January 18, 2021

US campaign showcases pork producer's environmental stewardship

The National Pork Producers Council (NPPC) in United States has introduced on January 13 a multimedia campaign called "Farming Today for Tomorrow" to showcase US pork producers' long-standing commitment to environmental stewardship and further reducing greenhouse gas emissions.

"For more than five decades, US pork producers have embraced advancements that have allowed them to do more with less," said NPPC president Howard Roth. "Hog farmers have an excellent story to tell and want to be part of ongoing discussions and solutions to address climate change."

The campaign features interviews with pork producers discussing on-farm efforts to reduce their environmental footprint, including the use of renewable natural gas to power facilities, hog manure to fertilise the land and precise nutrient farming to ensure fertiliser is only used where it's needed.

"Conservation is important to the future of our family operation because we rely on the ground. They're not making any new ground," said Duane Stateler, a hog farmer from McComb, Ohio, featured in the campaign. "It's invaluable to us that we protect and preserve what we already have."

"As a third-generation farmer, we've learned from our parents and grandparents that taking care of the land is important and that we have a responsibility to do so," said Lori Stevermer, a hog farmer from Easton, Minnesota, also featured in the campaign. "I want clean air and clean water because I live on the farm and next to our pigs….I want my children to have the opportunity to farm just like I have."

US pork producers have reduced their emissions to 0.4% of total US greenhouse gas emissions, according to 2019 Environmental Protection Agency data.

- NPPC