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National Pork Board Says New Tagline is About You, But It’s Not For You

Fri, 14 Mar 2025 14:32:15 GMT

The National Pork Board announced the tagline of its new pork campaign, “Taste what pork can do,” before a crowd of pork producers at the National Pork Industry Forum on March 13.

One message stood out to marketing advisory committee members Jennifer Tirey, Rob Brenneman and Gordon Spronk as they discussed the new tagline: I’m not the target. Likely, neither are you.

Here’s why that’s good news.

When Jennifer Tirey, executive director of the Illinois Pork Producers Association, first heard the final tagline, she admits it took her a minute.

“I had to sit with it. I had to say it a couple times,” Tirey says. “At first, I thought it was a little uneventful, that we were trying too hard. But as I thought about the consumer who is not in our lane every day, I was sold. Consumers need to hear this tagline the way it’s presented because we know they are not thinking about our product like we are every day.”

This is Tirey’s tenth year working for Illinois pork producers. Quite frankly, she says recent campaigns felt more like a rally of the home team.

“What’s different about this campaign is that it’s looking beyond the pork producer that already loves our product,” she says. “That’s where I feel like we’ve not hit that home run in the past. A lot of outside perspective was brought in, which is important to play at that level we’re hoping to play. Producers can have confidence that this campaign is being built around what consumers say they want about pork.”

It’s time to open the floodgates of flavor.

(Jennifer Shike)

Iowa pork producer Rob Brenneman wasn’t sure what to think at first either.

“The tagline isn’t meant for pork producers, though. We produce the product and then we want somebody to eat it,” Brenneman says. “We already know what it tastes like, and we don’t need a tagline to eat it. But we have to draw the attention of millions and millions of people who have not experienced raising pigs or being in agriculture.”

Taste Leads the Way
Brenneman stands behind the tagline because it emphasizes the most important thing he produces: tasty pork. Data shows taste and flavor matter to consumers of all ages.

Gordon Spronk, a veterinarian with Pipestone, says he was pleased with the final choice. He values the hard work, research and data that the National Pork Board used in determining the final tagline.

“Do you know what our agency did when they started the process of this campaign?” Spronk asks. “They had a barbecue. They came up with a number of things, and settled on “Taste what pork can do,” because they actually tasted, cooked and ate the pork. I was like, ‘OK, you got me there.’”

He believes the whole industry should pay attention because this is a key moment for the pork industry.

“Old guys like me and the generation coming up with our family farm are in a generational transfer. I’m really more excited for them than me when it comes to this tagline,” Spronk says. “I think they can ride this brand for a long time. It has great potential for a number of reasons.”

“We are unapologetically pork.” The consumer testing was very clear, says National Pork Board’s David Newman, that pork must be in the tagline.

(Jennifer Shike)

Using Pork to Sell Pork
The industry has not had a recognizable campaign stick since the tagline, “Pork. The Other White Meat.” established decades ago, Brenneman says.

One of the biggest reasons he’s excited about this new campaign is that it will use pork to sell pork. It sounds simple, but “Pork. The Other White Meat,” straddled the line between trying to be a little like chicken and a little like beef, Spronk says.

“That was a strategy we learned from,” he says. “We are unapologetically pork. We start at bacon, then go to sausage, pepperoni, ham and on from there.”

It’s Different This Time
This pork campaign will look different than past campaigns for two reasons, Spronk says.

“First, it’s not going to be about billboards, it’s going to be about swipes and clicks and screens that pop up,” he adds. “Second, the National Pork Board has a long effort in collecting the data of who’s actually eating pork. We know consumption for Gen Zs and Millennials is much lower than Baby Boomers. We need to speak to them. This tagline has been thoroughly tested by professionals, it’s not for me. I’m going to eat my 55 lb. regardless of what the tagline says. I’m probably not going to change my eating habits, but they may.”

Data shows younger Americans eat pork less frequently, says David Newman of the National Pork Board. Long-term consumption is at risk, but he says it’s all reversible.

(Lori Hays)

Chad Groves, CEO of Seaboard Foods and a director on the National Pork Board, says the younger generations love the processed side.

