The Scoop

Living the American Dream

Emily Kilian
Emily Kilian was intern for the communications department this summer at the National Pork Board. Emily will graduate from Oklahoma State University in May of 2009 with a degree in agricultural communications.

Oklahoma really is “where the wind comes sweeping down the plains,” and to me, it’s home. Growing up in Oklahoma, I didn’t know much about the pork industry. I owned a few show pigs, but my family did not raise hogs commercially. My family’s farm is full of wheat and beef cattle. I grew up in a small town, so I am not a city kid or a country kid – I’m a mix. I can clean out a barn or get all dressed up for a night on the town. I can drive a John Deere or a Mercedes.

One thing I couldn’t do was talk about the pork industry. My knowledge of the pork industry was slim at best. Before starting my internship with the Pork Checkoff in May, I didn’t know the difference in the National Pork Board and the National Pork Producers Council. I didn’t know all the work that went in behind the scenes to market pork, not only in the United States, but also across the world. I also didn’t know the important steps being taken to make sure pigs are being treated humanely.

Producers take great pride in what they do, and through programs like Operation Main Street, producers can share their world with you. The farm has never been closer to you than it is now, with YouTube videos explaining the how’s and why’s to pork production. The Pork Checkoff also has programs for producers that reaffirm their commitment to animal welfare. Pork Quality Assurance Plus®, Transport Quality Assurance and the new responsible pork initiative are all aimed at keeping pigs safe. The responsible pork initiative, also called ‘We Care,’ goes beyond making sure pigs are safe. It challenges producers to do the right thing for their animals, the environment and consumers. This initiative is designed so the public will gain trust of the pork industry.

Trust is a strong word. It carries with it a high degree of integrity. This integrity is exactly what pork producers have. From this internship experience, I learned there is no such thing as a “factory farm”.  Pork producers are family-oriented, everyday men and women simply trying to live the American dream. And as a consumer, buying pork will help make their dreams come true. It’s not every day you get a chance to help dreams come true.

- Emily Kilian

Connecting the Dots

There’s been some press about Methicillin Resistant Staph Aureus (MRSA) the last week that has caused some to question the role of pigs and pork in how this bug moves and affects people.  One article implied that since a strain found in some people in the UK was the same as a strain that has been found in pigs those people must have been infected by eating pork.

One thing that we’ve learned over many years of studying bacteria – how they move, how they adapt, how they infect, how they cause illness – is that rarely are things as clear as connecting dots.  Foodborne outbreaks of disease are one thing.  You can interview people that are sick and people that aren’t; find out what the sick people ate that the others didn’t; test the food that looks to be involved; and match that bug up with what you find in the sick people.  The dots are connected.  But when you investigate how bacteria move in a population it very often is not that clear at all.

This MRSA issue is a great example.  Apparently none of these three people in the UK had direct contact with pigs so the assumption was made that they were infected by eating pork.  But did they live with dogs, cats, or some other pet?  We know that MRSA has been found in dogs, cats, horses, pet birds, turtles, rabbits, and a variety of food animals like pigs, chickens, sheep and cattle.  And researchers in Germany and Austria have found the identical strain that came from the people in the UK in dogs and horses and other food animals.

I know that the Dutch have been studying MRSA for quite a few years.  Their food safety authority, the National Institue for Public Health and Environment, and the Dutch Animal Health Service don’t consider MRSA to be a food safety threat.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), here in the U.S., sent a letter to Congress in response to a question from a U.S. Representative that said that there is no documented role for meat consumption or handling in MRSA transmission and that none of the investigations of community-associated MRSA infections in the United States has identified animal exposure as a risk factor for infection.  The CDC also says that the most commonly found strain of MRSA in pigs is not associated with community-associated MRSA infections in the United States,  such as those acquired at hospitals, gymnasiums, assisted living facilities, etc.

All this should give some reason to pause – but not a reason to stop.  We do need to know more about MRSA and how it acts and moves between people and animals, animals and people and people and people.  But in the mean time, I don’t think it makes sense to jump to conclusions when there are so many questions yet to be answered.

