D2-Lancaster Farming Saturday, February 25,1989 World Pork Expo Planners Gearing DES MOINES, lOWA With special emphasis on pork’s role in a healthful, nutritious diet, orga nizers of the industry’s premier event have moved preparations for the 1989 World Pork Expo into high gear. More than 75,000 pork produc ers, families, exhibitors, interna tional visitors and consumers are expected to attend the 1989 Expo, set at the Illinois State Fair grounds in Springfield from Sun day through Tuesday, June 18-20. An auction of pork cuts from the 1988 Illinois State Fair Grand Champion Barrow highlighted a community briefing in Springfield late last year. The event raised more than $9,000 for cardiovascu lar research at the University of Illinois and Southern Illinois Uni versity schools of medicine. “We were pleased with the response by the Springfield com munity, as well as pork industry, business and government leaders from the state of Illinois and across the United States,” said Ernie Barnes, Expo coordinator. “The kick-off event in Springfield underscored the pork industry’s ongoing effort to provide consum ers with lean, nutritious products. Helping producers develop those products is one of the Expo’s cen tral themes.” World Pork Expo is a presenta tion of the National Pork produc ers Council (NPPC) in association with the National Pork Board. Assisting those two organizations with plans for the second annual event are distinguished represen tatives of the Illinois pork industry as well as state civic and business leaders. Members of the 1989 World Pork Expo Board of Governors include Dwayne O. Andreas, chairman and chief executive of Archer-Daniels-Midland; John Block, president of the National- American Wholesale Grocers Association and former U.S. sec retary of agriculture; George Brauer, an Illinois pork producer; Willard Bunn 111, president of the Marine Bank; Mike Duka, head coach of the Chicago Bears; Dr. Stanley Ikenbcrry, president ol the University of Illinois; Illinois Congresswoman Lynn Martin, and Governor James Thompson. “The Board’s task is to offer guidance so the Expo meets the needs of both producers and the general public,” Barnes noted. “That’s a big job, considering the many components that must be brought together for one three-day event.” Focus on information, education Since the primary goal of World Pork Expo is to promote the efficient production of high quality pork, producer education through trade exhibits and semi nars is a continuing emphasis. During the 1988 Expo in Dcs Moines, more than 900 exhibit spaces were taken by 476 agribu sinesses. Expo ’B9 will be even larger, with more than 1,100 booths available to showcase the products and services of compa nies from around the world. Vari ous indoor trade show areas, plus outdoor space for large machinery and equipment, will cover more than 100,000 square feet. A classroom training opportun ity will be available, too, in the Expo College, a series of seminars and hands-on demonstrations to help pot£ producers "brush up” oh money saving ideas and the latest Up For Mid-June Event technologies available for more efficient production. Among topics are porcine biotechnology, farm health and safety, international pork produc tion, swine health, lean meat mer chandising and marketing. Expo- College is sponsored for the sec ond year by MSD AG VET, the animal health division of Merck & Company, Inc. Also promoting practical infor mation exchange is the Expo Co llege Technology Center, where university Extension swine ex perts will share ideas on applica tion of new technology with pro ducers. Displays, computer simu lations and demonstrations will be offered on such subjects as carcass evaluation, genetics and swine health. An added event for youth is the Pork Scholarship Aptitude Test (SAT). Youth can earn a col lege scholarship by scoring high est on swine practice computer tests. The health and safety of pro ducers will be considered, 100, at the Farm Family Health and Safe ty Center, sponsored by both American Cyanamid Co. and Pioneer Hi-Bred International, Inc. Genetic challenges On the subject of experiments, scientists agree that results arc more fact-filled the second time around. That’s why meat scien tists, pork producers and packers arc looking forward to completion of “Pork Challenge II.” The 1988 “Challenge” olfered valuable analysis of production efficiency and product quality ol today’s commercial hogs. This year’s data will aid producers as they analyze future breeding decisions. Pork Challenge is a cooperative program of the NPPC, the Minne sota Pork Producers Association and lowa Stale University. Pitman-Moore, Inc. is underwrit ing the research again in 1989. The basis for genetic improve ment in pork production is high quality breeding stock. Producers interested in upgrading their herds’ genetics will have that opportunity during the 1989 Expo. The 1988 Expo brought major breed shows and sales together for the first time. Live swine shows featuring the major breeds will again be part of the event. The shows and sales drew strength from their combined numbers and several records were set and even better numbers are expected this year. Producers can also view hybrid companies’ stock and exo tic swine from around the globe. Producers also can test their ability to judge their hogs’ value to packers during the Pork Value Contest. Sponsored for a second year by “Hogs Today” magazine, the contest is open to all visitors, with prizes awarded to the top placing judges. The grand prize is a pickup truck provided by Purina Mills. Another test, albeit in a lighter vein, will be the “Squeal of For tune Raffle,” a game show espe cially developed for producers by sponsor Moorman Manufacturing Co. Prizes to be raffled off include a new car. And for the second year at the Expo, Pork All-Americans from across the United States will be honored for their achievements and contributions to the industry during a program sponsored by Fermenta Animal Health. Visitors from far and near While Springfield is conve niently located for many pork pro ducers, some Expo visitors may wish to leave the driving to some one else. Free bus transportation to the host city from selected sites throughout the Midwest will be provided again in 1989. Detailed information on board ing sites, routes and schedules will be available later this spring from Kent Feeds, Inc., underwriter of the service. As its name suggests, World Pork Expo attracts visitors from beyond the U.S. borders. More than 900 international guests attended the 1988 Expo, and more are expected this year. To help foster the exchange of information among producers and allied industries throughout the world, an International Guests Center will be located on the Expo grounds. Sponsored by The Upjohn Company, the Center will provide a wide range of services to foreign visitors. More than 