There seems to be a growing trend towards attaching claims to pork products, in hopes of differentiating from conventional pork. These claims are an attempt to convince the consumer that they should pay a premium for the product because of the perceived benefits. “Raised without antibiotics” is one popular claim that can be seen virtually everywhere, from grocery store to farm-gate store. Programs like CQA and organizations like the CFIA ensure that Canadian pork is free of drug residues so this claim should have no traction. Then why would anyone pay a premium for pork claiming to be drug-free?
The aforementioned programs and organizations use rigorous scientific research as a basis for the rules surrounding antibiotic use in pork production. Armed with this scientific knowledge you would think that no one would spend any extra money on pork “raised without antibiotics” and these products would quickly be removed from grocery store inventories.
If this is the case, I must be crazy, because I have been encouraging my father to consider switching to drug-free production. Usually if we are considering a change in production methods on our farm it is motivated by a feeding trial or a research publication. However, this change has absolutely nothing to do with science; it has everything to do with marketing.
We began selling our pork at a local store in Listowel in 2007 and are moving slowly to expand this business into larger urban areas. Almost without fail, if a potential customer has no ties to agriculture, the first question I am asked is whether we feed our hogs antibiotics or hormones. The urban population is constantly bombarded with messages that meat from animals raised under modern commercial conditions is filled with drugs and hormones.
I feel that we as producers have two paths; we can fight the misinformation and do a better job at educating the public or we can recognize an opportunity to capitalize on an uninformed consumer and fill the demand for pork that has been “raised without antibiotics.” Personally, I do not think that we as producers possess the resources needed to go out and educate the consumer. The groups that are paying for the counter messages have far deeper pockets than you or I.
I have to admit that my bias shows in the previous statements. I am a strong proponent of producers trying to capture markets that can deliver extra value for the pig and I think that we have to change the mindset of producers here in Ontario. The “raised without antibiotics” market is just one example of a change that producers here in Ontario could make in hopes of capturing more value for our hogs. Some naysayers suggest that these alternative markets are too small and they are not the answer to our problems here in Ontario, but I disagree.
What about trying to develop a drug-free region here in Ontario in hopes of attracting interest from a potential Chinese customer? Maybe there is demand in South Korea for pork with functional properties that we could fill. Accessing these potential markets would require cooperation between all levels of the supply chain, but perhaps if producers signal to their partners that they are willing to change production systems new doors would open up.
The high dollar in 2006-2008 exposed the inefficiencies of Canadian hog production as we struggled to compete against international competitors in the commodity pork market without the advantage of a devalued currency. New market opportunities could lessen the blow when the next crisis comes around.
I want to leave you with one last thought to consider. Two Perth producers attended the Canadian Pork International annual meeting in Toronto in February. From that meeting came the following statistic: Canada ranks LAST in the world in terms of generating value from of a hog. We have prided ourselves on delivering high quality pork to our customers; now the task is to get them to pay more for it.
“It is not the strongest of the species that survives, nor the most intelligent, but the one most responsive to change.” --Charles Darwin
Editor’s Note: Stewart Skinner is a farmer and student in Ontario, Canada. He is working on his Msc at the University of Guelph.
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