Pork Forward Expo Preview

We talk with Neill Westerbeek about Smithfield’s Pork Forward expo. 

We break down what’s happening on April 15, 2026, including OIC credit hours, technology showcases, and the simple details that make the day easy to attend. Here's a few details:

• Held in Clinton
• Free BBQ lunch
• OIC Credit hours
• Over 130 vendor booths
• No registration required

For more: https://smithfieldfoods.com/Pork-Forward

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Find us on Instagram @raisedonthefarm
Questions? Email us at raisedonthefarmpodcast@gmail.com 

Transcript

Meet Neill And His Role

Chad 0:06

Alright, hello everyone, and welcome back to a Raise on the Farm podcast. Today we are highlighting an upcoming event for Livestock Growers hosted by Smithfield Food called Fort Ford. This grower-focused vendor expo will take place on Wednesday, April 15th, 2026 at the Stanton County Exposition Center in Flint, North Carolina, bringing together producers and industry partners for days center around innovation, collaboration, and the future of Fort Food. The Entitlement Ford Create a great opportunity for growers to connect directly with vendors, learn about new products and services, and spend some time with our fellow producers who we who are all working hard to strengthen the fourth industry. Joining us today is Neill Westerbeek, who is the Business and Grower Process Improvement Manager for Smithville Hawk Production. Neill has been instrumental in organizing the Port Forward event and helping bring growers and industry partners together for this event. Neill works closely with the growers across the system every day, so he has a great perspective on why events like this are valuable for producers and the companies that support them. Neill, thanks for joining us today and for the work you've put into organizing Pork Ford. Let's start with just a quick overview of uh maybe who you are, Neill, and your role with Smithfield Hog Production.

How Pork Forward Started

Neill 1:24

Chad, I appreciate a whole lot. Um yeah, my role with Smithfield um started about 20 years ago. Um, and uh what I do every day is I get to work uh uh with and for all of our contract producers uh here on the East Coast. Uh and uh myself and my team, we we work hard every day to try to uh be a liaison and and uh somebody that works with both the growers and our company uh to uh to help them with their daily interactions with our our organization, uh Smithfield, as well as the industry as a whole. So we um we have a privilege of working with those growers and and their farm families uh every day for uh a common goal of uh making the swine industry better um and um kind of increasing our ability to uh farm and and have our farms uh viable opportunities for um our future generations. So we're uh excited about this particular event, and we're but we're also excited about the opportunity we have every day to uh continue our efforts with our our swine growers uh in eastern North Carolina and eastern United States to have a viable business uh long term.

Chad 2:29

Yeah, yeah, for sure. Let's talk a little bit about the history of the event. Neill, I know uh for many years I heard about uh the vendor expo, and I actually attended it over at the um Dupin County Event Center uh back in the day. But give us a little uh history of the event and um maybe what we can look forward to.

