The 2008 Saskatchewan Pork Industry Symposium, presented by the Saskatchewan Pork Development Board and the Livestock Development Branch of the Saskatchewan Ministry of Agriculture is scheduled for November 19.

This year's theme is "Moving on in a New Business Era."

Symposium coordinator Jessica Podhordeski says, in recognition of a combination of challenge being faced by pork producers, the 2008 program has been reorganized, the biggest change being that the event has been shorted from two days to one.

Jessica Podhordeski-Saskatchewan Pork Development Board

Over the last year we've seen hog prices again not being very high at all, grain prices for feed grain being fairly costly and sometimes difficult to find as well as added cost for marketing the animals as they are traveling further distances as we no longer have a processing plant here in Saskatchewan.

So with those having happened our theme and our agenda, going forward, reflects those difficulties and we're touching on the production side of things as we normally do, trying to get the most out of your dollar for feed and for production as well as just moving into what the future may hold, future challenges for the feed grain sector and the global protein markets, where is our competition, where do we need to go in the future.

Podhordeski says, despite the new format, the annual banquet and silent auction will continue to highlight the symposium.

She says hopefully, the one day format with a reduced registration cost will draw a good number of producers and industry stakeholders out to the conference.