"Whether you have a large or small farm, you can never be too prepared for a crisis or emergency," said Derrick Sleezer, a pork producer from Cherokee, Iowa, and member of the National Pork Board. "The two new Checkoff-funded tools allow producers to fill in the blanks and tailor each plan to his or her operation, providing a clear plan of action in an otherwise challenging time."

The Farm-Level Crisis Response Plan template provides a framework for evaluating the risk of on-farm crisis situations, identifying prevention measures and responding effectively should a crisis occur. The electronic planning tool outlines five crisis response steps, as well as how to assess the intensity level of a crisis. The plan includes guidance in assembling, preparing and activating a crisis team; assessing areas of vulnerability; determining the most important communication audiences; capturing information needed to make timely, accurate decisions; and taking steps to control the situation using hour-by-hour checklists. The tool is designed for confidential use and is available through a downloadable version at pork.org/farmlevelcrisisplan or as a desktop version.

The Emergency Action Plan is a valuable tool to reduce the impact of an emergency on a producer's farm. The electronic tool provides an outline for producers to create a customized plan for their operation, including, operation information, site contacts, a hazard plan and a maintenance/training calendar that can be customized for each farm site and hazard type. Also designed for confidential use, two versions are available - the downloadable version available at http://eap.pork.org or as a desktop version.