Michelle Seeber
Woodward News
Woodward, Okla. —
Approximately 120 pork producers from across the state are expected to attend the 2010 Oklahoma Pork Congress (OPC) and Annual Meeting March 25 at the Express Event Center in Oklahoma City.
According to Nikki Snider, OPC communications coordinator, the meeting had originally been scheduled for Jan. 28 and Jan. 29. But because of the Oklahoma snow and ice storm those two days, it was postponed until March.
“The traffic and power outages around producers’ farms meant we’d have a smaller crowd, so we postponed it,” Snider said.
Updates on the pork industry and an election of delegates to the national meeting in March 2011 will be conducted, she said. Awards will also be given out.
The 2010 OPC Hall of Fame Award will be presented to John Thomas, Vice-president for Tyson Foods and general manager of the Pork Group, and to Myrt Mortenson, managing partner of Hanor, which oversees the Roberts Ranch of Oklahoma swine operations in Hennessey, Ames and Mooreland. Thomas will receive his award because Tyson is a supporter of getting production into the Holdenville area, Snider said.
Mortenson has been involved in pork production since 1975 and is a visionary, she said, noting he was a driving force in bringing pork production into Oklahoma in the 1990s.
Ron Hays, director of farm programming for the Radio Oklahoma Network, will receive the 2010 Distinguished Service Award, she said.
Hays is an advocate for Oklahoma agriculture and particularly to the pork industry, Snider said, noting that while going through news about the H1N1 virus, he “was really good to help us get news out that it’s OK to eat pork.”
Anyone who is interested in the pork industry may attend the meeting, whether or not they are an OPC member.
However, she said, only members can vote in the board election.
“We will be accepting new members that day if people want to sign up,” Snider said.
To get an accurate meal count for the meeting, OPC is requesting people preregister by March 18.
“If you registered for the original date, we ask that you register again,” Snider said. “There is no cost to attend Pork Congress.”
The registration form can be found at www.okpork.org. For more information, Snider can be reached at (405) 232-3781 or by email at communications@okpork.org.
