After torrential downpours over night, it’s pretty quiet here on the last day of World Pork Expo.

We had some serious rain during the day yesterday, but it all cleared up just in time for the bands to start playing and the roasted hogs to come out. National Pork Producers Association CEO Neil Dierks says the expo was excellent this year, especially day one. “We haven’t heard the numbers yet, but we won’t be surprised if it’s not the best first day we’ve had for many, many years – even though it was 94 degrees and about 97 percent humidity,” he said.

Neil says producers are “reasonably pleased” with the current state of the industry, but concerned about issues facing them such as feed availability, getting trade agreements approved and government regulation, especially the proposed GIPSA rule.

Listen to or download my interview with Neil here: NPPC CEO Neil Dierks