In March, the U.S. Secretary of Agriculture announced new actions that will allow greater efficiency in the pork industry.

What You Need To Know

  • New actions that will allow faster line speed in pork production 

  • The National Pork Producers Council praised the U.S. Ag Secretary for the changes

  • This provides financial security and more stability for pork producers

“So, as an impact to the producer, this is really important to have that stability,” said Patrick Hord, vice president of the National Pork Producers Council.

The new USDA policy cuts administrative red tape, speeding up the processing line at pork production facilities.

“It’s good for USDA, the USDA people are really excited about it because they have trouble getting inspectors hired, so essentially it’s a partnership between the plant and the USDA,” Hord said.

These reforms are expected to help strengthen U.S. food production, reduce costs for producers and support a stronger supply chain while lowering costs of pork for the consumer.

“It does increase the efficiency for the plants that are set up and utilize it but ultimately had to be proven that it was A: food safety was not compromised and B: safety wasn’t compromised,” Hord said.

And it took a while to get to this point. Hord said they started pilot testing with the USDA for this 20 years ago.

“It’s been a long time coming, and I feel like we got a good result now for the pork industry,” Hord said.

The National Pork Producers Council President Duane Stateler, a pork producer from McComb, praised the US Ag Secretary for the changes, saying it will provide financial security and more stability for pork producers. 

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