As the March 5-7 National Pork Industry Forum approaches, Oklahoma’s Cathy Vaughan is campaigning to represent the state on the National Bork Board. Vaughan recently ranked in the top half of candidates vying for National Pork Board seats after in-person interviews. A total of 10 candidates from 10 states are running for five available board positions.
Farm Director KC Sheperd had the chance to talk with Vaughan about her campaign. As the second-ever Oklahoma candidate for the National Pork Board, Vaughan currently serves as the Safety and Communications Coordinator for the Smithfield Foods Hog Production Division in Oklahoma. While working with more than 230 employees throughout Smithfield’s Oklahoma operation, Cathy continually devotes time to industry involvement beyond her company.
“It is definitely an honor,” Vaughan said. “I have worked for Smithfield and in the industry for almost 19 years now. I have had the pleasure of working with the Oklahoma Pork Council Board of Directors. I am serving my third term currently, where I have served as president and now currently as vice president. I think it is important for us to serve in our industry when and where we can.”
Agriculture feeds the world, Vaughan said, so to have the opportunity to be part of a group such as the National Pork Board is an important piece to serving the industry continues to move in a positive direction.
“I am excited about that opportunity, and I am looking forward to what that looks like to be able to help showcase what we are doing in Oklahoma on the national level and be able to help bring that collaboration together,” Vaughan said.
As a state that partakes in a substantial amount of pork production, Vaughan said it is important for Oklahoma to have a seat at the table.
At the National Pork Industry Forum, Vaughan said delegates from every pork-producing state will come together and rank the candidates after several meetings and presentations.
“That ranking will then go to the U.S. Department of Agriculture,” Vaughan said. “They actually have the final say on who the board of directors will be. We should know, hopefully, in May, but for sure, we know in the first part of June when we have the World Pork Expo that is held in Des Moines the first week of June,” Vaughan said.
If elected, Vaughan said she will continue to serve on the Oklahoma Pork Council Board of Directors and her role at Smithfield, but she will have the chance to meet multiple times a year with the National Pork Board.
“The biggest thing we (the National Pork Board) do is the World Pork Expo the first week of June, where pork industry people come from literally all over the world into Des Moines, which is a great event and a great way to collaborate with people and connect with what is going on in the industry,” Vaughan said. “We will continue our work with what we are doing. A big focus is on foreign animal disease and the prevention of that and what it looks like for producers in the country.”
