Special Collaboration for Latest Oklahoma State University Pork Donation

Joel Jackson and his team at OSU's Food and Agricultural Product Center "Cowboy Meats" helped source local pork products for Oklahoma Pork's recent protein donation to the campus food pantry.

As part of Oklahoma Pork's continued emphasis on protein donations to benefit food insecure students at Oklahoma State University (OSU), we recently gifted $250 for a pork restock at Pete's Pantry. Oklahoma Pork's latest financial support follows a 130-pound pulled pork donation to the student-led food pantry last fall.  

For this spring's donation, Oklahoma Pork coordinated with OSU's Food and Agricultural Products Center (FAPC) "Cowboy Meats" to source pork products that had been harvested and processed right on campus. Our donation secured 65 pounds of boneless pork chops to restock the Pete's Pantry meat fridge for collegians in need. In response to Oklahoma Pork's gift, Cactus Cares - the charitable arm of Cactus Feeders - has pledged to match our donation.

FAPC's Cowboy Meats is open for retail sale of OSU-raised animal protein products every Friday from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. The retail store sells a variety of local meats including steaks, chops, bacon and more.

The Pete's Pantry Network is a student-run initiative that advocates for reducing food insecurity across OSU's campus and meeting basic needs of the college community. They organize and take donations from various departments, student organizations, and community partners; such as Our Daily Bread, Alpha Gamma Rho-Pi Chapter, and others. Donated items include non-perishable and frozen food, canned goods, clothing and hygiene products.

Pig Farmers from Southeast Oklahoma Gather

Pictured here presenting is Angie Johnson serves as current president of Oklahoma Pork's board of directors and as a senior vice president for First United Bank. Angie's family operates Ran-Mar Farms near Holdenville.

Earlier this month, the Oklahoma Pork Council had the opportunity to share about our organization's work during two recent Tyson's Pork Group grower meetings in Southeast Oklahoma. Both meetings served as proactive gatherings to discuss disease prevention, animal care guidance for upcoming summer heat, and other company business.

Oklahoma Pork's board president Angie Johnson and executive director Kylee Deniz were also invited to present on the Oklahoma Pork Council's role serving our state's pork producers. Angie and Kylee outlined the four strategic intention areas where our board has continually affirmed the Oklahoma Pork Council should focus:

• Foreign Animal Disease (FAD) preparedness

• Workforce at All Levels

• Image Enhancement

• Freedom to Operate

Senior veterinarian for Tyson's Pork Group Dr. Steven Clifton also provided insight into animal disease preparedness of relevance to the group. Additionally, Oklahoma Pork's vice president Robert Peffley participated in the meetings since he serves as a pod manager for multiple farms. A special thank you to Jeremy Dickinson, vice president of live operations, for allowing Oklahoma Pork to participate in these educational afternoons involving Tyson contract growers from several counties.

Oklahoma Pork Deploys First-of-its-Kind Messaging for Spanish-Speaking Audience

Oklahoma is home to thousands of native Spanish speakers, as the Census Bureau estimated nearly 285,000 Spanish speakers in 2019 – increasing by roughly five percent each year.

This substantial segment of our state’s population represents customers of pork products and current (and potentially future) pork industry employees.

For the past few years, the National Pork Board has made additional funds available to state associations for new ideas to move our industry forward through a grant process.

In 2022, we dug deep into our communications and marketing strategy and applied for a portion of our grant dollars to focus on building industry pride with our Spanish-speaking employees who work on Oklahoma pig farms.

While Oklahoma Pork deployed Spanish Google ads focused on the pork industry’s economic impact and sustainability efforts throughout Oklahoma last year, the organization will continue the work to develop more Spanish content in 2023.

Spring 2023 National Pork Producers Council Legislative Action Conference

Pork producers from across the country convened in Washington, DC, this week to advocate for our industry and strengthen relationships with our federal policymakers. Attendees participated in national briefings and Capitol Hill visits to educate members of Congress and staff on current pork priorities.

Twice per year, the Oklahoma Pork Council participates in the National Pork Producers Council (NPPC) Legislative Action Conference (LAC). For this week's 2023 Spring LAC, Oklahoma was well represented by Dottie King - contract grower for Tyson's Pork Group, Alina Porta - production manager for The HANOR Company, and staff from the Oklahoma Pork Council.