“They love bacon, sausage, ham, and we view that as the gateway to fresh pork,” Groves says. “I go back to my childhood, growing up in central Indiana, a pork loin was a part of our meal at least two to three times per week. My kids don’t have that same experience. The younger generations are not being exposed to the fresh pork category like we used to be.”

In the consumer segmentation research, the National Pork Board asked individuals who are not the prime pork audience how they feel about pork.

“A lot of the messaging and promotional campaign items they’re working on are going to be targeted to what those consumers said,” Tirey adds. “It’s not going to be geared to your traditional pork producer that loves making a great pork chop on the weekend on the grill. It’s going to be that consumer that doesn’t have as much knowledge about our product and how they can start adding it into their daily menus. That’s what makes me excited – the research behind the decision making that we are making today.”

Cultural Differences
The “can do” part of the campaign builds on the concept that the ways to add pork to every meal are unlimited. Pork’s 111 flavor profiles baffled Spronk at first.

“The cultural opportunities and ways pork is used globally are astounding,” he says. “I just returned from Cuba and have Cubano sandwiches on my mind. I love pork dumplings in noodle soup and cooking tonkatsu for my friends and family. I promise my grandmother didn’t even know what tonkatsu meant. We have not even scratched the surface of what pork can do in our blended U.S. culture.”

The pork industry doesn’t have the marketing budget to hit everybody, Tirey explains, so being strategic is key. That’s where the consumer segmentation data will help guide efforts to “ fish where the fish are .”

“The campaign won’t use a shotgun approach. We’re not going out to all consumers like some of the campaigns in the past,” Groves says. “This will be very targeted to identify younger consumers and speak to them in a way that resonates with them, whether it’s taste, flavor, convenience or something else, to pull them into the category. This is not an investment for next year. This is an investment into the next 25 years of pork production and beyond.”

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Advice From The Unexpected Spy: Stop Overthinking and Do It

Thu, 13 Mar 2025 13:15:07 GMT

If she’s being honest, Tracy Walder never imagined a life for herself as a CIA counterterrorism staff operations officer or as a special agent at the FBI. In fact, if she had thought too long about saying yes to those opportunities, her life would have looked much different.

But she did say yes.

The shy, thoughtful girl who was once bullied by her peers stepped into the unknown on a path she never imagined.

“I think a lot of times, if we veer from whatever path we thought we wanted, people get a little jarred by that,” Walder shared in an exclusive interview with Farm Journal’s PORK ahead of her leadership keynote at National Pork Industry Forum.

Former CIA and FBI agent Tracy Walder shares her story at the National Pork Industry Forum.

(Jennifer Shike)

It was the 1990s and terrorism looked a lot different than it does today, she says. College graduates were not actively pursuing careers in counterterrorism because it wasn’t in front of their face like it is now with popular TV shows such as Quantico, Covert Affairs, FBI and Homeland. People around her struggled to understand how she could join the CIA when she had always wanted to be a history teacher.

“Instead of people asking me ‘How?’ (which is a more important question), a lot of people were asking me ‘Why?’” Walder says. “I think we almost get stigmatized by that question of why. It causes us to not go down that path we were thinking about and just continue on the one we were on. I believe we must actively fight against that mindset every day.”

That’s one of the most important lessons she took away from her time at the CIA – that it is possible to overthink things and get too deep into planning and asking questions.

“Sometimes you just need to do it because asking questions becomes this crutch for us to not do the thing,” Walder explains. “I’m not saying we should be careless or reckless. I’m not saying we should not research things before we do them. But I think you can only plan for so much. You can only ask questions for so long before you we just need to get into it and do it.”

Much of her work in the CIA was like that. It was reactionary based on the situation that had arisen at that moment in time. She wasn’t always able to ask questions, she had to make decisions and move forward.

Meeting a Terrorist
Walder grew up in Southern California where her dad was a college professor. Although she says they weren’t ‘millionaires by any stretch,’ she had no idea what the world in dire straits looked like.

“I remember serving a tour in Afghanistan. When I came face to face with a terrorist for the first time, my first question was ‘Why did you become a terrorist?’” she says. “I knew that he was a radical, but his answer really changed my perspective.”

What he said didn’t absolve him of his behavior, Walder clarifies. He was a terrorist who killed people. However, his response opened her eyes.

