Part of the reason I timed my cross country drive to happen this time of year was so I could attend the annual meeting of pork producers and lovers that is the World Pork Expo in Des Moines, Iowa. I chose last Friday afternoon to wander around this event that is hosted by the National Pork Producers Council at the Iowa State Fairgrounds. My goal was to absorb everything there is to know about the industry that produces the Best Meat Ever.
And believe me, there is a lot of porcine goodness to absorb at this event starting the moment you enter the fairgrounds.
The scent of barbecue permeates the air. And as you walk down the midway, people offer you free pork. Within 5 minutes of passing through the gates, I had a sausage in my hand. I like to imagine this is what heaven might be like.
The Iowa Pork Producers also host a free barbecue for Expo attendees. The line during the lunch hour to get your free pork sandwich is long, but naturally people will always stand in line for pork as long as they need to.
If you’ve followed the national news over the last couple weeks, you’ve probably heard about some of the wicked thunderstorms Iowa has been experiencing. Flooding and tornadoes have been a serious problem. But fortunately mother nature took a break on Friday because the weather was absolutely beautiful. Whereas I had been sweating like a hog when I arrived in Iowa the day before because of the rain and humidity, on the day I was at the Pork Expo we enjoyed partly sunny 70 degree weather. So I sat on a park bench just a few steps from where I experienced my first pork chop on a stick back in 2005, and I enjoyed my pulled pork sandwich and pork cutlet sandwich courtesy of America’s friendly pork producers.
After lunch I wandered through the exhibit hall where I saw the latest in hog farming technology ranging from pens to feeders to nutrition to reproduction to ventilation to cremation. I suddenly realized I basically know absolutely nothing about this industry despite having hosted this blog for the last three years, so it was a really good learning experience.
One of my favorite sights to see was a guy wearing a t-shirt that read “PETA: People for Eating Tasty Animals.” Apparently there were some PETA protesters outside of the event the day before, so this guy decided to hold his own counter-protest. I love it.
Another feature at the Expo is the PigCasso Art Show. People submit pig-related artwork for this competition, and most of the pieces are also for sale. I’ve included a photo here of my favorite painting which suggests that a pig might be the best candidate in 2008 – I’m inclined to agree.
Due to the mostly technical and industry-oriented nature of the Expo, it’s not exactly an event that the average man on the street might enjoy – except for the part about all the free pork products you can consume, of course. But for myself it was a truly enjoyable and educational afternoon learning all about the industry that is responsible for providing the meat that becomes the wonderful product we know as bacon.