National Pork Board Reinforces Pork's Nutritional Value Through Its Newest Platform - Ponle Pork

Celebrity Couple Jorge Bernal and Karla Birbragher are Kicking Off Ponle Pork, Showcasing Exciting Ways to Add This Latino Favorite Super Protein to Any Recipe in Celebration of Hispanic Heritage Month.

The National Pork Board is celebrating Hispanic Heritage Month with celebrity ambassador couple Jorge Bernal (TV personality) and Karla Birbragher (celebrity stylist) with their newest platform – Ponle Pork. The ambassadors, along with six content creators from key Hispanic markets, will reinforce pork's superior nutritional value by showcasing exciting ways to add this protein to any meal...

China’s Pork Market Starts a New Cycle: A Different Cycle in a Transitional Time

China’s pork market started a new cycle around mid-2022. This cycle will be different from previous ones, as market conditions have changed a lot. We expect to see less price volatility, a shorter length, and more government monitoring. Policies, a new industry structure, sustainability concerns, and consumer trends will continue to influence the market’s development.

This cycle will offer market opportunities to both...

Pork Industry asks the SEC to Reconsider Climate Disclosure Rules for Farmers

The National Pork Producers Council (NPPC) filed comments today to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) regarding its controversial reporting requirements proposal on climate-related disclosures for investors.

In its comments, NPPC and other agricultural groups requested that the SEC reconsider its application of burdensome and unnecessary climate disclosure requirements under Scope 3 of the proposed rules. As currently drafted, these requirements would overly burden American farmers, forcing them to take on costly and expensive reporting that will set back farm environmental performance, and would be in...

SEC Extends Comment Period on Climate-Reporting Rule

The National Pork Producers Council (NPPC) was pleased with today’s decision by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to extend the comment period to June 17 on its reporting requirements proposal on climate change-related information from publicly-traded companies and their customers, suppliers, and distributors.

“NPPC thanks Chairman Gensler and the SEC for recognizing the concerns of farmers and the challenges they face in understanding and commenting on the commission’s lengthy Climate Disclosures rule,” said NPPC’s Chief Executive Officer Bryan Humphreys.

The SEC responded to an NPPC-led letter signed by...

Beef Export Value Sets Another Record; Pork Exports Improve but Remain Below Last Year’s Total

U.S. beef exports soared to another new value record in March, according to data released by USDA and compiled by the U.S. Meat Export Federation (USMEF). March pork exports were the largest so far this year but well below the record-large totals posted in March 2021. Lamb exports continued to gain momentum in March, reaching the third largest monthly volume on record and the highest value in nearly eight years.

Beef exports totaled 126,285 metric tons (mt) in March, up 1% from a...

Global Demand for U.S. Beef Continues to Soar; Pork Exports Below Last Year

U.S. beef exports posted another strong performance in February, according to data released by USDA and compiled by the U.S. Meat Export Federation (USMEF), led by excellent value growth in key Asian and Latin American markets. Pork exports trended lower year-over-year, as larger shipments to Mexico and Japan did not offset the continued decline in demand from China/Hong Kong. Lamb exports continued to gain momentum, reaching the highest monthly value since 2014.

“Rarely have we seen so many outside forces creating headwinds for..."

Pork Producers Press Politicians on Public Policies

Preparing for and preventing foreign animal diseases, addressing an agricultural labor shortage, and increasing pork exports are the top public-policy issues pork producers will lobby their congressional lawmakers on over the next two days. During the spring Capitol Hill fly-in of the National Pork Producers Council (NPPC), nearly 100 producers from across the country are expected to participate — in person for the first time in two years — in NPPC’s Legislative Action Conference.

“Challenges facing our industry continue to evolve, and we hope our efforts this week help lawmakers understand..."

Adams to be New NPPC Congressional Relations Manager

The National Pork Producers Council has hired Chase Adams as manager of congressional relations in its Washington, DC, public policy office. He joins Jack Frye on the organization’s lobbying team.

“Chase has a lot of experience in the livestock public policy field, so he’ll be a great asset to NPPC,” said NPPC CEO Bryan Humphreys. “He’s spent his career in agriculture, advocating on behalf of producers and telling their stories. We’re glad to have him on our team.”

A South Dakota native who grew up on the family ranch, Adams received...

Impact of the Ukraine-Russia War on the Meat and Livestock Value Chain

Last week, National Pork Board hosted a Checkoff-funded webinar – The Ukraine-Russia War and the Meat Livestock Value Chain – to provide pork producers with an analysis of the current situation. Panelists included:

- Rupert Claxton, Gira
- Joe Kerns, Partners for Production Agriculture
- Dr. Steve Meyer, Partners for Production Agriculture

Impact of War Has Market Consequences Worldwide
Rupert Claxton shared the global economic impact of the Ukraine-Russia War on energy, fertilizer, feed and the livestock markets.

Fertilizer

Russia accounts for 13% of globally traded fertilizer value, producing...

Pork Industry Priorities Included in Spending Bill

Congress in early March approved a $1.5 trillion fiscal 2022 budget bill, which keeps government programs running through Sept. 30 and has $730 billion for non-defense spending, including $25.1 billion for agricultural programs, mostly for USDA, with significant amounts dedicated to addressing foreign animal diseases (FADs).

Thanks to the advocacy efforts of NPPC — literally hounding lawmakers about appropriating adequate funds to prevent, prepare for and respond to FADs and arguing for other priorities — Congress listened, giving the pork industry almost everything it requested.

It’s been a difficult Congress to...

Spot Market Hog Pandemic Program Eligibility Broadened

USDA’s Farm Service Agency (FSA) today announced it has modified the Spot Market Hog Pandemic Program (SMHPP) eligibility requirements to capture more hog sales. The program — announced last year — provides payments to pork producers who made spot market transactions between April 16 and Sept. 1, 2020.