100 media represen tatives attended the 1988 Expo and similar numbers are expected at Springfield. The World Pork Expo News Center will assist print, radio and television repor ters, editors and photographers with their coverage of the event. Jointly provided by Hoechst- Roussel Agri-Vet Company and NOR-AM Chemical Company, the news center facilities will fea ture a media workroom, interview area and lounge. Several media companies are participating directly in the 1989 Expo. “National Hog Farmer” will again sponsor the Non-Patented Inventions Contest, an opportuni ty for pork producers to show off their mechanical talents. “The Hog Producer” will provide the official Expo program, and “lowa Fanner Today” will provide pre event promotion and a telephone hotline with the latest information on Expo events and activities. Entertainment, too This year’s Expo will find pro ducers, consumers, sponsors and exhibitors united to share ideas, expand their knowledge and explore new opportunities. But they’ll still find time to have a little fun with their work. A variety of pork recipes will be demonstrated by a host of experts involved in packing, retailing and the hospitality industry at the Pork Products Showcase, sponsored by Elanco Products Company. Open all three days of the Expo, Pork Products Showcase will include cutting and cooking seminars illustrating pork’s versatility. Some of the best fun will come at* the Great Pork BarbeQlossal™. More than 35,000 people attended this taste of cooking skills contest during the 1988 Expo, where the preparation and serving of 13 tons of barbecued pork earned a listing in the Guiness Book of World Records. The IjO-foot-long “Big Grill” will again be the center of attention. The 1989 Great Pork BarbcQ lossal, again sponsored by Pfizer Agricultural Division, is expected to deliver the same excitement and flavor during the Springfield Expo’s opening day. The official WPX barbecue sauce. Cookies Bar “B” “Q” Sauce, will spice up the samples available to the public. Opening day events will con clude with a major musical act, yet Beef IS Briefs It really is amazing to me that we can still be talking about the pros and cons of frame size in beef cattle after almost 20 years of such discussions. More recently though, the discussion has been because selection on frame size, particularly in show steers, has moderated. As an extension livestock agent in Missouri a few years ago, I had the job of weighing and measuring about 1,000 calves yearly for that state’s performance testing prog ram. Through the efforts of Dr. John Massey, Missouri was a lead er in using frame size as a selection tool in beef cattle. Many of us who worked with John are still unsure why frame size became such an absolute measure of performance. Dr. Massey was always quick to point out that frame scores were made to help a breeder in two ways: to estimate the mature weight of an animal, and to describe weight as lean, fat, or fill. That was all it was intended to tell us, and that is all it still tells us. Frame score was not intended to be a single trait for selection nor was it intended to tell us anything about efficiency or profitability. My own research in this area, which I did while at the University of Georgia, showed the trait is moderately to highly heritable, which means we cannot expect hybrid vigor for frame size in a crossbreeding program. Secondly, like most other traits, there is as much variation in frame size with in a breed as there is across breeds. One of the early bits of universi ty research in this area found that taller calves would grow faster and be leaner at a given body weight endpoint. That is not really surpris ing considering the composition of the gain in cattle of those sizes. Further study showed that steers fed to the same compositional endpoint will have similar effi- ciency of feed utilization. Nothing was ever said about whether one would make any more money than the other. However, as a means of classifying different levels of gain, the original study labeled them as 1 through 5, with 5 being the tallest. Since 5 is a bigger number than 3, then 5 is better than 3, right? The industry appeared to agree with that statement and the race was on. In the beginning there probably to be named. Topping off the evening will be a fireworks extra vaganza sponsored by the Adolph Coors Company. And throughout the Expo’s three-day run, the best in bluegrass and country music will be featured alongside acts by local entertainers. by John Comerford Penn State Beef Specialist was a need to increase the mature size of oar cattle, which indirectly leads to animals having a leaner body composition over a wider range of weight. With the frontal attack from the consumer on fats in the diet, it was probably a lucky thing the industry was using larger cattle. As late as the early 1980 s the average frame size in the indus try was still no more than four, so “all these big cattle” were in trulli not really there. More recently, though, the commercial cattleman has indicated it has gone far enough and has begun to discrimi nate against the larger-framed “show bull.” I even heard a club calf salesperson (okay—l mean a steer jockey) say some calves were 100 tall for him to use. Imagine that! As with any livestock species that has been heavily selected for one or two traits, something will have to be compromised. For the swine breeders a few years ago, the selection for extreme leanness led to poor structure and a loss in reproductive efficiency. For cattle breeders, it appears some natural thickness and proper bone struc ture has been reduced. What’s next? The selection seems to be headed toward more muscling and milk production. We should take a lesson from the hog breeders about the former one before going 100 far, and we should really examine the costs and benefits of the second. There is one constant in the whole process, and that is change will occur. Let’s just hope it leads to better cattle that make more money. CATTLEMAN’S CONFER ENCE I want to again take this oppor tunity to invite you to attend the 1989 PA Beef Cattle Conference on March 17-18, at the Altoona Sheraton in Altoona, Pa ’1 he prog ram is completed and registration information is available by con tacting me or a representative of the Pennsylvania Cattleman’s Association. The program will feature sever al topics about the health and man agement of the cow herd at wean ing, a telcauction of feeder calves, an address from the president of the National Cattleman’s Associa tion, and other programs of interest to the industry. “The first World Pork Expo more than met the expectations of those involved in organizing the event,” Bames concluded. “We’re looking forward to another suc cessful program m Springfield this June.” GIGANTIC SELECTION IN Lancaster Farming's CLASSIFIEDS
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