“Pork Professional Test” Debuting at Oklahoma FFA Convention

The 2024 Oklahoma FFA Convention is this week in Tulsa, where the 10,000 FFA members in attendance will be able to find their pathway in pork. Our team can’t wait to continue our youth outreach efforts to students across the state with actionable next steps to “Work in Pork.”

Last fall, Madalyn Friend and her Pork Industry Group team members created the "Pork Professional Test" as a part of their final presentation. The purpose of the Pork Industry Group final presentation was to present workforce ideas to the Oklahoma Pork Council Board of Directors. Madalyn's group shared that they wanted their idea to be different and creative. The group’s idea stemmed from personality quizzes members previously took through their college courses. Madalyn shared that she knew just enough about coding to potentially create a pork career quiz. From there, group members started brainstorming the different sectors of the pork industry to include, what platform the quiz should be created with, and fine-tuning the questions.

“It has been a really rewarding opportunity to create something like this. It is awesome knowing that I can potentially impact the next generation and show them the pathway to some really cool career options within an industry I am so passionate about,” Madalyn shared.

The "Pork Professional Test" will be available for all FFA members to take at Oklahoma Pork’s FFA Convention tradeshow booth #801-803 on Tuesday and Wednesday during the tradeshow hours. Plus, we will be talking pork industry careers during Oklahoma Pork's Career Success Workshop titled "Pathways in the Pork Industry" on Tuesday, May 7th at 4 p.m. in Conference Hall C-D.

Supporting Communities after Saturday Night's Tornado Outbreak

In the wake of the recent tornado outbreak that struck the eastern side of our state, the Oklahoma Pork Council board and staff along with local pig farmers mobilized swiftly to aid affected communities. Below is a summary of our storm response efforts.

Marietta: Oklahoma Pork President-Elect Joe Locke fired up the Oklahoma Pork smoker to prepare and serve pork meals for his hometown of Marietta. Starting on Sunday at noon, Joe cooked tirelessly into Monday providing much-needed warm meals to residents following the Marietta tornado. Click here for Governor Stitt, Senator Lankford and FEMA's look at the Marietta tornado damage.

Holdenville: Oklahoma Pork Council Board of Directors Rich Robinson and Angie Johnson collaborated on a free pork lunch for the Holdenville community on Monday. Some pig farms in the Holdenville area experienced structural damage from the tornado. Click here to watch New 6's coverage titled "You Rebuild and You Stay": Holdenville Community Rallies After Tornado Hits.

Sulphur: Recognizing Sulphur as one of the hardest-hit communities in the state, Oklahoma Pork collaborated with Operation BBQ Relief to provide a free pork lunch on Tuesday. But, we did not stop there. Understanding the ongoing need, Oklahoma Pork arranged for additional support by securing a refrigerated truck from the Community Food Bank of Eastern Oklahoma to stay in Sulphur for the week, and specifically routed a Ben E. Keith truck to the Sulphur Walmart parking lot with 10 cases of pork loins and 10 cases of pork butts resulting in thousands of additional pork meals being prepared by Operation BBQ Relief for the Sulphur community starting with dinner on Tuesday night through Friday. Oklahoma Pork's Shay Stegmann captured photos of the Sulphur tornado damage and has uploaded them to Oklahoma's new digital asset platform for you to see the heartbreaking tornado damage here.

 A sincere thank you to Oklahoma Pork's board and staff team for swift action and commitment to helping those in need. We continue to extend our thoughts and prayers to all impacted by the storms. If you know someone in need, please encourage them to fill out our request for support form so we can connect them with the appropriate resources.

Prairie Fresh Pork, Made in Oklahoma and Oklahoma Pork Collaborate on a Retail Activation

On Thursday, the Oklahoma Pork Council and Made in Oklahoma (MIO) sponsored our third shopper sweepstakes and free pork lunch event but this time at Uptown Grocery in Edmond. Starting at 11 a.m., Uptown Grocery shoppers were served a free Prairie Fresh pulled pork sandwich with Head Country BBQ sauce. The pulled pork sandwiches were so popular that we served 400 of them in just one hour.

The collaboration at Uptown Grocery was also successful with over 1,650 entries into the MIO shopper sweepstakes. The lucky shopper sweepstakes winner, Sierra Jackson, had the opportunity to shop for seven minutes and fill her cart with as many MIO products as possible. As a proud supporter of the Prairie Fresh brand produced by Seaboard Foods, Oklahoma Pork was thrilled to see Sierra head straight to the meat case to stock up on Prairie Fresh pork.

