Don’t get me wrong, I think it’s important to keep learning new things. If you don’t learn, you get stale. But at my stage in life, I figure I’ve earned the right to sit through a seminar only when the training really matters to me. Since I recently trained to be a qualified PQA Plus Advisor, that tells you I believe in this new program!
PQA Plus, backed by the National Pork Board, will allow pork producers to go on offense. As long as producers give field position to certain vocal groups, we can’t expect consumers to hear your message. And your industry has a strong message to convey. The pork industry needs to convince the consuming public it takes good care of animals.
You treat your animals well. You and I know that. PQA Plus will quantify your performance and provide ammunition to use when people start taking pot shots.
You’ll find useful guidelines in PQA Plus, tools that will help convince consumers we do what is best for animals. We need to spread that message. It is not up to the people consuming 1% of the product to dictate to the other 99%. The well-being of animals should be controlled by the people who tend those animals daily.
As a result of my PQA Plus training, I am now certified to train producers in this program and conduct on-site assessments. Once I (or someone else who completed the training) do an assessment of your operation, you’ll have the records documenting your performance.
This program has teeth in it. People who are found deficient will have to make corrections in order to continue to provide pork for the system. You see, packers have signed on to PQA Plus as well.
If, for some reason, your operation doesn’t measure up to the standards, you’ll need a trained Advisor to help you get back on the right track. In other words, the Advisor who conducts your assessment won’t just walk away. We’re mandated to guide you through 10 good production practices that will earn you PQA Plus Site Status.
Renew site status every three years
Once someone like me certifies your Site Status, you reach a new phase in the program. Your operation will be entered in the pool available for a Site Audit. Auditors, who are not the same people as Advisors, will conduct random visits to verify compliance.
Your initial Site Status endorsement is good for three years. So it’s a cycle: assessment, possible audit, and then assessment again.
This program makes sense to me because it is detailed and informational with an emphasis on good animal husbandry throughout an operation.
In the past, if animals were mistreated—lack of water, improper rations, or housing—we dealt with individual owners. Either we helped them adjust their practices or they went out of business. Back when I did a lot of cattle feedlot work, I realized some operators could detect sick animals early on, while others had great difficulty seeing the signs until an animal was near death.
Now, in larger farm operations, we often deal with employees who don’t come from a strong animal agriculture background. That’s okay. Some of our best employees were hired on without experience.
Of course, new employees do need training. We need to teach them to ask the right questions: Do animals have water? Are the waterers, in fact, working? Are rooms the correct temperature? How is the air flow? PQA Plus Advisors will be your resource as you train employees to recognize the signs and take the appropriate actions.
Yes, this looks a bit like a bureaucratic process…because that’s what the industry needs right now. It will take time, but it will be time well spent! Going in, I didn’t know I’d be glad I went through the Advisor training. But I am. I predict your experience with PQA Plus will be positive, too.
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