With the 2018 Farm Bill set to expire this September, much of our group's focus was on the important disease prevention and preparedness programs we hope to see included in the new version. Click here to learn more about the pork industry's asks for the upcoming Farm Bill and the ongoing need for agricultural labor reform. 

Overall, Oklahoma’s LAC participants had a meaningful trip connecting with our federal representatives. The Oklahoma Pork Council remains proud of strong relationships with our elected officials and proud to serve as a resource to help their offices support pork producers.

Impressive Oklahoma State University Students Joining the Oklahoma Pork Council Team

In May, Kate Jackson of Mountain View, Oklahoma, and Braden Burns of Kingfisher, Oklahoma, will kick-off their rewarding and fun summer internships with the Oklahoma Pork Council.

After a highly competitive search, the Oklahoma Pork Council is excited to announce two outstanding college students will join our staff for the upcoming summer. Both individuals shined among an exceptional pool of nearly 50 applicants for the 12-week experience serving pork producers.

Kate Jackson is an agricultural communications junior at Oklahoma State University (OSU) with minors in agricultural business and marketing. Growing up in Mountain View, Oklahoma, Kate was a passionate swine exhibitor and an involved member of her rural community. Even as a college student, Kate helps run her family's Red Angus operation and volunteers her time at various pig shows. Last fall, Kate was a member of the 2022 Pork Industry Group leadership program at OSU where she learned more about commercial pork production and career opportunities in our industry.

Braden Burns is an agricultural business sophomore at OSU. He grew up in Kingfisher, Oklahoma, where he showed livestock and participated in a variety of leadership activities. Braden has worked with pigs, sheep and cattle through his family farming operation and jobs with area livestock producers. At OSU, he is an active member of FarmHouse Fraternity and several prominent on-campus organizations. In May, Braden will complete his term as Oklahoma FFA State President just before beginning his summer of service at the Oklahoma Pork Council.

Promoting Pork on National Agriculture Week

From breakfast-for-lunch to a build-your-own taco bar, the Oklahoma Pork Council sponsored three pork meals for state policymakers this week as an outreach opportunity reminding legislators about our versatile products. Oklahoma Pork Council’s Kylee Deniz also presented on our state's swine industry and our organization's work to the House Rural Caucus.

Happy National Agriculture Week to the hard-working Oklahomans throughout the pork supply chain! We will never stop celebrating Oklahoma pig farmers role in feeding the world delicious, nutritious and affordable animal protein.

One of the simplest ways the Oklahoma Pork Council advocates for our industry is providing flavorful pork meals to key audiences. This week, we had three separate opportunities to do just that for members of the state legislature. Appropriate during National Agriculture Week, Oklahoma Pork supplied more than 150 pork-focused meals for state representatives, state senators and staff throughout a busy week at the capitol. During Wednesday's House Rural Caucus meeting, Oklahoma Pork’s Kylee Deniz educated the audience on our the importance and impact of our industry while members enjoyed a tasty carnitas and tostada bar from Oklahoma Pork.

Servant Leadership Spotlight: Rob Richard at OYE

DNA's Rob Richard donated his time to help run the 2023 Oklahoma Youth Expo Swine Show.

The Oklahoma Youth Expo (OYE) pig barn is filled with Oklahoma Pork Council supporters each spring. Ex-officio board member Brett Ramsey spent his third year at the microphone as the show's cool-headed announcer, several hard-working Pork Industry Group alumni helped sift hogs, and countless friends of our organization donated their time to make the state's largest swine show run with impressive efficiency.

One of the most trusted names within this special group remains Oklahoma Pork member and previous Distinguished Service Award winner Rob Richard. Rob, who serves as a national account leader for DNA Swine Genetics, has volunteered his talents to help run the OYE swine show for the past 16 years.

"I do what I do today because showing pigs gave me my start in the business," Rob shared as the barrow show concluded on Thursday. He is a perfect example of the commercial industry successfully recruiting a student with a deep passion for animal care. Rob has spent his entire career in various segments of pork production, and he knows there are swine exhibitors today who would succeed in large-scale production.

"They already love pigs," he said. "That's part way there... maybe the toughest part to replicate." He encourages the Oklahoma Pork Council and all our member companies to seek out more opportunities to invest time in our local schools, including Career Techs. He believes we can continue to improve our pull-through of livestock students into pork industry success stories like his own.

Thank you to Rob Richard and the other incredible volunteers at OYE this year! Oklahoma Pork is proud to serve alongside industry leaders with integrity and vision. To learn a little more about Rob, check out his 2021 Oklahoma Pork Distinguished Service Award video below.