The MIO Coalition is a group of more than 100 food and beverage companies that work to raise awareness for products made in Oklahoma and increase consumer loyalty to the products made in the state. Oklahoma Pork is intentionally and unapologetically inserting pork into consumer purchasing consideration through this and past MIO collaborations.

"It's a pleasure to collaborate with the Oklahoma Pork Council as they are a great associate member of ours. It is important to shine a light on pork and all the great pork-producing companies here in the state of Oklahoma that work together on retail initiatives benefiting our partners and their partners," shared Emily Shuping, MIO Executive Director.

Our Gratitude on Administrative Professionals Day

Krista Carroll, pictured above and legislative assistant to Rep. John Pfeiffer, loved her maple bacon whoopie pie.

Administrative Professionals Day is a time to celebrate the invaluable contributions of office professionals, and the Oklahoma Pork Council seized this opportunity to show our gratitude in a unique and delicious manner. For years, our team has been delighting legislative staff at the State Capitol with pork-centric treats as a token of our appreciation for their hard work.

This year, we explored various bacon treats and landed on a mouthwatering maple bacon whoopie pie from Pie Junkie, a beloved small business in Oklahoma City's Plaza District. Our collaboration with Pie Junkie was a perfect match, and these delectable maple bacon whoopie pies are available for purchase on some Fridays from their store.

Our team, along with our contract lobbyist, James McSpadden, surprised each legislative staff member floor by floor with these delightful treats. The response was overwhelming with many expressing how much our gesture meant to them.

Pathways in the Pork Industry at the Oklahoma FFA Convention

More than 10,000 Oklahoma FFA members will travel to Tulsa from across the state next month for the 2024 Oklahoma FFA Convention. The Oklahoma Pork Council team is eagerly preparing for memorable pork experiences throughout the May 7-8 event.

On the tradeshow floor, the Oklahoma Pork booth will be our hub for sharing our popular "Work in Pork" message, which highlights the endless career opportunities in the Oklahoma pork industry. Additionally, Oklahoma Pork has been invited to present at one of the six Career Success Workshops. Our workshop titled "Pathways in the Pork Industry" will take place in Conference Hall C-D on Tuesday, May 7 at 4 p.m. We are thrilled to have this unique Career Success Workshop platform to recruit our future workforce!

Our team is excited to reconnect with passionate students we have met throughout the years and ready to encourage many more next-generation agricultural leaders to lean into pork industry opportunities. We ask you to encourage FFA members in your community attending the 2024 Oklahoma FFA Convention to stop the Oklahoma Pork tradeshow booth #801-803 and attend our May 7 workshop!

Successful Oklahoma Ag Day at the Capitol

On April 16th, the Oklahoma Pork Council joined the agricultural community at the State Capitol to celebrate Oklahoma Ag Day in grand fashion. This officially proclaimed special day was a wonderful opportunity to showcase the importance of agriculture in Oklahoma.

Oklahoma Pork's double-booth in the 2nd floor Capitol Rotunda served as a popular hub for sharing charcuterie samples, distributing fun pork swag, and providing valuable industry information to legislators, staff, and the public. For the past few years, the Oklahoma Pork booth has been recognized as a standout booth of Oklahoma Ag Day. We are always looking for ways to make pork memorable so this year our board president Tom Layne suggested incorporating chicharrons into our pork offering. This unique pork addition was incredibly well-received and added an exciting talking point to our booth.

Plus, Oklahoma Pork representatives attending Oklahoma Ag Day had the opportunity to have several special meetings with individuals including Governor Kevin Stitt, House Ag Chairman Dell Kerbs in his office and Senate Ag Chairman Chris Kidd between votes.

We extend our gratitude to the Oklahoma Department of Agriculture, Food and Forestry team for their leadership in hosting Oklahoma Ag Day at the Capitol!

Oklahoma Pork Ambassador Hits the Road with “Work in Pork" Message

Sophomore at Tulsa Community College and current Oklahoma Pork Council Ambassador, Molly Buckmaster, delivers her "Work In Pork" message to students in Woodward.

Oklahoma Pork Council's Spring 2024 Ambassador, Molly Buckmaster, has been on a mission to spread the word about the exciting opportunities in Oklahoma's pork industry. Since taking on the role earlier this spring, Molly has been traveling across the state engaging with FFA chapters and communities to share her passion for the pork industry.

