When the world shut down because of COVID-19, people realized the importance of community more than ever before. People missed being around people. Participation in hog shows across the country this summer is proof of the importance of community.
For Clay Zwilling, chief executive officer of the National Swine Registry (NSR), that reality became the focus of how NSR and National Junior Swine Association shows adapted this summer as the country slowly re-emerged from the pandemic.
“COVID-19 has pushed us to be more people-focused, developing strategies surrounding the people who attend our events,” Zwilling says. “It’s understanding that people want to be out and interact with each other. We’ve had to prepare to have a higher volume of people and make sure we have an environment that builds excitement and camaraderie.”
He reminds the young NJSA leaders helping run their events that it’s important to acknowledge people are choosing to spend their vacation time at these events.
“They aren’t going to Disney, they aren’t going to the lake,” Zwilling says. “They are choosing to spend their time with us. We need to treat them and treat this experience accordingly.”
Maddie Fugate (left) walks back to her pen after her last class at the National Junior Summer Spectacular. The Fugate family has been showing pigs for the past 20 years. Read Maddie’s final thoughts as an exhibitor here. Photo by Jennifer Shike
A New Contingency Plan
As Zwilling reflects back on lessons he’s learned during the pandemic, he believes the biggest thing is realizing people come to NSR and NJSA events to experience community.
“Beyond just the logistics of the shows, we’ve focused more on trying to emphasize a community spirit this year,” Zwilling admits. “We have always had contingency planning on the animal side whether that focused on biosecurity concerns or animal rights issues, but now we have realized we need that on the human side as well.”
For the Schafer family of Owaneco, Ill., showing pigs has provided a sense of normalcy during a time that was anything but normal. But a huge part of that normalcy came down to the people they were able to spend time with at the shows.
“We looked at COVID-19 a lot like we would livestock disease. We believed if we were out in fresh air in the public and taking the necessary precautions, we didn’t need to have huge fears. So why not try to get our kids engaged and feel that normalcy we were really missing?” asks Sue Schafer, an FFA teacher and show mom.
She says the swine barn is where their family has found lifelong friends over the years.
“It’s been so refreshing to spend time with people in this industry who share our beliefs and values,” Schafer adds. “I met my best friend at a jackpot pig show when my son was five years old. There’s just something about being able to spend time with people you can relate to about trying to juggle sports and school and livestock.”
As an FFA instructor, she spends a lot of time watching kids compete, strive toward goals and push limits. One of her fears about the pandemic that she believes we haven’t fully the seen the effects of yet are the excuses students will make when times get tough.
“I think getting right back into the groove of getting a pig ready and competing in contests at a high level is very important in helping our kids realize perseverance is what you have to do. Excuses are not an option,” she says.
Record-Breaking Participation
Participation at 2021 NSR and NJSA events has been phenomenal, Zwilling points out. Even with so many unknowns about how hog shows would continue this year, The Exposition show in Indianapolis, Ind., boasted the second-largest numbers ever in terms of pig and people numbers. They also had the largest National Junior Summer Spectacular and Summer Type Conference events in Louisville, Ky., ever.
Zwilling says the inclusion of all exhibitors and all purebred swine breeds is something that he holds in high regard. This is the first year that the major purebred swine organizations opened up their events to the 10 major swine breeds (Berkshire, Chester White, Duroc, Hampshire, Hereford, Landrace, Poland China, Spotted, Tamworth, Yorkshire) at their national summer events.
To put it in perspective, The Exposition drew in over 3,000 head with 1,200 exhibitors from 25 states. The National Junior Summer Spectacular and Summer Type Conference attracted 1,800 head from 975 exhibitors from 21 states. The hog sales have been pretty remarkable this year, too, he says. NSR sold 168 head at The Exposition for $981,250 and 183 head at the Summer Type Conference for $1,132,450.
Interest in purebred swine is at a high, says NSR CEO Clay Zwilling. A young exhibitor shows her Yorkshire barrow at The Exposition. Photo by Seedstock Edge Media.
Gilt Market Drives Sale Totals
Perhaps what intrigues Zwilling the most is to see how many animals are changing ownership this year. For example, NSR sold every Duroc gilt they offered for sale at the Summer Type Conference and every Hampshire gilt they offered for sale at The Exposition. Overall, more than 90% of the gilts offered at live sales were merchandised.
“To me what’s pretty remarkable is the fact that we’re actually exchanging ownership on a higher percentage of animals, which tells me that people are bringing out quality and there’s demand for quality animals,” he says.
The gilt market seems to be driving the success of the summer. He says this is a sign that people are investing in females and in genetics that will create long-term breeding opportunities in the business.
“If it was a couple of high dollar boars that were skewing the sale numbers, I think that’s one thing,” Zwilling says. “But when you look at the fact that it’s a high volume of high-value gilts, to me that’s really positive for the success and sustainability of the purebred hog business.”
Stay tuned for part two.
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