job at the age of 15. Agriculture has always been my passion and my job now through AMVC has propelled my passion into what it is now.
Q. How can we get more youth interested in pork industry careers?
A. Advocating for agriculture is important, especially through the youth. Going into classrooms and working through organizations such as FFA are just a couple of ways we can teach our youth at an early age the importance and diversity of agriculture and agriculture careers. The pork industry is more than just your local family farm or taking a showpig to the fair. It is a global industry that supplies the world with food on the table. This could also show the youth the diversity of jobs just in the pork industry, such as office jobs, commercial farming, lab work and more.
James DeRouchey, 18
Wamego, Kansas
I plan to attend Kansas State University in fall 2022, majoring in ag business with a minor in animal science.
Q. What’s one thing you wish people understood better about your generation?
A. As a whole, my generation relies on being social with each other. A large contribution to that is definitely due to the easy access to many social media platforms. This has given my generation the ability to stay in contact with each other with not only words but with pictures. Snapchat is a good example of that.
Q. What do you think is your generation’s strongest asset to offer the future of pork production?
A. The ability to pick up new technological advancements quickly as they are ever-changing. Being able to adapt and continue to develop ways to keep making pork operations more time efficient and cost effective will be crucial to the longevity of the pork industry.
Q. What’s the biggest misconception your friends have about the pork industry?
A. The vast majority of my non-agriculture friends have no idea what a commercial farm looks like or how it operates. Even knowing something as simple as what a sow, gilt, boar and barrow refers to is foreign to them. Most people underestimate the importance of the swine industry and its relevance. When many people think of meat, their first thoughts are generally beef or chicken. Pork plays a critical role in this world as well and it is often overlooked.
Q. Why did you become involved in the pork industry?
A. My dad is a swine nutritionist at Kansas State University, so it has naturally been part of my upbringing to interact with his graduate students, go on farm tours, and learn about the nutrition and production sides of the industry. Currently, my family exhibits 30 to 40 showpigs every year at county, state and national shows. While there is a major difference between exhibiting swine and the commercial industry, this has given me the opportunity to have hands-on experience working with swine. I have gained experience at a nearby showpig operation by being involved in all aspects of their production such as processing young piglets and marketing them to youth. I also work as a consultant providing feeding advice to customers for their pigs in four different states currently.
Q. How can we get more youth interested in pork industry careers?
A. Many youth showing swine don’t have the opportunity or are unfamiliar with the commercial industry. Before the worries of African swine fever, the World Pork Expo that combined the commercial trade show and the youth livestock show was an incredible opportunity to expose youth already interested in the swine area to the “real world” swine industry and the technology advancements that have been made. Opportunities like this are very important for informing youth and their parents of all the careers out there in the pork industry.
Marlie Farris, 19
Sentinel, Oklahoma
I attend Eastern Oklahoma State College and am majoring in animal science and agricultural communications.
Q. What’s one thing you wish people understood better about your generation?
A. When compared to past generations, we are commonly referred to as the lazy generation. However, this is not always true – especially for those of us raised in the agricultural sector. Not only do we work hard every day to ensure our livestock are properly taken care of, but we also work to find new ways to promote our industry through technology.
Q. What do you think is your generation’s strongest asset to offer the future of pork production?
A. Not only would we provide a new perspective, but we are a very “tech-savvy” generation. Growing up in a technological-driven society, we have been shown how we can improve our operations with the help of things like electronic ear tags. We also are knowledgeable on the topic of social media. From marketing to advocating, we can provide a new experience for consumers to increase interest in and support of this industry.
Q. What’s the biggest misconception your friends have about the pork industry?
A. I am very thankful to have a great number of friends with a strong agricultural background. However, the few who don’t often think we as an industry treat our livestock poorly. This is far from the case. When I am confronted with this situation, I typically bring those friends back to my farm to show them how I care for my livestock.
Q. Why did you become involved in the pork industry?
A. To be quite honest, I originally did not have any interest in showing pigs. However, my parents, along with numerous influential people in my life, convinced me I needed to give it a shot. Since the day I got my first showpig, I immediately fell in love not only with showing pigs but with the industry as a whole. Since I have ended my time in the showring, I continue to try and find new ways to stay involved in the industry, whether that’s raising pigs or applying to be on a junior board for a swine association.
