Annual Report

2022

• In March 2022, got nearly $6 billion in funding for a dozen programs that directly benefit the pork industry, including for agricultural programs to prevent and prepare for foreign animal diseases, improve disease diagnostics and testing, conduct agricultural research and continue agricultural inspections at U.S. ports of entry.
• Won extensions through Sept. 30 of the Livestock Mandatory Reporting Act and of a waiver from the federal Hours of Service rule for livestock truckers.
• Blocked Clean Air Act permitting requirements for livestock and a provision that would have required livestock facilities to report to EPA their greenhouse gas emissions.
• Defeated a policy related to climate change that could have negatively affected the pork industry and one that could have prohibited faster harvesting line speeds at packing plants.
• Convinced USDA’s Farm Service Agency to make changes to the Spot Market Hog Pandemic Program, broadening eligibility for COVID relief to more hogs sold through non-traditional buyers, including meat lockers and cull markets.
• Commissioned two reports on pork price inflation that found factors such as supply chain issues, labor shortages and higher feed, energy and transportation costs, not lack of packing industry competition are to blame. The reports also found that the pork industry is not among the 100 most concentrated sectors and that pork prices are much higher outside the U.S.
• Worked for 20 years with the U.S. government to get India to allow imports of U.S. pork and pork products into the world’s second-most populous nation. India had a de facto ban on U.S. pork.
• Worked with the U.S. government on market access to Nigeria, which now will allow imports of U.S. pork sausage and similar products. NPPC is working for additional access for U.S. pork.

2021

• Earned USDA designation of Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands as a “protection zone” as a way to maintain pork exports from the U.S. mainland should one or both of the U.S. territories get ASF.
• Secured $500 million in CCC funds for African swine fever (ASF) prevention and preparedness.
• Aggressively campaigned in 2021 against a decrease in plant harvesting line speeds, culminating in a USDA 2022 pilot program that restores faster speeds at impacted plants. According to ISU economist Dermot Hayes, just getting six plants back at faster speeds will increase harvest capacity by 3.6% and boost live hog prices by 6% one year after implementation. In addition, the pilot program may result in a revised rule allowing many plants to permanently operate at faster line speeds, which, according to Hayes, would have a very significant impact on U.S. harvest capacity.
• Worked with USTR and the Philippines government to get that country to expand its import quota for pork and cut the in- and out-of-quote tariffs, resulting in a 78.5% increase in U.S. pork exports to the island nation in 2021.

2021 (continued)

• Fought against California’s Proposition 12, organizing, developing and implementing a comprehensive, multi-pronged litigation strategy challenging it and similar animal housing initiatives.
• Secured $635 million in emergency appropriations for the Agricultural Quarantine Inspectors program, safeguarding the U.S. from ASF and other FADs.
• Successfully advocated for COVID-19 relief for U.S. pork producers.
• Prevented HSUS and other activist groups from placing a Proposition 12-style initiative on the Colorado ballot.
• Convinced Vietnam to reduce tariffs on U.S. pork to help offset the advantage the EU and CPTPP countries have there.
• Worked with NAHLN to increase sample types for ASF to double laboratories’ testing capacity and ability to conduct an increased number of ASF tests.
• Successfully led efforts to establish additional requirements for imported dogs to the U.S. from ASF-positive countries.
• Strongly advocated against tax changes targeting the step-up in basis, adding capital gains at death and reducing the estate tax exemption threshold. The provisions were removed from the House reconciliation bill and, as of now, are not in Senate consideration.
• Engaged with Massachusetts officials to delay implementation of Question 3, a 2016 ballot initiative similar to Prop 12.
• Spearheaded a letter from agricultural animal protein groups to USDA, following congressional notification of plans to close APHIS’s Philippines office; the office remained open.
• Submitted comments on the need to increase packing plant capacity, resulting in a USDA investment of $500 million to expand meat and poultry processing capacity and creation of a $100 million loan-guarantee program for expanded capacity and improved food supply chain infrastructure.
• Engaged on WOTUS to coordinate and manage a significant litigation coalition actively engaged in numerous domestic lawsuits and the Waters Advocacy Coalition engaged in development of EPA regulations rescinding NWPR rule and finalizing WOTUS replacement rule.
• Organized and developed a comprehensive legal strategy for responding to challenge petitions attacking the carbon footprint of the U.S. pork industry.
• Effectively engaged in the Codex process to minimize the potential negative impacts of revising the Code of Practice to Minimize and Contain Foodborne Antimicrobial Resistance and developing guidelines on integrated monitoring and surveillance of foodborne antimicrobial resistance.
• Worked with the U.S. government on a mini-trade deal with Ecuador that promotes trade facilitation and customs administration and paves the way for developing new agricultural trade policy.