An estimated 12,000 people attended the 36th annual World Pork Expo — the world’s largest pork industry-specific trade show — at the Iowa State Fairgrounds in Des Moines June 5-6.
The NPPC event brought together pork producers and industry professionals from around the globe for two days of education, innovation, networking, and pork. Dozens of media attended, and more than 400 pork industry exhibitors from North America, Europe, and Asia displayed their products throughout the fairgrounds.
Highlights of Expo included an NPPC policy panel where its board officers and staff experts discussed the pork industry’s current legislative, regulatory, legal, and trade priorities. Among the topics covered were the 2024 Farm Bill, California Proposition 12, agricultural labor, an enhanced swine traceability system, international trade, and foreign animal disease preparation and prevention.
Distinguished guests at Expo included Jennifer Moffitt, Under Secretary for Marketing and Regulatory Programs at the U.S. Department of Agriculture, and Iowa Agriculture Secretary Mike Naig, both of whom spoke at two exclusive NPPC Strategic Investment Program (SIP) luncheons. Additionally, Canada’s Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food, Lawrence MacAulay, was in attendance at the Expo.
NPPC also launched the “Young Pork Advocates Issues Meet,” a speaking competition for young people aged 17-22. Competitors engaged in open dialogues on the pork industry’s most pressing issues, discussed solutions, and developed motions for addressing the issues, a method identical to NPPC’s process. After two rounds of competition on Wednesday, four finalists vied for top honors on Thursday, with Emma Kuhns winning a $2,500 scholarship and a trip to Washington, D.C., for NPPC’s fall legislative fly-in. The second-, third-, and fourth-place finalists — Amanda Ostrem, Graca Goettsch, and Bella Stouffer, respectively — also received scholarships.
Why it matters: World Pork Expo is the pork industry’s occasion to showcase its latest products, innovations, and technologies, exchange ideas, and educate the public about pork production and its challenges and opportunities.