(Photo provided by Tracy Walder)

“Talking to him about why he became a terrorist was a very pivotal moment for me,” she says. “He grew up in a country that we would label as a fragile or a failed state, meaning they’re not meeting the needs of their people. He was orphaned at age 7, had completely unchecked hepatitis and was living in a storm drain. A member of al Qaeda found him on the streets and offered him food, clothing, shelter, medicine, and as a result, this individual felt very beholden to them, and that’s why he became a member of al Qaeda.”

This life-changing conversation helped her identify for President George Bush at the time how to stop this threat from the ground up, rather than from the top down, Walder says.

Although she doesn’t remember feeling scared in her roles at the CIA and FBI, she admits there was one time when she did wonder how the situation would pan out for her in the end.

“In your 20s, you feel invincible,” Walder says. “I understood the job was risky – I’m not stupid. At 47 now, I don’t feel so invincible. I see the risks involved in what I was doing, but at the time, I don’t remember ever feeling scared.”

What She Almost Didn’t Put in Her Book
Moving on from the CIA to the FBI was a hard decision for Walder.

“I wish I had a sexier answer, but I was sick of being overseas,” she says. “I loved the CIA. There wasn’t any ill will or reason that I left. I was obviously and still am very passionate about the counterterrorism mission. I felt that the best way to do that work in the U.S. was to become an FBI agent.”

After 17 weeks of training at Quantico, she moved to the Los Angeles field office in the Santa Ana resident agency. She worked the very first Chinese economic espionage case in the U.S., white-collar crime cases like health care fraud and big arrests.

She was used to being the only female when she was at the CIA and had zero issues working in a male-dominated field.

“The FBI was a very different story,” Walder says. “I think we look at the gathering of intelligence as a bit more female. I think we associate law enforcement, like breaking down doors and arresting people, as a very male-dominated career. The number of struggles I had being the only female was not pleasant, and unfortunately, at the time, the FBI had no way to report or communicate any of that.”

It was a difficult time in her life. But it’s also when she realized she could help change the dynamic by going into education. She left the FBI, got her master’s degree in education and became a high school history teacher. She created a class on national security, foreign policy and law enforcement for girls to try to get them into those careers.

While writing her book, The Unexpected Spy, someone sent her an email about a 19-woman gender discrimination lawsuit at the FBI from Quantico.

“The head of Quantico at the time was an individual who made my life miserable when I was at Quantico. I did not join their lawsuit,” she says. “I found it interesting, though. To date, it’s the largest gender discrimination lawsuit ever against a federal agency. I almost didn’t put that I was an FBI agent in my book, so I guess it’s a fun fact I’m giving you because it’s really painful to talk about what happened.”

She’s since moved on from teaching high school and now teaches criminal justice at Texas Christian University. In addition to teaching, she serves as the National Security Contributor for News Nation – the only former CIA officer who’s doing that.

One of the greatest moments of Walder’s life was the night she launched her book, “The Unexpected Spy,” at the Spy Museum and 60 of her former female students who have jobs in national security showed up to support her.

(Jennifer Shike)

“It may sound silly, but representation does matter,” Walder says. “When people see a female who’s had the experience I have talking on these issues, we start to normalize it a little more.”

She says the most important lesson she wants to convey to her students is simple.

“You are your biggest obstacle, so don’t be the one to tell yourself ‘no,’” Walder says. “You’re never going to get the yes if you don’t even try.”

Want to learn more about Tracy Walder’s experiences as an ‘unexpected spy’ in the CIA and FBI? Watch the entire conversation with Walder on The PORK Podcast here or anywhere podcasts are found.

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Porkstars USA Brings Vietnamese Cuisine and U.S. Farmers Together

Fri, 04 Oct 2024 20:32:59 GMT

It’s one thing to read about it, but it’s another thing to travel across the ocean and experience it for yourself. That’s why Jackie Ponder, an Indiana farmer who raises pigs, corn and soybeans, decided to join the Indiana Soybean Alliance and Indiana Corn Marketing Council’s trade mission to Vietnam in September which focused on the benefits of U.S. pork and high oleic soybean cooking oil.

