Governors plead with Obama on behalf of pork producers

Governors from hog-producing states are pleading with the U.S. president to help their farmers.
The governors of Colorado, Illinois, Iowa, Kentucky, Michigan, Nebraska, North Carolina, Oklahoma and Wisconsin sent a letter to President Barack Obama asking for:
• Another $50 million in government purchases of pork;
• A lifting of the spending cap on food-assistance programs, a cap that was imposed by Congress when it set this year's budget;
• An appeal to China to lift its ban on U.S. pork that was imposed because of the outbreak of H1N1 flu, commonly called swine flu.
"Today, the pork industry is facing an economic crisis that is catastrophic in nature," the governors wrote in their letter to the president.
"For the pork industry to remain as vibrant entities in rural communities, we need your prompt actions to assure that our communities and the U.S. pork industry remain competitive world wide."
The National Pork Producers Council says that since September 2007, the U.S. pork industry has lost nearly $4.4 billion, with producers losing an average of $21.37 per pig over the past 21 months.
"U.S. pork producers, who provide America's families with a safe, wholesome, nutritious product, are grateful to the governors for intervening on their behalf with President Obama," said NPPC President Don Butler.
"These state executives recognize that pork production is a significant value-added industry for their states and for our country."
Canadian hog producers continue to wait for answers from federal Agriculture Minister Gerry Ritz to months of pleas for help.