So, what is going on and what can be done right now?  Just because we don’t have all the answers doesn’t mean that we should sit and wait.  Farmers are working every day with their animals.  People have pets.  Everybody trades bacteria and viruses every day when passing money, greeting someone by shaking their hand, opening a door, riding in a cab or doing just about everything else that we do as a normal part of life.

MRSA seems to like to live in the nose, and it isn’t sexy, but general hygiene and frequently washing your hands is the place to start.  Even though MRSA probably isn’t a food borne issue, there are plenty of bacteria that are.  Wash your hands and cooking utensils after handling raw meat of any kind.  Cook your food to its proper temperature.  Put it in the refrigerator right away after the meal.  And heat it back up to at least 140 degrees before eating those leftovers.

For farmers working with pigs, there is a lot of research going on.  Dr. Tara Smith, at the University of Iowa found that in some pork production operations up to 70 percent of the animals carry MRSA.  And she also found that other farms didn’t have it at all.  We need to know why there’s a difference.  And we need to know if there is anything that can be done to keep the bug from passing between animals and people.

- Dr. Paul Sundberg

Pigs Survive Twister

Weather certainly is unpredictable.  It seems like there has been several tornados ripping across the U.S. in the past few weeks.  One image that sticks out in my mind is the photos from the twister that destroyed three barns at a hog farm near Lacey in Kingfisher County, about 75 miles northwest of Oklahoma City.   

The images are plain as day.  The farm took a direct hit.  And yet, the pigs are still alive while everything else around them is rubble.  How did this happen?  The pigs were housed in stalls.  The stalls protected the pigs from the twister similar to how your basement would protect you. 

There are those who argue pigs shouldn’t be kept in stalls because they can’t even turn around are unable to perform nearly any of their natural behaviors.  But the outcome of this twister may have been different if the pigs were not in stalls. 

Scientific research has shown that there are several different types of production systems that are good for pigs. What really matters is not so much the type of production system, but the individual care given to each pig. Using the knowledge obtained from science, producers have adopted and adapted techniques and husbandry skills to provide for the well-being of their animals.

In 1996, the National Pork Board gathered a group of international experts in sow housing and well-being and asked them to do a complete review of the scientific literature on the subject.  In 2005, the American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA) independently did the same thing.

National Pork Board research as well as the review by the AVMA, concludes that there are advantages and disadvantages to all types of sow housing systems.  The major factor affecting the well-being of the sow in housing continues to be the skill and management of the person taking care of the animal.

So next time the weather turns deadly and you head to your basement, don’t think twice about pigs being kept in stalls.  It may save their lives.

- Teresa Roof

Pig Farmers Take Action

Routine abuse?  I think not.  But the Humane Society of the United States and other groups would like you to believe that is the truth.  The truth is producers take great pride in caring for their animals.  They follow good production practices outlined by the industry to provide consumers a safe, wholesome, healthy product.  Need more convincing?  Take a look at this.

So don’t think twice the next time you take a bite of pork.  You can feel assured that it came from animal that has been treated humanely.

- Teresa Roof

Every day is Earth Day for pork producers

April 22 is Earth Day for most people, but every day is Earth Day for most pork producers.  Take for example Lynn Harrison, a producer from Wisconsin.  He walks the environmental talk.

On his almost 100-year old farm, Harrison and his family have adopted leading-edge conservation practices to ensure that a shallow lake, Old Elk Lake, stays in its pristine condition.   The family was one of the first in the country to install contour strips and grassed waterways to prevent soil erosion and run-off into the lake.  E & L Enterprises also is 100 percent no-till. 

Harrison’s operation is the only hog farm on the University of Wisconsin, Extension Discovery Farms project.  Harrison volunteers his farm to this multi-year research project that studies real farms and situations and offers other livestock producers in Wisconsin tools to improve their environmental conservation programs.

Harrison is not alone.  The Pork Checkoff sponsors a Pork Industry Environmental Steward program.  Every year, four pork production operations from across the country are selected for their environmental preservation philosophy and efforts.