“I think it’s important for producers to be involved in these trade missions,” Ponder says. “There’s no doubt we hear a lot of great presentations from the National Pork Producers Council and National Pork Board about international markets. But it’s another thing to go over and see what the competition is like. How is our pork being presented? How important is pork to this country?”

Understanding how important pork is to Vietnam and to their diets opened her eyes to the value her investments have on export opportunities. Ponder, a member of the NPPC Strategic Investment Program (SIP) and Long-Range Strategic Planning Committee, is interested in helping legislators and producers understand key pork issues.

“We all know the dollars and cents benefit of exports – it’s a big chunk of the money we get per pig,” Ponder says. “I know the National Pork Board has been doing a really good job and working very hard on increasing domestic consumer demand. But there’s only so many people in the U.S. and even if we increase consumption, we’re not going to match what we could get with increased exports. I see investment not just in the National Pork Board, but also in the National Pork Producers Council critically important for me as a producer because it matters how much I can sell my pigs for.”

Al Wulfekuhle shows U.S. products on display in Vietnam’s Porkstars showcase.

(National Pork Board)

While in Vietnam on a USDA trade mission, the U.S. Meat Export Federation (USMEF) brought together representatives from the National Pork Board as well as the Indiana Soybean Alliance and Corn Marketing Council delegation to continue building relationships in the Vietnamese market.

Over the past several years, Vietnam’s domestic pork industry has been hampered by outbreaks of African swine fever, which have created new opportunities for imported pork demand.

“This is a great case where it’s important to be present, to be brand ambassadors for U.S. pork and our other commodities,” says Courtney Knupp, National Pork Board vice president of international market development. “It was one of the largest trade missions for the USDA. We’re talking all commodities, which shows a full court press of U.S. agriculture, the interest in the region and in Vietnam, especially a country where we have such historical ties, which has led to relationship building for decades.”

Why Vietnam?
Vietnam is a growing country with a growing middle class, explains Al Wulfekuhle, an Iowa pig farmer and president of the National Pork Board. Both the change in culture and modernization of the country are important factors to consider now, he adds.

“We’re in this for the long game, but there are some major hurdles to increasing short-term demand because of the culture shift,” he says.

They met with Vietnam’s chief veterinarian officer who shared that in the peak of African swine fever, they lost 6 million pigs in 2019 and the number to date in 2024 is 64,000 pigs.

“Between biosecurity and the vaccine working very well, their production is coming roaring back,” Wulfekuhle says. “Their reliability in exports isn’t as much as it was even a year or two ago. But I believe the U.S. needs to be in Vietnam, building trust and developing long-term relationships. I think there’s a huge opportunity for long-term demand.”

Knupp says there are many opportunities for value-added and premium product placement in Vietnam. For example, the U.S. is successfully exporting pork spareribs. They are also seeing some really unique partnerships in food service with Korean barbecue using U.S. pork hearts.

“It’s a great way to continue to maximize our carcass. We want to make sure we’re selling every part of the pig at the highest value every day,” Knupp says.

As an Indiana soybean grower, Chris Eck says Vietnam is an important country to be in now. He says most of the soybeans produced in Indiana are run through livestock so when exports increase, the demand for Indiana soybeans and corn increases. That’s why their state has stepped up to the plate to help promote pork in Vietnam through their Porkstars USA showcase, now in its third year.

Porkstars USA brings together three well-known chefs in Vietnam with three young social media influencers who each have close to a million or more followers.

(Amie Simpson)

Porkstars USA brought together three well-known chefs in Vietnam with three young social media influencers who each have close to a million or more followers. The teams included the Northern Team with influencer Vu Gia Bao and chef Le Xuan Tam . The Central Team included influencer Phan Ngan Ha and chef Dinh Son Truc . The Southern Team was made up of influencer Ong Chu Nguoi Bong and chef Cam Thien Lon .

“The younger generation in Vietnam is very focused on healthy eating and these influencers represented that segment,” Ponder says. “The cooking pairs were given U.S. pork spareribs and asked to come up with an appetizer and a main dish in a live cooking competition.”

Ponder, Eck, Knupp and Wulfekuhle served as four of the judges in the showcase.

“They just outdid themselves, showing how versatile pork is,” Ponder adds. “They did things I had not seen done before in the U.S. It was delicious, but the presentation was just over the top. Plus, they talked to the camera the whole time. And, of course, we can’t forget the dancing pig mascot. It was a ton of fun.”