Neill 2:48

Right. Back in the early 2010s, we um we started realizing that our our producers here in East Ron O'Connor really didn't have the opportunity to to um to see the most innovative and latest technology in the swine industry like some of our Midwest counterparts did with their opportunity to go to the Woolpork Expo. And so we we kind of came up with an idea that we would um offer a uh a an a one-day event to to the uh producers of North Carolina and South Carolina, Virginia to to come in and kind of uh have a central location to visit with vendors and and learn the latest technology and kind of see what's coming uh coming down the pike. Um that was a really kind of a small event back at that time. Um we had it again in 20 uh 16, again 13, I should say, and then 2016, and then again in 2019 we had the event and growing a little bit every time and adding new elements to it, and um you know, including things like a barbecue cook-off and uh having uh a chance for folks to eat barbecue for lunch and and have some really good speaking engagement opportunities for producers to come in and hear uh presentations about the things going on in the industry, receive OIC credit hours and pesticide credit hours for that. And so over time it it parlayed from 13 to 16. Um and then in 2000 and 2021, we know what happened with with COVID as well as uh animal health issues, and and so um the industry kind of in Smithfield included kind of pulled back the reins a little bit on on events like this, and um we we hadn't held it held it since then. And uh for the last several years we've been uh trying to get it back going again and um trying to generate some interest and the time to do that, and then this year we just bit the bullet. And uh in 2025 we said we're we're gonna hold this event again in 2026, and and here we are uh with a uh spring event of uh April 15th. Um and you know, we've we've got the same elements we've had in the past of some wonderful educational opportunities. Um we've got some um you know within our classes, I should say, and then we have also a time for for growers to visit with um the vendors uh that are coming. Uh we have quite a few of vendors coming. We have over 130 booth opportunities there for folks to come by and visit with vendors, um, and you know, as well as our educational classes. We'll talk about those maybe a little bit more as we go along here, but some tremendous opportunity for for OIC credit hours, which are uh us operator in charge for our swine producers uh on their uh swine waste management systems. Um and so we have probably what I think is the largest availability of hours that I've ever seen in an event, and we have over eight hours of OIC credits that are going to be available that day, and um we can talk more about these classes here as we go along. But again, um our desire was to try to have an event that was uh open for everybody. Uh Smith is hosting the event, um, and um we're we're having it for everybody that that that wants to come. Any any vendor, anybody in the industry that uh that like to be a part of it, uh as well as all of our um our growers would that would love to be a part of it, by all means are welcome to come.

OIC Credits And Class Lineup

Chad 6:07

Yeah, it's a lot of fun to get uh to get a bunch of pig farmers together and and and other people in in agriculture and talk about pigs and and see uh new innovations and stuff like that. Um OIC classes, have that has that always been a part of it, or is that something y'all added? Did you say you added that throughout the years?

Neill 6:27

Yeah. In 2013, we had a very limited availability on that, and we realized that that was a good draw uh and a good opportunity for growers um to come and get those hours. So in 16 and 19, we added more uh availability to that. And and this year really we've kind of we've kind of thrown it all at it. Um we we we decided to have as many hours as possible, um, and we also decided to make our classes shorter. Uh they're 30-minute sessions, so we have 30 different topics being discussed that day. We have two different classrooms that'll be going on concurrently, um, and growers can choose between uh a world of different topics that day. Uh, we have run one room that's more focused on swine production directly, and another room that's more focused on land and nutrient, nutrient applications, uh agronomics, uh, those type elements, crop type elements. Um, and uh so we we have a big selection and they can hop between one room and the next, uh, but as we stand right now, every one of our classes is eligible for operator and charge. So they can receive all the hours they need uh there in that day. If they don't need hours, there still would be some tremendous topics that I know they'll be interested in. For instance, um we have discussions relative to rodent control, we have discussions relative to ventilation, uh barn types, um, we have presentations from uh some of our industry leaders, such as Hogslat, um, of course, North Carolina State University. Um we have a full gamut of um of speakers that day, um, far too many topics to probably talk about right now, but um I I would venture to say if there's something that you're interested in, you probably will find it on our presentation list that day.

Marisa 8:11

So, Neill, what gets you excited about this event? Like, is there something in particular that you're just really jazzed about?

Neill 8:20

Yeah, I think it's uh the ability, Marissa, to um present the latest and the greatest. The the innovation side of things is what really excites me and being able to have our growers travel a short distance, um, be able to see the vendors that can impact their daily financials. Number one, help them uh make the best of their business and their business model. But number two, see what's coming down the line, right? The innovation side of it is really important to me. Um there's a lot of things out there that when our when the growers in our industry are on their farm every day doing what they do, they don't necessarily have the time or take the time to go look at what's coming down the line, right? What are the latest and greatest things? Um, for instance, we have multiple presentations from various speakers related to the technologies in barn, technologies that are available now, with things like Barn Talk and Barn Century, uh, folks like Hogslat and others that are presenting those for us and some of our work that our own team at Smithfield is presenting that day are really the most innovative ideas of how to manage our barns and barn environments that are available today. And so I'm super excited about being able to offer that to our growers so they can make business and financial decisions for the next several years on what's going to be best uh for them and these type of technologies.

Marisa 9:38

And you said it's not just for pig farmers, but kind of anybody in the industry or related to the industry.

