(Lincoln) -- The Nebraska Pork Producers are doing the best they can to help others during a rough 2020.
Like other pork farmers around the nation, they faced a tremendous backup of hogs when processing plants shut down due to COVID-19. The group got together with the University of Nebraska’s Loeffel Meat Lab to process pork and give it away to those in need. Jane Stone, Director of Domestic Marketing with the Nebraska Pork Producers, says the idea started with Columbus-area farmer Bill Luckey.
“He started thinking about it because we had some animals that, with the whole COVID-19 situation, instead of being able to go to market, they were being euthanized. Instead of euthanizing them, how can we get them processed and donate them to the Lincoln Food Bank and places such as that.”
He found a receptive audience at the University of Nebraska, where similar discussions were already taking place, and the “Pork Cares” program was born. Pork Cares has processed and given away more than 10,000 pounds of pork to needy people in Nebraska.
“The biggest beneficiary has probably been the food bank of Lincoln. They’ve probably taken the bulk of the meat. We’ve worked a little with the Food Bank of the Heartland in Omaha. A lot of the pigs that were donated by producers to the program are from the Columbus area, so we did a special donation of ground pork to the food bank in Columbus.”
They’ve also taken steps to get pork in the hands of some of the state’s homeless population.
“We have brought the National Pork Board’s marketing trailer into Nebraska. It’s called the Pork Trailer and is basically a big rolling kitchen with grills and a staff and it’s turned out really nice. We’ve been doing Pork Burger Lunches those facilities and right around 200 showed up each time, give or take.”
She says 10,.000 pounds of pork is a large number and it took a group effort to reach that milestone.
“That’s a lot of pork. It’s worked out very nicely. Loeffel Meat Lab and their staff have been awesome to work with and it’s been a great collaborative effort.”
The Pork Cares Program is on hold for now as classes have resumed at the University of Nebraska. She says the Nebraska Pork Producers are hoping to keep the program going at least one or twice a year going forward.
The Link LonkSeptember 13, 2020 at 04:00AM
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Nebraska "Pork Cares" Program Donates 10000 Pounds of Meat - KMAland
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