Oklahoma Well Represented at the 2023 National Pork Industry Forum

Oklahoma's 2023 National Pork Industry Forum voting delegates included: Travis Vaughan, Cathy Vaughan, Jessica Ingo, Angie Johnson, Thomas Craig and Tom Layne. Delegates are pictured here in Orlando, Florida, with Kylee Deniz and Ashton Mese Johnston from the Oklahoma Pork Council.

The Oklahoma Pork Council's voting delegates have spent the last three days representing our state at the 2023 National Pork Industry Forum in Orlando, Florida. Pork Forum serves as the annual business meeting for members of the National Pork Producers Council (NPPC) and the National Pork Board (NPB).

Because Pork Forum includes business for both national organizations, each state has two sets of voting delegates - one set for Pork Checkoff-related business through the Pork Act and one set for public policy-related business through NPPC. This year's Oklahoma Pork Act delegates attending the event were Angie Johnson and Jessica Ingo. Our NPPC delegates for 2023 included Tom Layne, Cathy Vaughan, Travis Vaughan and Thomas Craig.

Encouraging enrollment in the United States Swine Health Improvement Plan (U.S. SHIP) and encouraging utilization of tools like AgView and Secure Pork Supply (SPS) plans were the main subjects of discussion for updating national policies. On the NPPC side, the delegate body also voted to amend the organization's bylaws to allow the NPPC immediate past president to the officer team.

Additionally, our six delegates also voted on a slate of candidates to national positions. From an Oklahoma perspective, the most exciting news is that Oklahoma Pork member Cathy Vaughan of Smithfield Foods was elected to the National Pork Board's Nominating Committee. In this role, Cathy will help evaluate candidates for the board and gain valuable insight for potential future service on the full board. We are so proud of Cathy for stepping into this national role on behalf of Oklahoma!

Public Notice by the Oklahoma Pork Council and the National Pork Board

The election of pork producer delegate candidates for the 2023 National Pork Producers (Pork Act) Delegate Body will take place at 5:15 p.m., Friday, August 05, 2022, in conjunction with the Oklahoma Pork Congress and Annual Meeting at the Sheraton Oklahoma City Downtown, 1 N Broadway Ave, Oklahoma City, OK 73102. All Oklahoma pork producers are invited to attend.

Any producer, age 18 or older, who is a resident of Oklahoma and has paid all assessments due may be considered as a delegate candidate and/or participate in the election. All eligible producers are encouraged to bring with them a sales receipt proving that hogs were sold in their name and the checkoff deducted. Nominations will be accepted from the floor.

For more information, contact the Oklahoma Pork Council, 901 N Lincoln Blvd Suite 380, Oklahoma City, OK 73104, telephone 888-729-7675 or 405-232-3781.

Oklahoma's Give-A-Ham Impact

On Giving Tuesday, Joe Popplewell of Seaboard Foods launched the 2021 Give-A-Ham Challenge with an incredible 10,000-pound pork product donation to the Community Food Bank of Eastern Oklahoma. 

Popplewell, who serves as president of the Oklahoma Pork Council Board of Directors, used this opportunity to showcase that giving back is a cornerstone of what pork producers do. He also spoke about the realities of hunger throughout Oklahoma. 

For the third year in a row, Governor Kevin Stitt has highlighted Oklahoma pork producers' charitable giving through his involvement in our annual Give-A-Ham campaign. In his video shared via social media on Wednesday, Governor Stitt accepted the challenge and announced he will donate his ham to a longtime foster care provider in Oklahoma City.

The Governor thanked our state's hog producers for their generosity, including a specific shout out to the Seaboard Foods donation further explained below, and he encouraged Oklahomans to donate a holiday ham within their own communities. Governor Stitt's Give-A-Ham video concluded with selection of State Secretary of Agriculture Blayne Arthur, Speaker of the State House Charles McCall and Pro Tem of the State Senate Greg Treat being tapped to participate.

In the third week of the challenge, we saw a snowball effect across industries and communities. Challenges have been accepted within government including Lieutenant Governor Pinnell and others. From our friends at OSU, Give-A-Ham involvement has gone through President Shrum, Dean Coon, Athletic Director Weiberg and more. OU President Joe Harroz participated in the challenge, too. We owe a big “thank you” to multiple business owners, pork producers and friends of the Oklahoma Pork Council who helped make the 2021 Give-A-Ham challenge a success.