This Sunday,starting at 9 am Eastern time, the social networking site Twitter is going have more the feel of the barnyard rather than cyber space. The reason is that America's farmers and ranchers are getting together to educate consumer about pork production. Along with that, we will be dispelling the myths about the H1N1 virus and it's relationship to pork production.
You might remember that we did this a few weeks ago with #moo to highlight the struggles of the dairy industry. We had moo trending extremely high form many hours. It also gave many of us a chance to talk about agriculture and the beef industry in general. These are the types of opportunities that we must take advantage of in agriculture. I will guarantee you that many folks will have a much greater understanding about pork production after Sunday's event.
Please join us. If you don't have a twitter account already, just visit www.twitter.com and you will be up and running in no time. If you have any trouble, just send me a note and I can walk you through it. Just remember, when you send out a tweet this weekend to include #oink in it.
Showing posts with label pork producers. Show all posts
Showing posts with label pork producers. Show all posts
Friday, August 14, 2009
Tuesday, August 11, 2009
Indiana Farmers To Give Away One Million Meals
Indiana Pork Kicks Off Million Meals Program to Fight Hunger
08/09/2009
Andy Eubank
The Indiana Pork Producers kicked off the Indiana State Fair Friday morning with their annual ham breakfast, and addresses by Governor Daniels, Lt. Governor Becky Skillman, and Congressman Mike Pence. And the President of Indiana Pork, Randy Curless drew loud applause when he announced a brand new initiative called the Million Meals Program.
Curless told HAT the ideas started to flow within his board in response to news reports this year of people searching for their next meal. “And as farmers tend to do, we tried to think of ways we could help. So we started hashing ideas of what we could do to help and started out with donating some pork to a local food bank. And from that, the ball has come around to where we are now proposing, and going to make happen, a million protein meals to the food banks of Indiana, each year.”
Although Indiana Pork is the initial driving force behind Million Meals, they are working to secure support from all aspects of Indiana agriculture. Curless explained, “To be successful we’re going to need the whole team to carry that ball. We’re looking for Indiana agriculture and the team players of all the commodities to help us with that. But it is going to take off this month when we make our first deliveries. So we are off and running and the whole organization is set in place to make all this happen.”
Curless says be on the lookout for information about how you can help the program grow. “Ya, certainly, once we get all the bugs out of it. It did take a lot of hard work to get everything organized to this point, and once we started getting some food flowing through the chain, then we’re going to push a little harder to bring in donations.” Read More
Rural America is practically famous for figuring out how to help out our neighbors when they are in need. Extending this generosity to helping put food on their table isn’t much of a stretch. Isn’t it interesting that while there are groups like HSUS and other animal rights groups are trying to put family farmers out of business, those same farmers have been trying to figure out how to give away a million free meals to the hungry. Wouldn’t it be great if these animal rights groups would match that?
08/09/2009
Andy Eubank
The Indiana Pork Producers kicked off the Indiana State Fair Friday morning with their annual ham breakfast, and addresses by Governor Daniels, Lt. Governor Becky Skillman, and Congressman Mike Pence. And the President of Indiana Pork, Randy Curless drew loud applause when he announced a brand new initiative called the Million Meals Program.
Curless told HAT the ideas started to flow within his board in response to news reports this year of people searching for their next meal. “And as farmers tend to do, we tried to think of ways we could help. So we started hashing ideas of what we could do to help and started out with donating some pork to a local food bank. And from that, the ball has come around to where we are now proposing, and going to make happen, a million protein meals to the food banks of Indiana, each year.”
Although Indiana Pork is the initial driving force behind Million Meals, they are working to secure support from all aspects of Indiana agriculture. Curless explained, “To be successful we’re going to need the whole team to carry that ball. We’re looking for Indiana agriculture and the team players of all the commodities to help us with that. But it is going to take off this month when we make our first deliveries. So we are off and running and the whole organization is set in place to make all this happen.”
Curless says be on the lookout for information about how you can help the program grow. “Ya, certainly, once we get all the bugs out of it. It did take a lot of hard work to get everything organized to this point, and once we started getting some food flowing through the chain, then we’re going to push a little harder to bring in donations.” Read More
Rural America is practically famous for figuring out how to help out our neighbors when they are in need. Extending this generosity to helping put food on their table isn’t much of a stretch. Isn’t it interesting that while there are groups like HSUS and other animal rights groups are trying to put family farmers out of business, those same farmers have been trying to figure out how to give away a million free meals to the hungry. Wouldn’t it be great if these animal rights groups would match that?
Friday, June 5, 2009
WaPo Covering World Pork Expo
Swine Flu? No Word of It at Pork Expo.
By David Brown Washington Post Staff Writer
Friday, June 5, 2009
DES MOINES -- Here at the World Pork Expo, H1N1 influenza is many contradictory things -- an unfolding disaster and a passing inconvenience, a cause of the pork industry's woes and an excuse for them, evidence of good animal husbandry and a challenge to it.
About the only thing it isn't is "swine flu." Never should have been called that, everyone agrees -- and don't even think of calling it that now.