The influencers will then take the video shot during the showcase and use it on a regular basis in the future to promote cooking with U.S. pork and high oleic soybean oil.

Chris Eck farms near Boggstown, Ind.

(Amie Simpson)

Eck, an Indiana Soybean Alliance board member, grows high oleic soybeans on his operation in Boggstown, Ind.

“In Indiana, we produce a significant amount of the high oleic soybean oil,” Eck says. “Everything in Porkstars is cooked in that and people can see the value of not only U.S. pork, but also the cooking oils that we provide.”

Indiana farmers are the leaders in growing high oleic soybeans, planting nearly 850,000 acres in 2023. Farmers receive a premium for growing high oleic soybeans. Increased demand for high oleic soybean oil benefits those growers and consumers.

Why the U.S.?
USMEF is doing great work to promote U.S. red meat in key export countries. But the reality is they can’t do their job as well without farmer input and support. The farmer’s voice matters most and this younger generation in Vietnam sees U.S. pork as the “end-all, be-all,” Ponder adds.

“They know U.S. pork is nutritious, it’s reliable, and they are cooking with it. Each one of those social media influencers share and make recipes online, and they teach others about the importance of being healthy and cooking with reliable meat,” she says.

What is reliable meat? Ponder says it’s when you can rely on taste and quality.

One of the items prepared in Porkstars USA.

(National Pork Board)

“That’s not always something you can rely on from our partners in other countries. We have a reputation for being high quality good protein, whole nutrition that you don’t get on a consistent basis from our competition,” she says.

The biggest hurdle for U.S. pork in Vietnam remains tariffs. Not having a free trade agreement with Vietnam poses severe challenges.

“I know NPPC does a great job getting into the markets and talking with in-country representatives, but we really need the support of the government behind us,” Ponder says. “While we can work to bring down non-trade barriers, it’s hard without the support of our representatives to bring down the tariffs. We’re always going to have to be better, and we are. And while I know U.S. pork is better than the competition, sometimes money matters.”

That’s why the investments into building these export markets helps, Wulfekuhle says.

At Indiana Soybean Alliance and Indiana Corn Marketing Council, market development is a big part of their strategic plan, Eck says. They work with partners to accelerate demand for Indiana soybeans and corn in all forms through those exports.

“Our yields have gotten high enough that exports are vital. When you have competition like Brazil, who has seemingly unlimited acreage, making these relationships overseas is absolutely crucial,” Eck says. “The senior director of market development for ISA and ICMC says, ‘It’s that face-to-face meeting that makes the difference. You may lose on price here, you may win on price there, but it’s building relationships face-to-face that enables you to win the ties when the price is the same between the U.S. and another competitor.’ That face-to-face means we win the ties; we sell the beans.”

Why You?
And at the end of the day, farmers want to know where their investment dollars go. That’s why Eck makes it a point to help bridge the gap between U.S. farmers and international market opportunities.

“It’s exactly like any other job you hire for or invest in. If you hire the co-op or another company to spray your crop, you don’t just assume that it was done right, walk away and never go look at it,” Eck says. “You go look at the product. You see what kind of job they did, and make sure that, yes, this is what we’ve invested in, and we are getting our money’s worth.”

Showing up matters, Eck says. When you don’t show up live, you can’t really understand how it’s going.

“You can get feedback from collaborators and consultants, but you don’t see exactly what is happening,” Eck says. “When you show up, or send board members or employees to look, you can find out exactly what’s happening and be part of figuring out what improvements need made.”

For Wulfekuhle, it’s about shaking hands, smiling and truly connecting with other people who want some of the same things you do – to be able to safely and affordably feed their families.

By the end of the mission, he hopes people realize that U.S. farmers are good people and good business partners.

Ponder says there’s nothing like producers coming back and telling other producers face to face about their experiences.

“People want to see people – boots on the ground – and know their money is being well spent. Farmers are well known for being very conservative when it comes to fiscal decisions. They don’t want to spend money on things that are frivolous,” Ponder says. “I can attest to the fact that our money, given all that I’ve seen, is well spent.”

Watch the Porkstars livestream here.

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