VERSAILLES, Ohio — The Pork Checkoff, along with its cosponsor, National Hog Farmer magazine, has selected an Ohio pork production operation to be honored as one of the 2011 Pork Industry Environmental Stewards.
The award, now in its 17th year, recognizes producers who demonstrate a firm commitment to safeguarding the environment and their local communities. This year’s award recipients are: Wuebker Farms in Versailles, Ohio.
Jeff and Alan Wuebker raise nearly 43,000 weaned pigs per year on their farm near Versailles, Ohio. The brothers, together with their families and employees, tend to not only the pigs, but to about 50 head of dairy beef cattle and more than 1,200 acres of corn, soybeans, wheat and alfalfa.
The Environmental Steward award winners were selected by judges represented by pork producers and environmental organizations.
The judges reviewed applications from pork producers who are committed to upholding the ideal relationship between pork production and the environment. Their operations were evaluated on their manure management systems, water and soil conservation practices, odor-control strategies, farm aesthetics and neighbor relations, wildlife habitat promotion, innovative ideas used to protect the environment and an essay on the meaning of environmental stewardship.
The award recipients will receive the recognition of their peers at the 2012 National Pork Industry Forum next March in Denver.