H1N1 flu is casting a distinctly dappled shadow across the Iowa State Fair Grounds, where 18,000 pork producers (including about 3,000 from 50 foreign countries), 450 exhibitors and 2,500 pigs are spending much of this week.
"I wish I had better news for you," Don Butler, president of the National Pork Producers Council, said Wednesday as the three-day event opened. His news was that over the next six months, enough farmers would go out of business to shrink the sow herd -- the swine industry's four-legged engine -- by about 5 percent. Read More
There’s no doubt that our pork producers were the true victims of H1N1. Even though the flu isn’t in the headlines anymore, it is still causing damage. Several countries still won’t accept imports of pork from the US based on unfounded fears that the virus could be passed through the meat. Remember this when people say groups like HSUS aren’t trying to abolish animal agriculture. They did all they could to create a fear of eating pork when the disease outbreak occurred. Family farmers are now paying the price.
By David Brown Washington Post Staff Writer
Friday, June 5, 2009
DES MOINES -- Here at the World Pork Expo, H1N1 influenza is many contradictory things -- an unfolding disaster and a passing inconvenience, a cause of the pork industry's woes and an excuse for them, evidence of good animal husbandry and a challenge to it.
About the only thing it isn't is "swine flu." Never should have been called that, everyone agrees -- and don't even think of calling it that now.
H1N1 flu is casting a distinctly dappled shadow across the Iowa State Fair Grounds, where 18,000 pork producers (including about 3,000 from 50 foreign countries), 450 exhibitors and 2,500 pigs are spending much of this week.
"I wish I had better news for you," Don Butler, president of the National Pork Producers Council, said Wednesday as the three-day event opened. His news was that over the next six months, enough farmers would go out of business to shrink the sow herd -- the swine industry's four-legged engine -- by about 5 percent. Read More
There’s no doubt that our pork producers were the true victims of H1N1. Even though the flu isn’t in the headlines anymore, it is still causing damage. Several countries still won’t accept imports of pork from the US based on unfounded fears that the virus could be passed through the meat. Remember this when people say groups like HSUS aren’t trying to abolish animal agriculture. They did all they could to create a fear of eating pork when the disease outbreak occurred. Family farmers are now paying the price.
Thursday, April 30, 2009
Wrong Name Is The Real Threat
APRIL 30, 2009
Pork Producers Ache From Swine Flu
By CURT THACKER
OVERLAND PARK, Kan. -- Declining hog prices amid the swine-flu outbreak could spawn losses of more than a quarter of a billion dollars and be the last straw for some U.S. pork producers.
Questions surrounding the disease and the word swine in the name have contributed to losses in lean hog futures, leading to lower cash prices and to declines in wholesale pork values.
U.S. hog producers have lost money in 16 of the past 18 months, and they needed prices to be profitable during the spring and summer. Cases of swine flu, however, have led to import bans by some countries on pork produced in a number of U.S. states and Mexico.
U.S. government officials are considering a change to the disease's current moniker. Swine flu makes some people think they can get the disease from pigs or pork, said acting CDC Director Richard Besser.
"That's not helpful to pork producers. That's not helpful to people who eat pork," he said.
Pork remains safe to eat, and the virus hasn't been found in U.S. hogs, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Read More
The outbreak of a flu virus that was misnamed might put some of our nations hog farming families out of business. Because of unfounded fears by not only consumers, but also some of our trading partners, the prices received for hogs has taken another hit. It’s shameful that our government has tiptoed around the subject. Some agencies are referring to it correctly as H1N1, but the media has been slow to get the hint. If you hear the media in your area incorrectly using the term swine flu, take the time to contact them and se them straight. All the little things we do can make a big difference, and undoubtedly our hog farmers will appreciate it.
Pork Producers Ache From Swine Flu
By CURT THACKER
OVERLAND PARK, Kan. -- Declining hog prices amid the swine-flu outbreak could spawn losses of more than a quarter of a billion dollars and be the last straw for some U.S. pork producers.
Questions surrounding the disease and the word swine in the name have contributed to losses in lean hog futures, leading to lower cash prices and to declines in wholesale pork values.
U.S. hog producers have lost money in 16 of the past 18 months, and they needed prices to be profitable during the spring and summer. Cases of swine flu, however, have led to import bans by some countries on pork produced in a number of U.S. states and Mexico.
U.S. government officials are considering a change to the disease's current moniker. Swine flu makes some people think they can get the disease from pigs or pork, said acting CDC Director Richard Besser.
"That's not helpful to pork producers. That's not helpful to people who eat pork," he said.
Pork remains safe to eat, and the virus hasn't been found in U.S. hogs, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Read More
The outbreak of a flu virus that was misnamed might put some of our nations hog farming families out of business. Because of unfounded fears by not only consumers, but also some of our trading partners, the prices received for hogs has taken another hit. It’s shameful that our government has tiptoed around the subject. Some agencies are referring to it correctly as H1N1, but the media has been slow to get the hint. If you hear the media in your area incorrectly using the term swine flu, take the time to contact them and se them straight. All the little things we do can make a big difference, and undoubtedly our hog farmers will appreciate it.
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