Challenges Facing Pork Industry at Annual Meeting
US - Pork Act Delegates are to discuss some of the key issues, challenges and opportunities facing the pork industry during the annual meeting of the US pork industry.![]() |
Lynn Harrison, National Pork Board President. |
The meeting takes place from 6-8 March in St. Louis at the National Pork Industry Forum.
The Pork Act Delegate Body theme for this year is Owning our Future: The Choices We Face.
"This theme should give us much to debate regarding how the U.S. pork industry can be accountable to its customer's desires, while building a trust relationship and doing so in a sustainable manner," said Lynn Harrison, National Pork Board President.
"A special task force will issue a report and delegates will consider a resolution endorsed by several states laying out a process for achieving success in building that trust relationship," said Alan Wilhoite, a National Pork Board member and chairman of the Pork Checkoff Resolutions Committee.
"In addition, there will be debate on resolutions dealing with support for PQA Plus™, The Other White Meat trademark, industry image and gestational housing research."
"Forum is a key time for the people, who invest in the Checkoff, to participate in the business of how to use those investments to address the critical issues faced by U.S. pork producers," said Mr Harrison.
"Delegates will discuss the profitability challenge facing them today and understand the options available to them over the next several months."
In addition, normal business will be conducted by the Delegates as it relates to the Pork Checkoff programme, including the rate of the Checkoff and the amount of Checkoff revenue distributed to state pork associations for Checkoff-funded programmes. Delegates also nominate producers and/or importers for appointment to the National Pork Board and to the Pork Nominating Committee. The recommendations concerning the Pork Checkoff and the appointments to the National Pork Board are made to the US Secretary of Agriculture, who makes the final decision.
Pork Act Delegates are pork producers or importers nominated by their state pork producer associations or individually, then appointed by the Secretary of Agriculture. Each of the 50 states may be represented by at least two Pork Act Delegates. The number of delegates and the voting "power" of each delegate are determined by the amount of Checkoff collected from the state they represent.
For 2008, the Secretary of Agriculture appointed 155 pork producers and 8 importers to the Pork Act Delegate Body. States have the option of not submitting nominees; three states did not submit nominees and four states submitted only one nominee. Importer representation is based on assessments on imported pork and pork products.
More information about the Pork Checkoff activities at the National Pork Industry Forum is available on the Pork Checkoff Internet site www.pork.org.