Neill 9:46

Yes, that's correct. I think it would be um very can very much a great opportunity for anybody that's associated with an industry because we have um we have presenters like John Deere and Case IH and and others. Uh we have presenters from drone technology groups um that will be discussing um grown drone technology and the utilization for drones uh in agronomic re purposes. Uh they'll be presenting as well as be uh in in a booth opportunity as well. So um there are tremendous opportunities to learn uh um things about all aspects of our business, uh from corn production and hay production all the way down to um you know how to control different rodents inside the barns and their ventilation and that type of thing.

Marisa 10:32

That's awesome.

Chad 10:33

Yeah, it's fun seeing all the the new technology, uh especially with like barn talk and some of these uh monitoring systems, feed bin monitoring. There's a lot of work uh going into to uh making things easier for the farmer.

Neill 10:47

Yeah, I think easier and more economical, Chad. Um, and um, you know, as labor continues to be um of an issue for all of agriculture, um we have presenters there from uh companies who uh specialize in robotic pressure washing and robotic uh robotic systems in general. So um, you know, it'd be good good to understand is my future does my future entail me having a robot uh pressure washing my house um when when labor shortages continue to come. So those those would be aspects that can be explored as well.

Chad 11:18

I think I can wash a house better than a robot can at this time.

Neill 11:22

I tell you, I tell you, yeah, yeah. I tell you, Chad, it'll be some really good data for you. Um companies like Smithfield are already using robots in things like fairing rooms, as as well as we're also we have done some really good testing with companies on um utilization of robots for uh finishing barns um as well. So there's some really good data there uh that illustrates um as labor costs continue to go up, and even now um there it may be cost advantageous for you to consider a robot purchase and utilization of a robot for pressure washing.

Chad 11:55

Man, can you imagine? That's why I'm gonna do it.

Robots And Labor Saving Tools

Neill 11:59

It's it's really interesting. Very interesting to look at. I did some sampling just last week with a company. Very interesting.

Chad 12:04

Yeah. Well, I see I'm looking at the schedule here, Neill, and I see uh two sessions that I'm interested in at 12 and 1230 lunch. Do I get OIC credit hours for those two uh sessions?

Neill 12:18

Sadly, you won't get credit for OIC credits for lunch. Um you will uh add some pounds, which is not bad either not bad. You know, it's we're we're coming off what uh what we commonly refer to fatting season, the uh the the winter time in which I typically normally gain weight like other people, so maybe we'll uh we can continue that. We do have um, Chad, we have a um uh intercompany barbecue cook-off um that we will have. Uh we have got uh about 15 teams or so that we will be that'll be uh employees and contract producers for for us, uh Smithfield, that will be uh cooking barbecue. We'll have uh not a sanctioned but a sanctioned type judged event in which uh those folks have got opportunity to win some wonderful prizes and trophies and that type of thing. But they will be providing our barbecue. So we'll have a barbecue lunch um for everybody there that day uh with with uh coleslaw and and the various fixings and that kind of thing. So we'll have a free lunch and we will indeed have uh a guest speaker as well that'll be coming in. We're we're trying to finalize those plans right now, but uh it will be um it will be definitely worth your while to come here. We'll have a very ag focused, uh, industry-focused speaker there. Um not going to try to give anything away at this point in time, but in the coming weeks we'll have our guest speaker uh out there publicized. So as we continue to finalize that. But yeah, lunch is the the highlight of the day for me um when it comes to uh my belly at least, um, because our folks definitely know how to put put pork on the plate, that's for sure. So yeah, great great opportunity for lunch. Come by and get lunch and visit around and uh and that type of thing over lunchtime. That would be great.

Marisa 13:56

Yeah, I hear so.

Chad 13:57

Marissa and I will be there as well. So we're gonna be uh rec uh you know introducing ourselves to folks and uh learning more about NC Farm families while we're there too.

Marisa 14:07

Yep. I don't hear a lot bad about this event. You know, we've got robots, we've got free food, yeah, and good pig people. So I'm I'm excited.

