Tyler Bettin, State Public Policy Director

Jan. 28, 2016

Contact:

Tyler Bettin, State Public Policy Director

(800) 372-7675,

For Immediate Release!

Buchanan County pig farmer earns 2015 Master Pork Producer Award

(CLIVE, Iowa) —A Buchanan County hog farmer has earned a 2015 Master Pork Producer Award from the Iowa Pork Producers Association.

IPPA presented the coveted brass belt buckle, emblematic of the award, to Keith Wilgenbuschof Winthrop at the Iowa Pork Congress Banquet in Des Moines last night. The honor included a brief multi-media presentation of his pork production enterprise.

Wilgenbusch, who has raised pigs for 20 years, owns and manages an 850-sow farrow-to-finish farm.He marketed 3,500 head to Tyson and Farmland in 2014. He also sold an additional 20,000 weaned pigs to other area producers. He operates a 50-head cow-calf herd with his brother and also farms 80 acres of row crops.

Animal health and biosecurity are high priorities for Keith and he notes that PRRS, including variant 174, has proven to be one of the largest challenges on the sow farm. Semen is collected from on-farm boars and extended on site as one way to minimize disease risk and reduce cost.

Pending and anticipated barn maintenance has led Keith to explore decisions on animal housing due to recent customer concerns on gestation stalls. He emphasizes the animal care and employee benefits of stalls and hopes for continued discussion stressing these points to customers moving forward.

Wilgenbush is active in the Buchanan County Pork Producers and Farm Bureau.

He and his wife, Jill, have four children andthey look forward to engaging their kids in hog, cattle, broiler, laying hen and sheep 4-H projects. The kids enjoy opportunities to help dad in the barn and be active on the farm.

Nominated by their neighbors and peers, Master Pork Producers are recognized for their innovation, attention to quality, efficiency and production records within their farm enterprise. They are considered industry leaders who are committed to producing the highest quality pork products. Their operations are environmentally sound, they care about the livestock, are good neighbors and active in their community.

IPPA and Iowa State University havecarefully selected Master Pork Producers every year since 1942.

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