Pork Industry Fosters Positive Attitude (Continued from Page A 1) member from their childhood, might better be looking to the future rather than the past for a solution. This was the lesson learned in Centre County Tuesday as representatives of Cal ifornia’s Niman Ranch meat marketing company spoke at a workshop in Centre Hall and sponsored by the Pennsylvania Association for Sustainable Agriculture (PASA), a nonprofit membership organi zation based in Millheim. The festivities began with a meal that featured delicious Niman Ranch pork loins that were donated for the event. Afterward, more than 100 people, mostly farmers, were treated to an unexpected “two-fer” when the advertised speaker. Paul Willis, who is manager of the Niman Ranch Pork Company based in Thornton, lowa, was joined by Bill Niman, founder and CEO of Niman Ranch, Inc., who hap pened to be on the East Coast for other business. With one speaking from the front* and the other from the back of the room, Willis and Niman shared with PASA’s guests the success story that is Niman Ranch, and re ported some of the more challenging as- pects of the business as well. Founded more than a quarter century ago, Niman Ranch seeks to produce and market “the finest tasting meat in the world by adhering to a strict code of hus bandry principles,” as their Website (www.nimanranch.com) reports. Willis ex plained to the attentive group that the strict code referred to means 1) neither growth-promoting hormones nor antibiot ics may be used, 2) feed must be free of meat and/or meat by-products, and 3) pro ducers must agree to adhere to the guide lines established for raising hogs by the Animal Welfare Institute (AWI) in Wash ington D.C. Willis further clarified that in addition to these standards, samples of products being sold with the Niman label must be tested for quality, including espe cially taste. Among the acceptable practices estab lished by AWI, hogs must be raised on pasture or in deeply bedded pens, and use of farrowing crates is prohibited. On hand at the workshop to represent AWI and the standards they require was Diane Halver son, originally a Minnesota farmer, and now the farm animal adviser for AWI. Apparently the idea is catching on among both farmers and consumers. The Niman Ranch Pork Company includes 210 farmers, who are part owners of the company and are spread over nine states, mostly across the Midwest. The company markets just under 2,000 hogs each week to about 900 restaurants, several high-end retail outlets (including Williams-Sono ma), and directly to individual consumers through the Website. Paul Willis, who himself produces each year about 3,000 hogs on pasture for the Niman market, is upbeat about the possibility Pennsylvania being the next state to join the team. Niman also spoke with considerable en thusiasm about the mission of Niman Ranch. “Our principle objective,” he ex plained, “is to ensure the financial viability of our farmers.” The program guarantees a bottom price of $4O per CWT for producers who have joined, and they are paying $65 per CWT for hogs that are certified organic. Produc ers can earn a bonus price when certain identified targets in terms of animal size are met as well. Niman further explained that “The Pork Company retains a penny and-a-half per pound to build equity and support daily operations, which is match- Lancaster Farming, Saturday, October 5, 2002-A33 ed by the Niman Ranch parent organiza tion.” Much of the discussion following the of ficial presentation centered on the eco nomic realities of Pennsylvania farming, including property taxes, cost of feed, and processing, etc. Asked whether Niman Ranch could adjust their pricing structure to meet such circumstances. Willis and Niman invited Pennsylvania producers to work together to find cost efficiencies, but indicated that some small degree of flexi bility might be in order. The emphasis throughout the discussion was on the future of meat marketing in this country. Niman Ranch is interested in Pennsylvania because there seems to be a large potential market in the Mid-Atlantic region for their products, and “the future is that consumers are wanting to buy from local sources and are willing to pay more for that privilege,” said Niman. Going beyond an emphasis on local sources, however, it was reported that peo ple increasingly want to know which farm er(s) in particular produced their food. In answer to that, the Ranch has instituted a new system of labeling some of their prod ucts with numbers assigned to individual producers. With farmer identities avail able on the Internet for consumers who care to look, it was clear that we’re not talking here about the way our grandpar ents raised hogs. There are many hurdles ahead before we know if Pennsylvania will be the 10th state to produce hogs for Niman Ranch customers, but organizers of this event promised to keep in touch with all who are interested and to hold future meetings that could lead to such an outcome, if not a more locally-based initiative. While not yet a mood of unbridled optimism, there was certainly a sense that the future may be bright for smaller hog producers who are innovative and can think positively and collectively about the market opportunities that exist. Those interested in learning more are encouraged to contact PASA in Millheim at (814) 349-9856, or www.pasafar ming.org. 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