The 2007 Pork Industry Environmental stewards, include:
• Keppy Farms, Durant, Iowa, represented by Loren and Jeantee Keppy;
• M and J Farms, Hadley, Minn., represented by Mike and Jake Haupert;
• Meadowlane Farms, Frankfort, Ind., represented by Mike Beard;
• Seaboard Foods’ Wakefield Farms, Turpin, Okla., represented by Don Owens.

We have come a long way since the first Earth Day celebration.  When 20 million people first celebrated Earth Day it was when cities where buried under their own smog and polluted rivers caught on fire.  Today the environment is different.  Pork Producers are proud to celebrate Earth Day everyday and make a difference in protecting our environment.

Safety First Batman

As a veterinarian, I’ve been working with farmers for more than 25 years.  And I can tell you being a farmer and raising animals like pigs and cattle for a living is a dangerous occupation.  I’ve seen what I consider to be more than my share of broken bones, cuts, sprains and concussions.  I’ve had plenty of near misses myself – 4 legged mothers of all varieties are very territorial and protective – but thankfully nothing too severe.

Injuries aren’t the only hazard, though.  Pig barns can be very noisy places.  Dust can be bad especially during a dry summer with dirt lots or old barns.  We also have to take into account the environmental footprint of pig operations as public health is as important as personal health – a producer and his family usually live on the farm very close to the pigs they are caring for.

All of these things are the reasons that the National Pork Board funds a variety of research and educational programs focusing on personal and public health.  Model emergency action plans – what to do in case of a fire, tornado, flood or other disaster; correctly using personal protective devices – ear plugs, aerosol masks, gloves; application plans for putting manure back into the land – used as a fertilizer for crops but only so much should go on different types of soils; and animal handling programs – teaching people how to move animals safely both for the person and the animal – are just a few examples of what we’re doing.  WHY? So the people that work with their pigs can do so safely and responsibly and continue to do so for as long as they want.  The most important resource that pork production has is the people that work in it.  They are dedicated to doing the right thing for their animals, their families and their communities.  And the National Pork Board is dedicated to helping them do it.

- Dr. Paul Sundberg

Children Receive Mixed Messages

Old MacDonald had a farm, ei, ei, o. And on his farm he had some pigs, ei, ei, o. With and oink-oink here and an oink-oink there, here an oink, there an oink, everywhere and oink-oink. Old MacDonald had a farm, ei, ei, o.

The song Old MacDonald is on virtually in every children’s farm book or musical toy imaginable.  And why not, it’s catchy and teaches children about farm animals.  Old MacDonald’s farm has evolved over time and activist groups are wasting no time in targeting children with inaccurate information.  Whether it be a flash animation movie dedicated to fighting “factory farms” to educational materials claiming that people have no right to harvest animals for food, it needed to be determined the effect this was having on youth today.

Four focus groups were held in Des Moines, Los Angeles, Philadelphia and Raleigh, N.C., comprised of 10 children in each group, ages nine to 14.  An online survey of 350 children in this age bracket was also conducted.  Youth were asked about their familiarity with Web sites like petakids.com and The Meatrix (one of the Internet’s most popular animated advocacy films), along with their views on vegetarianism and animal care.

More than half of all youth surveyed have heard of “animal rights” organizations. Among those who have heard of these organizations, nearly one-fourth reported the organizations themselves have impacted their meat eating habits. I realize that these are not statistically significant samples but we had to start somewhere. 

So what’s next?  Don’t be surprised if you see us on YouTube or other social networking Web sites.   Bottom line - children are smart and they know right from wrong.

- Teresa Roof

Another cancer report? UGH!

This week consumers were bombarded with more information on cancer prevention.  I think this quote sums it up best.

“Sometimes it seems like the leading cause of cancer is life itself,” said Center for Consumer Freedom Senior Research Analyst J. Justin Wilson.  “If it’s not red wine or chocolate, it’s coffee, fish and just about every other food we eat.  Reports like this don’t offer any meaningful answers.  Just more confusion.”

