A billion-dollar rain, a massive new space and a welcome break from social isolation have breathed new life into Alberta Pork Congress. Cancelled the last two years in response to pandemic-related cautions, the 2022 version would test the waters for the future of the show. 
Organizers reviewed their options early this year and decided to forge ahead, president Donna Van Gorp said on June 15, as the two-day show opened for the first time since 2019. 
It was a tough decision back in January and February, when there were still restrictions, said Van Gorp. But organizers felt holding the show in 2022 was important to ensure its viability into the future. By that time, though, it was too late to put together the awards banquet that has been the highlight of previous shows, so that portion was cancelled for this year. 
“We can get back to normal next year. That banquet takes significant planning,” she said. 
Other changes for 2022 included the move to Westerner Park’s new Exhibition Hall, built in what used to be an open space between the pavilions and the Agri-Centre. Several people remarked that the 2022 show seemed smaller than in the past, likely because the space is so much bigger than what was available in the Parkland and Stockmen’s pavilions, said Van Gorp. 
“That’s a discussion for the board: Does it seem too empty? Do you want that atmosphere of it being busy? At the same token, with Covid, it’s nice to have that space,” she said. 
Personally, she preferred the spaciousness offered in the new hall. 
Van Gorp also said she was thankful for the cold, rainy weather that likely encouraged a higher turnout from producers because it was too wet to work outside. The rain also brought optimism after two years of drought that there could be some relief in the high cost of feed grain. 
Exhibitor Jim Haggins from Design Concrete said the rain had been significant and constant, soaking easily into dry subsoils. 
“There is some optimism that feed grains will come down a bit if we can continue to get a good crop,” said Haggins. 
“We need three more months of timely rains.” 
Haggins said his business is counting on support from farmers who will need to replace flooring in old barns and who are renovating to meet new standards of care for sows in gestation. 
“There’s not a lot of new building, but there is still a lot of old barns out there that will need some form of restitution. The deadline (for open housing of sows) got pushed back a bit; several people today are talking about going to have to do it. Those who are in the business now are locked in.” 
Haggins said those producers have faced challenges in the past and are hopeful for positive changes in the future. Pork Congress provided exhibitors with a chance to meet those producers in person and talk about their needs. 
“Everybody we talked to is equally pleased to be mingling together again and sharing stories and so on,” he said. 
John Waldner from EnerSIP Corp. in Dominion City, Manitoba, said shows like Pork Congress are essential for staying in touch with producers, regardless of the health of the industry. Focused on ventilation, EnerSIP was started to supply a swine industry that was booming in the late 1990s and early 2000s but lost 40 per cent of its business when prices collapsed. They salvaged their business by diversifying to poultry and dairy barns and have more recently started working on other farm buildings as well. 
Although swine now makes up a small portion of their business, Waldner said he feels it is important to keep attending shows like Pork Congress both to support the industry and to stay in touch with producers. 
“In the end, everybody needs to eat, and the world got a whole lot smaller in the last two years.” 
Exhibitor Everett Van Schothorst from Park Lake Equipment in Red Deer said Pork Congress is a vital tool in developing customer relations. 
“I can never meet that many customers in one or two days,” he said. 
  
Health Canada Reverses Labelling Decision 
The frown Canadian Pork Council’s chair wore as he arrived for Alberta Pork Congress has disappeared since Health Canada’s reversal of a new labelling scheme announced earlier this year. Back in June, just before the show was to open, Health Canada announced that, starting in January of 2026, warning labels are to be placed on foods containing more than 15 per cent of the daily recommended intake of sodium, sugar or saturated fat. Ground meats including pork and beef would be included. 
CPC Chair Rick Bergmann, vice-chair of Manitoba Pork Council, was bristling at Pork Congress on June 14, when he spoke with Prairie Hog Country about the unfair and harmful impact these labels would have on Canadian producers. 
“The labelling is on the raw product. Once we prepare that in the kitchen, the saturated fat level decreases, so pork producers feel they’re making an issue of a non-issue. 
“Frankly, in this world that we’re living in right now, we’ve got a lot of opportunity to think about economy, ensuring that there’s enough food in the supermarkets and so on.” 
Bergmann said producers and producer groups put pressure on Health Canada to remove pork and beef from the labelling proposal, including Alberta MP John Barlow (Foothills). 
“We’ll see what happens and we’re sure that common sense will prevail.” 
Ultimately, Health Canada Minister John-Yves Duclos was presented with a petition bearing more than 8,000 signatures along with the lobbying efforts led by pork and beef groups. 
Early in July, Duclos announced a reversal of the original proposal exempting those meats from the new labelling rule. 
The victory was celebrated and discussed late in July, when Agriculture leaders met in Saskatoon. 
Bergmann credits the combined efforts of industry representatives and support from government including Hon. Marie-Claude Bibeau, federal agriculture minister and MP for Compton-Stanstead in Quebec. 
“Ground pork is a single ingredient product. The fact that Health Canada revisited this is a good win for not only pork producers, but for beef producers as well. Common sense has ruled the day, which is great.” 
“Although we could be critical of government right now, I’d like to flip it around and say, you know, they listened.” 
The agriculture ministers and staff who met in Saskatoon were working on programs and policies for the next five years, which Bergmann feels will have some good outcomes for the industry. 
Bergmann, who had just returned home from the meeting in Saskatoon on July 21, said Minister Bibeau’s support demonstrated her commitment to farming in Canada. 
“I’ve approached her in different scenarios, and I will say with an exclamation mark that the pork producer’s voice is heard,” he said. 

Let’s Talk: Encouraging Industry Players to Share the Load 
Getting producers and industry together in the same room is important in several ways, but there still seems to be no incentive to get everyone involved in an open discussion on how to make the industry sustainable over the long term, said Brent Bushell, executive director of Western Hog Exchange. The reality as he sees it is that, while hog prices are strong, they are not strong enough to counteract soaring feed prices. Bushell continues to lay the blame on a pricing formula that pits producers against processors when both sectors need a fair share of the profits for the industry to thrive.  Olymel has made a substantial effort to improve pricing for its producers, largely because it needs to ensure a constant supply of hogs to fill its shackles, he said. But there’s more work to be done as the industry continues to contract with independent producers and some colonies shutting down their hog barns. Canadian processors cannot remain competitive with shackles running at 85 per cent because there are not enough hogs to fill them. 
There has been a net loss of barn space in Alberta over the past 10 years and there is no financial incentive for renovations or for construction of new barns, said Bushell. 
He calls it “death by 1,000 cuts.” 
“Our industry is not in a position where we’re allowed to thrive. We’re not attracting new capital. We can tout ourselves as the best in the world, but we can’t do that until we’re all thriving at all levels,” he said. 
Bushell has been pushing for industry representatives to shake their baggage off at the door and come into the room to create a plan that will encourage investment in expansions and new barns to ensure long term viability for all sectors. 
“What if we found out that there wasn’t enough money in the value of the pig that everyone can thrive? If that was the case, then why are we doing it?” 
Bushell said Pork Congress plays an important role in bringing producers and suppliers together to talk. At some point, the conversation must evolve into a frank discussion on setting a secure path for the future. 
“That’s the overhaul that needs to happen in our industry. I think, unfortunately, that we’re going to have to wait until things are really bad (for it to happen).” 
The 46th edition of Alberta Pork Congress was held on June 15 and 16 at Westerner Park in Red Deer. The show is managed by a team of volunteer directors with support from Kate Kelly and her team at Calgary-based ConventionALL Management. 
Planning will be underway soon for 2023. Call 403-244-7821,  or visit  
albertaporkcongress.com to learn more. •
— By Brenda Kossowan