Chad 14:18

Well, Neil, is it gonna be outside and inside, or is there gonna be just all of it, all the vendors inside?

Barbecue Lunch And Guest Speaker

Neill 14:24

No, sir. We'll have outside and inside vendors. Uh some of our large vendors obviously would not have the ability to get inside. So um folks like Case IH T and John Deere and various ones. Uh so we'll we'll have a as many outside as inside uh.

Chad 14:38

So that'll be in the in the in the parking lot or out to the left side of that building?

Neill 14:43

Yeah, uh we'll be uh more so on the back of the building. We'll be our outside vendors and kind of wrapping around the um the the west side of the building a little bit as well. Um we'll have parking in the main parking uh area. Uh our our parking attendants will help you out with that. Uh we should have ability for folks who um have limited mobility. We'll have um we'll have um golf carts and various things out there in the parking lot to help you get to the uh to the front door. Um and we do have an overflow parking set up at another location there off-site, and we'll provide um transportation if we do need that as well. So we tried to think of a lot of different things to to cover and make sure everybody's day goes smoothly. Um and uh so we're we're really really looking forward to it. And yes, but we'll be outside and inside. Um hopefully we'll have a nice warm day like we've been experiencing. That would be nice. That would be great.

Marisa 15:36

And do folks have to register for this event or do they can they just show up?

Neill 15:42

No, most definitely just show up for the event. Uh no pre-registration is needed. Um and uh everybody's welcome and uh just just come on in and enjoy.

Chad 15:52

What time what time are we gonna start, Neill? What time do you expect up to the street?

Neill 15:55

Yeah, we start at 8 o'clock in the morning um and um our classes begin at 8. Vendors do as well. Um, and uh we'll start at 8 o'clock and we'll run it all the way until 5 p.m. Um and so we'll we'll have a full day. Um you can come at any time during the day and um you you'll get the same uh wonderful experience. We're positive of that. Um but uh as you look at our our webpage um and uh kind of pick out what classes you're interested to come to, obviously that may guide your day or lunchtime may guide your day as well. Um but uh come in for any or all the part of the days you'd like.

Chad 16:30

We're not gonna miss that part.

Neill 16:33

Yeah, yeah.

Vendor Layout Parking And Accessibility

Marisa 16:34

And for those listening, we are going to put the link at in the show notes so you can click on the website there. But Neill, it is Smithfield Foods backslash pork forward. Is that correct?

Neill 16:48

Yes, that is correct. Smithfield Foods backslash pork forward. That is correct.

Marisa 16:52

Okay.

Neill 16:53

You look for us on some social media channels, hopefully, uh like uh NC Farm Families uh and and others will be doing some um some work for us in the coming days. So um please share and have everybody uh make everybody aware of the event so they can uh they come also. We'd love to have everybody.

Chad 17:12

Um I'm really looking forward to it in the U.S. Um it's gonna be a good time.

Neill 17:16

Yeah. I would like to take a moment, if I could, though. This doesn't happen uh on one person's back. Um if you see any of our team there that day, um, that uh they'll be identified with uh with a shirt, uh that kind of thing. Just just thank them for being able to put this thing together for you. So Smithfield, Smithfield's team has done a lot of hard work to put this together, and uh we feel like it's going to be a tremendous um benefit for for a whole industry, and uh we're privileged to be able to do it. So if you see anybody there that's got a team type shirt on for our port Ford event, um please know they worked hard to help us out get this topic to get put together for everybody.

Chad 17:53

Yeah, and thank you, Neill, for the hard work that you put into it. And once again, uh Smithfield Foods is having an event called Pork Forward. It's gonna be at the uh Sampson County Exposition Center on April the 15th. Uh come on out from 8 o'clock to about 5 o'clock.

Marisa 18:18

Uh, wraps up another episode of Raised on the Farm Podcast, everything is on the table. Do us a favor and make sure you follow us on social media and hit the subscribe whatever you're listening so you don't miss an episode. Mark your calendars for April 15th for the Pork Forward event. It's gonna be awesome if you don't want to miss it. And until next time, we'll see you later.