Pig Farmers Care for the Environment and Their Communities

Pig farmers understand their livelihood is directly tied to the air, water, and land, they are committed to a sustainable future and recognize that their operations must protect the quality of our planet’s natural resources.

 

Farmers are among the first conservationists. According to Dave Mensink, a pig farmer from Preston, Minnesota, doing what’s right by the environment is in the culture of his family’s farm.

 

“We’re in a karst area in southeast Minnesota and I think it is very important to protect these features in this area,” Dave says. “Protecting the environment coincides well with the culture and philosophy of our farm.”

 

That’s just one reason the Mensink family is so committed to protecting the environment. His family, his grandkids, and his pigs all drink water from the same well.

 

“It’s important our water wells are secure and safe, clean water is very important to us,” Dave says.

 

Pig farmers also know that there is a strong connection between their farms and the communities where they farm.

 

“The waterways that run through our fields will eventually end up in the river that runs through our little town of Preston, so we have to be responsible. It’s the right thing to do,” Dave says.

 

Dave grew up on a diversified farm and started farming with his wife Tracey in 1981. Since then, Dave’s son Alex has returned to the farm and the operation has grown to include pigs, beef cattle, crops, and a feed mill.

 

Dave has enjoyed raising his family in the community he grew up in.

 

“We want to keep our community viable,” Dave says. “We care about our community because we want to have a place where our kids and grandkids can grow up. It’s important our community has a school, church, grocery store, and restaurant. If we have all of those things, people will stay in our community. Our farm and the people who work for us want what’s best for our community.”

 

Pig farmers across Minnesota are committed to building and supporting their communities and being good neighbors. They work to control truck traffic on the roads they share and ensure that odors are responsibly controlled and minimized.

 

Dave says, “It’s important to me as a pig farmer to care for our communities, our environment and the people in our communities.”