The Iowa Pork Producers Association (IPPA) is partnering with the Iowa Pork Industry Center and Iowa State University Extension and Outreach to offer free Pork Quality Assurance Plus (PQA Plus) and Transport Quality Assurance (TQA) programs for Iowa pork producers.

Special quality assurance training sessions will be hosted at the 2013 World Pork Expo on Wednesday, June 5,and Thursday, June 6. All sessions will be hosted in room A-2 of the Varied Industries Building on the Iowa State Fairgrounds. Interested individuals should pre-register by contacting IPPA at (515) 225-7675 or [email protected]. Session details are as follows:

Wednesday, June 5

PQA Plus 9:15 a.m. – Noon

TQA 1 p.m. – 3:30 p.m.

Thursday, June 6

PQA Plus – 9:15 a.m. – Noon.

Additionally, Pork Quality Assurance Plus (PQA Plus) and Transport Quality Assurance (TQA) training sessions will be offered in each of the eight IPPA districts throughout the summer. 

District 1

Wednesday, July 17

Northwest Iowa Community College

Building A, Room 116/119

Sheldon

District 2

Tuesday, August 20

Humboldt County Extension office

727 Sumner Ave.

Humboldt

District 3

Tuesday, August 27

Borlaug Learning Center

3327 290^th St.

Nashua

District 4

Thursday, August 8

Delaware County Extension Office

1417 North Franklin St.

Manchester

District 5

Thursday, June 20

Cass County Community Center

805 West 10^th St.

Atlantic

District 6

Tuesday, June 25

Guthrie County Extension Office

212 State St.

Guthrie Center

District 7

Thursday, August 1

Marion County Extension Office

210 North Iowa St.

Knoxville

District 8

Thursday, August 1

Johnson County Extension office

3109 Old Hwy. 218 S.

Iowa City

All district locations offer TQA from 12:30 p.m. to 3 p.m. and PQA Plus from 3:15 p.m. to 6 p.m. All sessions are sponsored by IPPA and the Pork Checkoff. Producers are encouraged to pre-register to allow adequate space and materials. To pre-register or for more information, contact IPPA at (515) 225-7675 or email [email protected].

PQA Plus and TQA are part of the industry-aligned We Care responsible pork initiative, which establishes ethical principles for pork producers to produce safe food, protect and promote animal well-being, protect public health, safeguard natural resources, provide a safe work environment and contribute to a better quality of life in their communities.

“Pork producers continue to demonstrate their commitment to their animals and customers through their participation in quality assurance training and the We Care responsible pork initiative,” says IPPA President Greg Lear. “We take these commitments very seriously as we focus on continuous improvement to deliver the safest food in the world.”