Jan. 28, 2016
Contact:
Pay McGonegle, Chief Executive Officer
(800) 372-7675,
For Immediate Release!
2015 Honorary Master Pork Producers announced by Iowa Pork Producers
(CLIVE, Iowa) — Two Iowans who have made strong contributions to the success of the state’s pork industry have been honored by the Iowa Pork Producers Association.
Deborah Durham, director of the Iowa Economic Development Authority, and professor Dr. Steven Hoff of the Iowa State University College of Agricultural & Biosystems Engineeringhave been named Honorary Master Pork Producers for 2015.The pair was honored last night at the Iowa Pork Congress Banquet in Des Moines.
The Honorary Master Pork Producer Award is given to two people each year for their outstanding and distinguished service to the betterment and success of Iowa’s pork industry. Recipients are selected by the IPPA Board of Directors and the program is funded by the Pork Checkoff.
Deborah Durham
Governor Terry E. Branstad appointed Debi Durham director of the Iowa Department of Economic Development in January 2011. As one of her first orders of business, Debi worked with the governor and legislators to restructure the department to create a public-private partnership to update and improve Iowa’s delivery of economic development services. Debi now serves as the director of the Iowa Economic Development Authority.
Additionally, Director Durham oversees IEDA’s efforts to develop and expand Iowa’s entrepreneurial ecosystem. In collaboration with the Iowa Innovation Corporation, the private side of the public-private partnership, funding to support companies at early stages of development was increased and the mentoring processes to ensure these companies could be successful were made more robust.
Debi has been an active trade proponent as IEDA is engaged with Iowa’s pork industry and other agricultural partners to enhance positive trade relationships. She has been instrumental in support of meat trade activities, including coordination of trade missions, hosting trade teams and making the electronic meat supplier database available.
Under Durham’s leadership, IEDA has worked to help modernize, recruit and invest in new harvest and further processing facilities in Iowa. Most recently, these efforts have yielded significant results for the Iowa and U.S. pork industry as the joint Seaboard Foods and Triumph Foods harvest plant plans were announced for her home area of Sioux City. When completed in 2017, this plant will provide much anticipated and needed infrastructure for Iowa’s pork producers.
Debi holds a bachelor’s degree in business administration and a marketing and management degree from Missouri Southern State University. Durham and her husband, Joel, have two adult children.
Dr. Steven Hoff
Hoff is a Fellow of the American Society of Agricultural and Biological Engineers. He has received the Louis Thompson Distinguished Undergraduate Teacher Award and works in the Air Dispersion Lab at Iowa State University.
Putting “science into practice” has been a guiding motto for Dr. Hoff’s research in evaluation of and design conditions for efficient and sustainable animal production systems, sensor and controller development and air emission measurement and mitigation technologies for animal production systems.
Dr. Hoff has been an instrumental leader of IPPA-supported manure foam research in conjunction with the University of Minnesota and the University of Illinois, Champaign-Urbana and USDA. This collaborative effort aims to determine causes and solutions to manure foam, which has proven to be a significant storage and safety challenge for Midwest pork producers.
Steven continues to develop and refine the Community Assessment Model for Odor Dispersion (CAM), which has been used for siting evaluation of Iowa pig farms since 2005. This model was partially funded by IPPA and has been an important tool used in siting consideration discussions and enhanced neighbor relations though the Coalition to Support Iowa’s Farmers.
Evaluation of emissions from animal housing systems and cost effective gas and odor emission mitigation technologies continue to be of particular focus for Dr. Hoff. Additionally, he is working on methods to automatically and continuously control both space and radiant heating systems for efficient swine production systems.
Hoff holds a bachelor’s degree in agricultural engineering tech from the University of Wisconsin-River Falls and bachelor’s, master’s and doctorate degrees in agricultural engineering from the University of Minnesota.
Steven and his wife, Beth, reside in Jewell. They have two adult children and one grandchild.
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