Hogan takes part in pork industry trade mission

As a member of the Iowa Pork Producers Association, Jim Hogan of Monticello has helped to spread goodwill and educate others on Iowa’s pork industry. One way he’s been able to accomplish that is taking part in international trips with Iowa’s governing leaders and leaders in the pork industry.

     Just this February, Hogan took part in an eight-day trip to Columbia and Panama as part of a trade mission. Aside from Hogan and a few others involved in the Association, others on the trip included Lt. Gov. Adam Gregg, Iowa Sec. of Ag Mike Naig.

     This wasn’t Hogan’s first trip outside of the U.S. with state officials. Two years ago he traveled to Mexico with the Iowa Pork Producers.

     The mission on this most recent trip was to tour various meat-packing plants to see how Iowa’s pork is processed before it hits the market.

     “We went to several plants a day,” recalled Hogan. “We saw their operations first-hand.”

     One thing Hogan noticed was that pork products that are imported from the U.S. are stamped identifying it as so.

     “They import a lot of meat from the U.S.,” he said.

     After the pork is processed, it is either sold at grocery stores or the “wet market.” Hogan explained the wet market are open-air markets where vendors are selling meat out in the open, not in a meat department like we’re used to seeing. He said it’s taken a lot of work to encourage people in Colombia to buy their meat from a store versus the open market.

     This trip was quite educational for those in attendance. For instance, in Colombia, their key imports are corn, soybeans, grains and pork. One person consumes 22 pounds of pork a year, which includes hams, loins, ribs and pigs feet.

     In the capital of Colombia, Bogota, they toured a meat plant (Frigorifico Guadalupe) that specializes in pork and beef. They see 140 head of cattle a day, 250 head of hogs. Eighty percent of their products go to the wet market, 20 percent to the food service industry.

     Another plant, Cialta, sees $45 million in meat sales a year. They produce vacuum-packed meat products, using 20 percent of their own cattle. Fifty percent of Cialta’s pork is imported from the U.S.

     In Panama, they consume 12.6 pounds of pork per person per year.

     The Panama Canal, which the Iowa group toured, sees 13,000 to 14,000 ships per year. It takes roughly eight hours to pass through the canal. The largest ship toll was $450,000. The canal can handle ships that are up to 194 feet in width and 1,312 feet in length.

     “The Panama Canal was something to see,” marveled Hogan.

     As someone who enjoys traveling, Hogan said this trip opened his eyes to the wider world.

     “There’s a lot more to the world than what we realize,” shared Hogan.

     The trip was also about taking in the processes countries like Colombia use when it comes to ag products.

     Hogan said it was also about finding other avenues for exporting Iowa pork.

     “A lot of their economies are emerging,” Hogan said. “They’re importing 25 to 30 percent more pork from the U.S. than they were in 2017. Their middle class is expanding.”

     The group stayed in hotels on their trip and used a bus as their form of transportation. Hogan said they felt safe the entire time, as there was a drug-sniffing dog stationed outside their hotel day and night.

     “They’re serious about controlling drugs,” he said.

     Hogan said the people in Colombia and Panama were courteous and gracious as well.

     “They knew we were shipping them our products,” he said.

     Overall, Hogan said trips like this, while organized by the Iowa Pork Producers, bring about goodwill for all of Iowa’s ag exports: pork, beef, soybeans, corn, etc.

     “It goes all over the world.”

     Hogan said people would be surprised by the scope of the meat industry in Central America.

     “It’s huge and it’ll only get bigger,” said Hogan.

     While trade with Central America is on track, Hogan said the recent news of trade with China is another story.

     “We wish we could sell more to China,” he admitted.

     However, Hogan said China was never a major importer of pork products to begin with.

     “It hasn’t expanded as quickly as we had hoped, that’s why we’re looking for other markets.”

     As of late last week, though, it was announced that President Trump reached a trade deal with China that would allow for $50 billion in purchases of U.S. ag products. Hogan said that’s a big boost for the ag industry, which usually sees $15 to $20 billion going to China.

     “It’s a big win for ag,” he said.