Soybean and pork farmer from Columbus, Nebraska, Bill Luckey, served as a panelist for the Boston Food Dialogues. His family farm includes 600 crop acres, cattle, sows and finishing hogs. Bill also serves on the National Pork Producers Council (NPPC) Board of Directors and several committees. Bill is lucky that his kids are home running the combine so he was able to attend the event.
“I think we have got to get our word out to the consumers. What we do and why we do it. If you look at it, less than 2% of population are farmers. Over 98% are not in the agriculture business of farming, so they chose not to take the responsibility of growing of food. I accepted that responsibility of growing food and I’m proud of what I do. I am going to do the best I possibly can to raise the best, the healthiest, the safest food for not only my family but for the whole world.”
Bill doesn’t believe size matters. It’s simply people having a passion for the work they do. Bill went on to explain more about is hog operation.
“We utilize technology, whether it be in our buildings, in ventilation, in the feed program. A lot of people don’t understand how we use technology and one of the best things I tell people is if they want us to raise pigs the way we did 50 years ago, why don’t you go to a doctor who uses technology from 50 years ago to diagnose your diseases. We are always trying to improve and do the best thing for our animals, the community and the consumer.”
You can listen to Bill’s complete interview here: Interview with Bill Luckey