Sustainable Farming: Pork

Pork is the most consumed meat in the world. While China is the largest pork producing country, the United States is not far behind and is home to over 60,000 pork producers. While there are pork farms in every state, most are situated in the Midwest and North Carolina. As a result, the pork industry supports around half a million jobs from producers to processors, transporters and more. Research shows that over the last 50 years, U.S. pig farmers have made significant improvements by way of nutrition, genetics and general pig care. U.S. pork producers partner with the government, environmental groups, and academic institutions to ensure the environmental footprint of pork production is minimized. As a result, pork production accounts for less than 0.3 percent of total greenhouse gas emissions in the US, and it takes 75.9 percent less land and 25.1 percent less water to produce one pound of pork than it did in 1960. This can be attributed to an increased amount of soybeans and corn being grown, meaning that more pigs are raised on less feed. There have also been many advancements in drinking mechanisms for pigs and better use of wastewater from lagoons and pits. Technological innovations such as LED lighting in barns and improved manure management, such as operations that employ methane digesters to provide power through natural gas pipelines, have led to a 7 percent dip in energy per pound of pork.