With grant funding from the National Pork Board, the Oklahoma Pork team drafted a strategy to visit 10 FFA chapters across the state leading up to the May 7-8 Oklahoma FFA Convention. Molly created a presentation to educate students on the broad range of jobs available throughout pork production - regardless of their experience with pigs or educational goals.

Molly opens each presentation by discussing her background within the Oklahoma pork industry and talks about the specifics of how Oklahoma Pork serves the state. She then dives into the possible career opportunities available within pork. Molly then discusses the four steps of preparing students for success in internships, job shadowing and other career opportunities, and demonstrates how to build a proper resume. Molly ends each presentation by handing out Oklahoma Pork branded backpacks, hats, gift cards, squishy pigs and stickers.

“I am grateful for the opportunity to pour back into the community and the industry that built me into the person I am today and helped me find my place in life. I am excited to share with each FFA chapter the other side of the agricultural and pork industry,” Molly shared.

Our team thanks Molly for her service as this spring’s Oklahoma Pork Ambassador!

Pork Takes Center Stage at the Oklahoma Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics Convention

Pork took the main stage of the 2024 Oklahoma Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics Spring Convention.

Oklahoma’s Conference for Dietetic and Nutrition Professionals was held April 11-12 in Bethany. 250 dietitians gathered from all around Oklahoma where speakers shared the importance of topics such as food labels, healthcare technologies, AI, diabetes and animal proteins.

The Oklahoma Pork Council took a strategic step by inviting Emily Krause, a registered dietitian from the National Pork Board, to speak at the conference. On Thursday, Emily shared the importance of the connection between animal proteins and exploring why we eat the foods we do. Emily’s presentation covered the factors influencing good food choices and consumer insights around purchasing meat, including pork. She discussed the nutritional value of meat and animal protein in a healthy, sustainable diet and the value it plays throughout the lifespan. She rounded out her conversation with a discussion on the role animal proteins play in positively impacting the environment. 

Emily serves as the director of nutrition, health and wellness initiatives at the National Pork Board. She manages healthcare professional relationships and educates healthcare professionals on pork nutrition and pork research. She also manages the Pork & Partners community where 1,500 healthcare professionals are currently seeking continuing education opportunities, events, recipes, and research. Click here to view recipes and learn how you can include pork in your diet.

Oklahoma Pork Industry Leaders Advocate in Washington, D.C.

Oklahoma's pork industry leaders Tom Layne of The HANOR Company, Cathy Vaughan of Smithfield Foods, and Cristina Carmona of Prestage Farms of Oklahoma, along with Oklahoma Pork Council Executive Director Kylee Deniz, returned to Oklahoma from the 2024 Spring Legislative Action Conference hosted by the National Pork Producers Council (NPPC).

During the Washington, D.C. visit, Tom, Cathy, and Cristina met with various members of Congress and their staff including Congressman Frank D. Lucas, Senator Markwayne Mullin, and Senator James Lankford. They discussed a range of topics including the need for a Farm Bill, issues related to the TN visa process, and efforts to prepare for a foreign animal disease outbreak.

Oklahoma's representation in D.C. was truly a source of pride for our industry. Tom, Cathy, and Cristina dedicated time away from their home and farms to advocate for Oklahoma’s pork industry.

Pigs Bring People Together: An Inspiring Story

During the 2024 Oklahoma Youth Expo, a heartwarming event took place that highlighted the bond between pigs and people. The first-ever Oklahoma Pork Partners Derby brought together 8th-12th grade Oklahoma 4-H and FFA students from various backgrounds to showcase their hard work and dedication in raising pigs.

One of the standout moments during the Oklahoma Youth Expo was when Alex Brooks was named the 2024 Oklahoma Pork Partners Derby Grand Champion. In the fun video linked above, Alex, a resident of the Tipton Children's Home, shares her journey and how her pig project has impacted her life in ways she never imagined. She expresses gratitude for the opportunities that her pig project has provided and highlights the importance of her ag teacher, who has been a guiding light throughout her project.

But perhaps the most inspiring part of Alex’s story is the enthusiasm and passion as she talks about the bond she formed with her pig. We invite you to watch Alex’s video and hear her story firsthand. Pigs truly bring people together, and Alex’s story is a testament to the incredible impact pigs can have on our lives.