Pork producers told action plan key to saving pork industry

Recruiting allies in industry and government and developing an action plan is key to the survival of the Alberta pork industry in the face of growing challenges, says the outgoing chairman of Alberta Pork, the organization representing pork producers in the province.

In his "State of the Industry" address at the Alberta Pork Annual General Meeting (AGM) Dec. 5-6 in Edmonton, Jurgen Preugschas outlined a recovery plan for the pork industry, which is facing one of its most difficult years on record due to a skyrocketing Canadian dollar, rising feedgrain costs driven by the biofuel industry, decreasing processing capacity and a host of other challenges.

"We need to develop a plan for the survival of the industry over the long term. But for a long term plan to work, we need to be able to survive in the short term," says the Mayerthorpe area producer. "What that means is creating support. Part of that support will come from government, so it will be crucial to lobby local MLAs to make sure they are aware of the situation and invite them to become part of the solution finding process.

"At the same time, it's key that we welcome our partners in the pork supply chain to this process as well. With that support, we hope to be able to be around for our partners over the long term."

The first step in the recovery process, says Preugschas, is to understand the problem and create awareness. At the government level, this has been an ongoing process that is bearing fruit, with provincial agreements for $165 million in the Alberta Farm Industry Recovery Program for all agricultural producers.

Also, the federal government has agreed to $76 million in funding for pork producers affected by porcine circovirus associated disease (PCVAD). It has also agreed to efforts to speed up the process of bringing foreign workers into Canada. However, he says developing a relationship with government is one that will require continued effort.

The second step is to encourage people to help. In the case of partners in industry, Preugschas says this may include working with them to figure out ways to more evenly distribute profit margins throughout the supply chain. "We believe a supply chain is more than a value chain – it's also a support chain," he says.

The next steps are to develop and implement an action plan. A big part of this will likely be the sourcing of foreign markets for Alberta pork. "Although domestic consumption of pork has remained at the same level for many years, pork is the most consumed meat on an international basis. China, for example, is desperate for extra pork supply, and meat consumption in that country is generally more encouraged than it is in North America today."

However, with pork production in Alberta dropping dramatically and some producers talking about exiting the industry, Preugschas says the first step towards an action plan is to gain an assessment of the state of the industry. Alberta Pork is in the process of conducting a confidential survey of pork producers throughout Alberta in order to get an idea of producers' current level of hog production activity and their plans for the future. "To know where we're going, we have to know where we are," he says.

In business news from the AGM, the new chairman of Alberta Pork is Herman Simons of Tees, while the vice-chairman is Ben Woolley of Acme. The remaining board members are John Wipf of Bassano; John Middel of Rocky Mountain House; Ben Hofer of Two Hills; Dwight Peregrym of Blackfoot; Don Erno of Sexsmith, Alberta/Chase, B.C; and Peter Entz of Botha. Past chairman, Jurgen Preugschas of Mayerthorpe continues as Alberta Pork's representative on Canadian Pork Council and holds the position of first vice chair of the Council.

More information on Alberta Pork is available on the Alberta Pork Web site at www.albertapork.com.

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