National Pork Industry Forum is an annual gathering of pork producers from across the country, with 46 states represented, in addition to multiple countries and allied industries. Delegates from the National Pork Producers Council and the National Pork Board meet at Forum, this year in Indianapolis, to formulate the agenda and programs each organization will undertake throughout the following year and beyond.

While producer-delegates are forming the path that the NPB and NPPC will take during their few days together, life back on the farm does not stop, hogs do not stop growing. What also doesn’t stop while producers are attending forum are the outside pressures on agriculture and the pork industry. The NPPC and NPB have been on top of those issues and the outside pressures.

That was never more evident as on Thursday morning as CBS news aired a story on fast food restaurants’ move to provide meats from production systems that implement antibiotic-free practices. Before the echo of the sound bites had faded, the communications team of the NPB went to work to help correct some of the inaccuracies in the CBS presentation.

Kevin Waetke, NPB vice president of Strategic Communications, submitted a response on behalf of the NPB, stating “The National Pork Board supports a consumer’s desire for greater food transparency, but it is critical that information shared with them is accurate and not sensational in its approach. The 60,000 pig farmers we represent have been preparing the past 18 months for the very real and substantive changes that are occurring on pig farms across the country in regard to responsible antibiotic use.”

Producers are not blind to the consumer concerns as they center on the food that they eat, and how that food is produced, including the pork that comes from the barns across the country. With that in mind, the NPB rebuttal to the CBS story included:

“Preserving the effectiveness of medically important antibiotics is critical in our commitment to ensure a safe food supply and to build consumer trust. Consumers must understand three key concepts:

Meanwhile back at Forum, not even hours after the CBS story aired, David Pyburn, NPB senior vice president of Science and Technology, presented to the NPB board of directors the work that has been done to get all producers on board to be in compliance with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration implementation of new regulations addressing on-farm antibiotic use and new rules on Veterinary Feed Directives when they go into effect Jan. 1, 2017.

Thanks to the work of the NPB, as well as what us at National Hog Farmer have printed in our publication and on our website, producers should be well-informed on the antibiotic-use issue and the well-prepared so as not to be caught off-guard or out of compliance of these new regulations. But, as the CBS story proves, the education mission of the NPB goes beyond that of only pork producers. The NPB and the producers themselves need to take the lead on engaging, educating and informing their neighbors, as well as their urban friends on the responsible pork production practices.

Responsible production practices involve the responsible use of antibiotics, and the issue was heavily included in formal and informal discussions during Pork Forum. These discussions need to continue long after Forum, as well as long after the new rules take effect with the flip of the calendar. These discussions are also being taken to those fast-food companies who have pledged to provide meat produced in antibiotic-free production systems. That pledge in itself may go against the very nature of responsible production practices.

Though no industry likes to be told how to do their business, especially by misinformed or under-informed organizations or consumers, it is the reality of the world. However, it never does hurt for the industry or individual producers to reevaluate or reassess what has become business-as-usual.

A solid producer-veterinarian relationship should have already been developed, but the Jan. 1 regulations will require a Veterinary-Client-Patient Relationship. Producers need to use this veterinary relationship to their benefit. If you haven’t already, have discussions with your herd veterinarian of how your operation fits into these new rules. The NPB has created multiple resources for producers and veterinarians to be prepared for Jan. 1, many of which can be found at pork.org/antibiotics. As Pyburn told the NPB board of directors, “this is a good chance to assess your herd-health and welfare strategies.”

Be proactive, as the Pork Checkoff materials say: Don’t Wait … Be Ready!