Over the past several years, the Oklahoma Pork Council has participated in "Read an Accurate Agriculture Book Week" each September to help introduce children to more realistic content about the food and fiber system. Although many books exist about pigs, our team noticed a gap of available options that expose young readers to the science of modern pig farming. So instead of simply wishing better options existed, Oklahoma Pork's Matti Carlile chose to take action.

"I've had the idea to write a children's book for quite some time," Matti shared. "At the end of last year, I decided to bring it to reality. This book is an educational tool for students to learn about the pork industry."

Matti spent the last several months researching and drafting a story that walks readers through a commercial sow operation at an appropriate reading level for elementary students. The book also includes a glossary of important pork-specific vocabulary words like biosecurity, farrowing, veterinarian, and more. Matti's story reinforces the hard work, skill, and collaboration required within pork production in an approachable way.

When it came time to bring Matti's words to life, she found an incredible partner in Oklahoma Pork's Shay Stegmann. Shay's stunning on-farm photography and graphic design talent truly made "It Takes A Team: Pigs and Their Caretakers" beautiful. Together, Matti and Shay have created a fun avenue for all of us to more easily share the pigs to pork story with the next generation of consumers.

Congratulations to Matti and Shay on this special accomplishment. The Oklahoma Pork Council also thanks Dr. Brooke Kitting, Antonio Santiago, and the crew at Seaboard Farm 49 for being stars of this story. We cannot wait to see all the ways "It Takes A Team" gets used to highlight Oklahoma pork production in a whole new way. To request your own copy to share with family, friends, or your local library - click here!