Now isn’t that true.  The American Institute of Cancer Research (AICR) report released this week relies heavily on epidemiological studies, which cannot establish a cause and effect relationship according to Dr. Maureen Storey from the University of Maryland.  Dr. Storey explains that epidemiological study findings are simply clues for further research.

As a consumer with limited knowledge on epidemiological studies, I am going to use my common sense.  I know that cancer prevention is not as simple as cutting out one food or eating more of another.

I can continue to feel good about consuming processed meat as part of a healthy, well-balanced diet.  The truth is that processed pork fits into established nutrition guidelines, including the U.S. Dietary Guidelines, which recommend at least 30 minutes of physical activity and an average of 5.5 ounces from the Meat and Beans Group daily.

Don’t get caught up in all the new recommendations.  Just remember a balanced diet and exercise is the key to staying healthy.  Pork can play an important role too!

- Teresa Roof

Protecting Our Animals

There’s a lot of hubbub in the food animal world about animal identification and I want to clear some things up.  First, the animal ID that the pork industry is working on is not just giving each animal an identification number.  The first step is to simply record the location of the farm, the contact information about the person that is responsible for it and the kind of animals that are on the farm.  The second step is to be able to identify an animal as belonging to that farm – that’s the ‘animal’ ID part.  That’s where ear tags or other gee whiz technologies can be used.

Why’s this important?  If we have a fast moving disease like Foot and Mouth Disease that is now in the UK, the government will need to know right away where farms are and what kind of animals are on them.  Sounds simple, but it really isn’t.  Unless we have that information in a database already, it will take time. It will take weeks to drive all the roads within 10 miles of the farm where the disease is in order to find the farms and the types of animals on them.  Experience has shown that it really does take that long. With a disease that moves as fast as Foot and Mouth Disease, every hour counts.  Without the ID information that will help to quarantine an area, this disease will be all over the country within a few days.

It makes no difference whether there is one animal or a thousand.  Foot and Mouth Disease doesn’t care how many animals there are.  If something like this happens and we don’t have animal ID to help shut it down, ALL pork producers are going to be hurt or out of business.

What animal ID isn’t is a tool for, the IRS or any other government agency to pry into the farmer’s business.  There are safeguards against that.  It isn’t a tool that is useable when there is a food/meat recall like that that has been in the news a few weeks ago.  That is handled in a completely different way.  It isn’t something that animal activists can use to find and harass farmers.  All the location and contact information is already available in a lot of other places. 

So, animal ID is a tool to help protect the health of our animals.  That’s really all it is.  Animal ID is really a systematic, uniform way to link the location and contact information with the kinds of animals that are on the farm.  It is a vital, critical tool to keep farmers in business.

- Paul Sundberg

Celebrate! It's Pork Month

October is Pork Month.

To be fair, it's also British Black History Month, International Dinosaur Month, National Dental Hygiene Month, National Stamp Collecting Month and Adopt a Shelter Dog Month, among others.

All good and worthy observances, but none of the others makes your mouth water.

Food promotion months are designed to bring additional attention to specific products. Pork producers have celebrated in October for many years because before producers modernized their production cycles, there were always more hogs going to market in October and November than in other months, frequently causing a decline in the prices producers were paid. So with a little extra attention, consumers were reminded that pork is a terrific everyday meal option. It's still true, and October and the harvest season remain a good time to celebrate both America's farmers and the delicious pork they produce.

We'd like you to eat more pork, not just in October, but throughout the year. In addition to its great taste, pork fits neatly into the diet of anyone concerned about good nutrition. Pork is leaner than ever. In fact, a recent USDA-approved analysis shows that a 3-ounce serving of pork tenderloin is as lean as a comparably sized skinless chicken breast. A whole range of pork products, from chops to roasts, also are lower in fat than at any time in history.

So think this month about shelter dogs, dental hygiene, stamps and dinosaurs, but then fire up your grill and enjoy a tender, juicy pork chop.

- Mike Wegner