Q. How can we get more youth interested in pork industry careers?
A. When I was in high school, I had no idea of the many opportunities for jobs within the pork industry. That being said, I think the biggest way to get youth interested is to have career workshops at schools and livestock shows to exhibit the numerous careers we have to offer. Youth need to realize that being in the pork industry is not just about raising pigs because there is everything from marketing jobs to international policy work.
Talena Sprecher, 17
Lone Rock, Wisconsin
I attend Ithaca High School.
Q. What’s one thing you wish people understood better about your generation?
A. I believe the agricultural industry is very good about connecting to the youth. However, with a broader outlook, I wish more people understood that my generation has more hard workers than people realize. My generation is often portrayed as lazy – but that word doesn’t work in the pork industry. Many young people involved in pork production often work a related job as well as have their own animals. Late nights and early mornings are welcomed guests in our lives and the motivation we carry with us impacts those around us. We strive to outwork the competition and that should be noted by more individuals. Regardless, we will continue to work hard to create a better future.
Q. What do you think is your generation’s strongest asset to offer the future of pork production?
A. My generation is adapting to new ways of connecting the industry. Through education programs and social media platforms, we are able to make the outreach of the pork industry more expansive than ever before. These adaptations have taught us to be innovative to advance the industry in as many positive ways as possible. Being willing to change is this generation’s strongest asset, and it will help push the industry into a future that is more connected with consumers and more functional than ever.
Q. What’s the biggest misconception your friends have about the pork industry?
A. The biggest misconception in my rural community about the pork industry is the functionality of the show industry. My school has a high percentage of 4-H and FFA members who show at the county level in order to be involved in agriculture and make some money while in high school. While I highly encourage these peers to continue in the industry, their view of the showpig industry holds them back from becoming more involved at the state and national levels. They believe that because there are some problems that need to be solved in the show industry that it spreads throughout the pork industry. We can solve this by making sure the showpig industry becomes more practical to the overall pork industry and that we positively connect with all youth.
Q. Why did you become involved in the pork industry?
A. My involvement in the pork industry started when I was 3 years old. I grew up with my mom being involved in dairy and my older siblings showing sheep and beef, but I decided that pigs were my niche. I started showing on the state circuit and have since shown year-round at state, national and local shows. I enjoy running clinics for youth interested in the industry and frequently participate in skillathon and judging contests. I use my passion for the industry to become involved in conventions and junior boards that help me connect with others in the industry and about the industry. I plan on continuing my involvement by becoming an agricultural educator and staying involved in the production side of the industry.
Q. How can we get more youth interested in pork industry careers?
A. Getting more youth involved in the pork industry starts with education about the industry. If youth do not know the opportunities available, they will not pursue related careers. We need to encourage schools to require agricultural education courses and offer internships that are related to pork careers in their community. We need to advertise on larger platforms about youth opportunities in the industry, such as conferences and clinics. I believe that everyone can find a place they fit in in the industry, but a student cannot find that place if they do not know it exists. These steps to get more youth interested in pork industry careers will also help bridge the generational gap between agriculturalists and their kids or grandkids who do not understand the industry.
Pierce Woodruff, 18
Moorland, Iowa
I graduated from Southeast Valley and will attend Iowa State University to major in animal science this fall.
Q. What’s one thing you wish people understood better about your generation?
A. My generation still values hard work and dedication even with all the technology distractions we have.
Q. What do you think is your generation’s strongest asset to offer the future of pork production?
A. The strongest asset my generation will offer to the pork industry is the ability to use more technology within the pork industry.
Q. What’s the biggest misconception your friends have about the pork industry?
A. Many of my friends think it’s just “bacon,” when in reality the pork industry has many different jobs. Overall, it’s a very complex industry.
Q. Why did you become involved in the pork industry?
A. I became involved in the pork industry through showing pigs at a young age. I immediately became inspired by the pork industry and started raising my own showpigs and became more educated in the commercial side of the pork industry by working on a commercial pig farm.
Q. How can we get more youth interested in pork industry careers?
A. By sharing educational opportunities and allowing youth to see the numerous jobs that the pork industry has to offer.
We will be uniting together June 6-12 for PORK Week across all of our Farm Journal platforms to elevate the important role the pork industry plays in feeding the world. Share your stories and post photos on social media using #PORKWeek22 to help us honor the pork industry. From “AgDay TV” to “AgriTalk” to “U.S. Farm Report” to PorkBusiness.com and everything in between, tune in and join us as we acknowledge the most noble profession there is: feeding people.
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