From Custer County to Tokyo, Tim Chancellor talks pork
BROKEN BOW - When talking with successful ag producers in Custer County, one of the themes that becomes prevalent is a sense of community, of working together for a common goal and purpose. That is especially true at Thomas Livestock Company (TLC) of Broken Bow. From the community of the livestock barns themselves to the national and international level, TLC and the pork industry is successful at all levels when working together.
Tim Chancellor of TLC has worked at multiple levels in the pork producing industry. He started with his own barns and now is TLC’s wean/finish supervisor and the current president of the Nebraska Pork Producers Association (NPPA). It’s interesting to hear how community and relationships impact the industry each step along the way.
One can say community begins in the farrowing barns each of which can house up to 270 sows. Chancellor explained that the animals select their own nesting areas and groups. “They go, eat, socialize and come back to their area,” he said. “It’s remarkable. The relaxed atmosphere is unbelievable.”
When piglets are born, they are immediately wiped down and inspected. They received 24 hour care, seven days a week. At 21 days, they are moved to the nursery and are weaned. Chancellor said it’s at this stage that the colostrum (the mother’s milk) has run it’s course with protective antibiotics and no longer provides immunity. At three weeks, therefore, the piglets are introduced to a new way of living.
“The transition is tough,” Chancellor said. “We’re basically training them to eat.”
The piglets are cared for 18 hours a day for the first five days as they move from nursing to eating ground feed and water. They are checked every two hours to make sure they are eating and drinking. After the first five or so days, Chancellor said, “they basically have it figured out.”
From birth to market, it’s all about the welfare of the animals at TLC. Barns are clean, well-lit and well-ventilated. They are warm in the winter and cool in the summer. Protecting the health of the livestock is paramount. Everyone who enters a barn - employees and visitors alike - are “shower in and shower out.” That means a complete shower and change of clothes before entering the barn, and then repeating the process upon exiting. “This is not an option,” Chancellor said. “We have one of the healthiest commercial herds in the United States.”
The community that takes care of the pigs is made up of 270 employees. Jobs range from helping deliver piglets and seeing them take their first steps to weighing and feeding and loading hogs for market and everything in between.
Employees have two big celebration each years - a summer party and a Christmas party. To help strengthen the community and foster communication, Chancellor has a suggestion. “I encourage English speakers to learn a bit of Spanish and Spanish speakers to learn a bit of English,” he said. “As you become more fluent, it opens up opportunities.” Chancellor himself speaks English, Spanish and some Korean.
He is always on the lookout to grow the community of employees. He said they are bringing
in more young guys and gals and the crews are about 40 percent female. He is not shy about giving a woman a position in the barns. “If they want to come and make a career and be part of the team, then yes,” he said.
Another way Chancellor and the pork industry are connected to the local community is through Hams Across America. This program helps supply hams to food banks and other worthy causes. It’s been mainly active in Lincoln and Omaha however, it’s now being implemented more and more across the state.
Through this program, hams have been donated to the Children’s Christmas fund. “It’s a neat deal to have in Custer County and give to families who need a little extra,” Chancellor said. “I think what they do (the Children’s Christmas Fund) is well worth while.”
Another way the pork industry is working with communities is helping schools bring pork to their breakfast and lunch menus.
“This has been my pet priority as president of the Pork Board,” Chancellor said. Through this promotion, schools can apply to receive $500 towards pork products such as sausage and ham. Several schools across the state are already taking part. “They take care of purchasing. They choose and we reimburse,” he said. “It’s a nice way to promote pork products and it gives schools options.”
People work together for their local communities by serving on local boards and committees. Chancellor was elected to the Broken Bow School Board in November, 2018. Because of this, he’s had the opportunity to attend legislative sessions in Lincoln as both an ag producer and as a school
board member. “It’s a unique spot to be in and I like it,” he commented. “There’s a big difference on how I’m received.”
Chancellor has strong opinions on what it will take in the Legislature to bring true change to problems such as property tax relief. “Work together and compromise,” he said. “Four or five years ago, we had the opportunity to put into place some tax relief to be stair stepped in. We’d be enjoying the benefits now. Because people didn’t get everything they wanted, we ended up with nothing.” Chancellor said it’s not only the government that needs to work together but also the different segments of ag. He encourages people to be involved and, if necessary, make their own trip to Lincoln to make sure their organization or affiliate is representing them the way they should. He also has words of advice for those who are interested in serving on public boards. “My personal interest shouldn’t guide my decisions as a school board member,” he said. “Look at what’s good for the kids ten years from now.”
As president of the NPPA, Chancellor has traveled the U.S. and the globe to support the pork industry. In late 2019, he spoke at a meeting of the United State Meat Export Federation ( USMEF) in Arizona. “The USMEF is boots on the ground for trade and export, working to get US products into distribution in foreign countries.”
Working with the USMEF and traveling overseas with the NPPA emphasizes to Chancellor how important communities and relationships are at the global level. “you must have a real relationship when exporting to Asia,” he said. “You can send 1,000 emails and it means nothing. Faceto-face meetings mean everything.” Because of this, trade missions to Japan and other Asian countries are “absolutely critical.”
Chancellor said the recently approved United States-Mexico-Canada-Agreement ( USMCA) will have a positive effect on the pork industry, though its effect will be smaller than other segments of ag. One thing that’s a big win, however, is a recent bi-lateral agreement with Japan which Chancellor says puts the US on the same playing field as Australia and other pork exporters. There will be a “huge difference,” he said. Tariffs on beefs and pork and other US products will drop once the Japanese Diet (Legislature) approves the deal. “It’s remarkable and it shows the commitment to our producers,” Chancellor said. “Even though the tariffs were high, the volume we shipped to Japan was very large because they wanted us.”
While in Japan last September, Chancellor said the working days were from 7 a.m. to often past 8 p.m. for the entire week. He did a presentation on Thomas Livestock and talked about the individual attention given to every animal. The trade mission wasn’t only about pork; there were representatives from all aspects of ag - corn, wheat, beef and more. The United States representative hosted a BBQ on the roof top to show case their products and continue to build and strengthen relationships. He has recommendations for those wanting to connect with businesses in other countries. “Take time to explore their culture,” he said. “See who they are. Get to know who you are dealing with.”
The strong relationships US ag builds with Japan do pay off. “It’s amazing to go into international stores,” Chancellor said. “There are whole counters that display only US pork and US beef.”
Chancellor also enjoys attending pork manager conferences in the US. They are smaller, usually hosting 100 to 150 people. “There’s opportunity for one-on-one relationships,” he said.
Relationships. Community. No matter the size of the community, local or global, state or national, it all comes back to working together to be successful.