The clarified eligibility requirements expand the agency’s interpretation of “spot market sales” and “sale to a packer” to better reflect the nontraditional types of transactions made during that period, including sales to dealers, cull markets, meat lockers, intermediaries and others.

“The changes to SMHPP..."

Strong Momentum Continues for U.S. Beef Exports; Pork Exports Trend Lower

Coming off a record-breaking performance in 2021, U.S. beef exports remained red-hot in January, according to data released by USDA and compiled by the U.S. Meat Export Federation (USMEF). Pork exports continued to trend lower in January, despite another outstanding month for exports to leading market Mexico.

Beef exports totaled 119,066 metric tons (mt), up 13% from a year ago, while value soared 57% to $1.03 billion. This was the third-highest value total on record – trailing only August and November of last year – and export...

NPPC Elects New Officers, Board Members

The National Pork Producers Council (NPPC) today installed new officers and elected members to its board of directors at its annual business meeting — the National Pork Industry Forum — held here.

Terry Wolters of Pipestone, Minnesota, was elevated to president of the organization for 2022-2023. Wolters owns Stoney Creek Farms, which consists of several sow farms, and is a partner in the Pipestone System. He also is a member of Wholestone Farms and is active in the Pipestone County Pork Producers Association, Minnesota Pork Producers Association, South Dakota Pork Producers Council and the Minnesota...

Dierks Inducted into Pork Industry Hall of Fame

For his 40 years serving U.S. pork producers, including 20 years as CEO of the National Pork Producers Council (NPPC) and his dedication and countless contributions to the pork industry, Neil Dierks today was inducted into the National Pork Industry Hall of Fame at NPPC’s annual business meeting — the National Pork Industry Forum — held here.

Dierks, who retired in December 2021 after 31 years with NPPC, helped develop the organization that was born after the separation agreement that created the National Pork Board. He became the first CEO of the reconstituted NPPC...

NPB’s Mission to Make Pork a Leading, Sustainable Protein Choice

The 2022 U.S. Pork Industry Sustainability Report establishes the We Care® Ethical Principles as tools to measure on-farm sustainability efforts.

National Pork Board released its official U.S. Pork Industry Sustainability Report as a part of its continuous efforts to produce a leading, sustainable protein choice.

NPB announced the action-based and producer-developed goals and metrics in a Checkoff-funded producer webinar last month, in partnership with AgriPulse. Experts spoke about how the goals align with the six We Care® Ethical Principles, how producers can measure their...

Forseth New NPPC Director of Animal Health

The National Pork Producers Council has hired Dr. Anna Forseth for the newly created position of director of animal health. She will focus on foreign animal disease prevention and preparedness, as well as antibiotic use and resistance issues.

“We welcome Dr. Forseth to the NPPC team,” said NPPC CEO Bryan Humphreys. “She has a wealth of knowledge about hogs and swine diseases and a great background in swine research. We know she will be a great asset to and resource for the U.S. pork industry.”

A Montana native who grew...

Analysis: Experts Discuss U.S. Pork Export Data and NPB Diversification Strategy

NPB hosted a webinar following the report release to help pork producers understand the publicly available information.

The National Pork Board hosted a webinar on February 11 where experts spoke on the 2021 year-end U.S. pork export data, NPB’s international marketing strategy and their estimates for 2022 forecasting.

On February 8, USDA released the year-end export data. In 2021, U.S. pork exports set a new value record topping $8 billion for the first time. Export volume was down 2% from the 2020 record...

NPB Announces Pork Industry Sustainability Goals and Metrics, Releases First Official Report

More than half of U.S. consumers have made some modest changes in their purchasing decisions to be more sustainable, according to the Global Sustainability Study 2021.1

Today, the National Pork Board (NPB) shared more about its industry’s aspiration to produce a leading sustainable protein choice, with an announcement of goals and metrics and its first official U.S. Pork Industry Sustainability Report.

Sustainability Goals Developed By Pork Producers
The goals and report are part of the NPB’s sustainability efforts, which are led by producers and funded by their...

NPB Announces New Staff Leadership Positions

The National Pork Board (NPB) today announced recent staff leadership changes to help ensure its ability to deliver on pork producer priorities for their Checkoff: to build trust in, and add value to, U.S. pork while also protecting the industry’s freedom to operate.

Dustin (Dusty) Oedekoven, DVM, will join NPB as the organization’s new chief veterinarian on Feb. 25, 2022. Dr. Oedekoven will lead a team of veterinarians and swine production experts in Pork Checkoff-funded work to deliver on the No. 1 concern for pork producers – foreign animal disease (FAD) preparedness and protecting...

Higher Wages, Input Costs, Supply Chain Problems Affecting Pork Prices, Not 'Concentration'

In a report issued today, economists with Iowa State University, North Carolina State University and the National Pork Producers Council found that pork prices have risen because of strong demand for U.S. pork, higher input costs and labor shortages throughout the supply chain, not concentration in the meatpacking industry. The report’s authors, Iowa State’s Dermot Hayes, NC State’s Barry Goodwin and NPPC’s Holly Cook, also found that pork prices in the United States are still lower than in many other countries.

The pork packing industry is made...

Pork Industry Grooms Future Leaders

The National Pork Producers Council and the National Pork Board have kicked off the 2022 class of Pork Leadership Institute (PLI), a jointly funded and organized training curriculum designed to develop future leaders for the U.S. pork industry.

The comprehensive, year-long program consists of five learning sessions, running from February to November. Selected participants are educated on the legislative and regulatory processes, the importance of international trade, the roles of the national pork organizations and their state pork associations, and the issues facing producers. They also are trained to be spokespeople for the pork...