AM Minnesota Today Pork Month

October is Pork Month and that will be the topic on today's AM Minnesota Program. My guest will be Dave Preisler the Executive Director of the Minnesota Pork Board and the Minnesota Pork Producers Association. The Minnesota Pork Board is the check-off organization. All pork producers pay into the Pork Board every time they sell a pig. Funds can be only used for research, education and promotion. The Pork Board is overseen by the USDA.

The Pork Producers Association is a voluntary organization. Pork producers and supporters of the industry choose to pay into the association. Those funds can be used for public policy in St Paul or Washington D.C. The funds can also be used for anything the elected leadership feels is necessary to support the industry.

In addition to producing food, the pork industry also means a lot to our economy. Pigs eat a lot of locally grown corn and soybean meal. In addition they produce a lot of crop nutrients to fertilize the next years crop. Finally there are a lot of jobs in the pork industry in addition to those that are actually taking care of pigs.