Carmona Recognized for Her Commitment to People and Pigs
Many people dream of moving from Mexico to the United States. For Cristina Carmona that dream came true in 2003.
After obtaining a bachelor’s degree in animal science from the University of Chihuahua, in Mexico, Carmona was able to achieve a master’s degree at New Mexico State University.
Growing up, Carmona and her family raised cattle and were involved in other sectors of agriculture. It wasn’t until she came to the United States that she had any interaction with pigs.
In 2005 Carmona was recruited by Murphy Brown and has been engaged in the swine industry ever since.
Today Carmona is the production technical trainer at Prestage Farms of Oklahoma.
She spends her days working on recruiting international workers, certifications and conducting onsite assessments.
“I am in charge of doing the certifications for PQA and TQA,” Carmona said. “I also do the site assessment internal audits we have to do for the Pork Checkoff.”
Carmona is also in charge of international recruiting and making sure employees are doing what they are supposed to keep everyone safe.
“We need to make sure we are producing our pigs in the standards we need to,” she said. “We need to make sure we are giving the animals the well-being they deserve.”
Carmona is the 2020 Oklahoma Pork Council Excellence Award Winner. This award recognizes individuals in all areas of pork production for going above and beyond every day at their workplace.
Carmona said it was very exciting when she found out she was the award winner.
“It means a lot to me,” she said.
Robert Teel, sow production manager, and Greg Stephens, general manager, at Prestage Farms nominated Carmona for this award.
“Cristina has become a vital part of this operation,” Teel said. “She has a great feel for how we as a company are doing in regard to the employees’ overall engagement and satisfaction.”
Teel said he could go on for days about Carmona’s impact on the Prestage operation.
“Cristina has never turned down a challenge in 15 years that I have worked with her,” he said.
Carmona said that her job is never boring, and she has the opportunity to learn something new every day.
“It’s a place to work with people and animals,” she said. “It is a perfect combination.
