What is PQA Plus Site Assessment or On-Farm Site Assessment?

A site assessment includes a physical evaluation of facilities, a review of appropriate documentation and an assessment of the animals directly. The assessment should also include educational and informational aspects to help an operation improve where required and noted during the site assessment.

As of March 2011, more than 14,00 sites have been independently assessed and data from those assessments is housed anonymously in an off-site database. The goal of the data collection is to establish a baseline of industry performance so that the PQA Plus program can be designed to help all producers improve performance.

 Why PQA Plus Site Assessment? For more information about PQA Plus and TQA, please visit www.pork.org. An updated list of Nebraska PQA Site Assessment Advisors is available here.

The purpose of this program is to encourage producers to be proactive in providing the best possible care for their animals and show commitment to the ethical principles of pork production as outline in the We Care responsible pork initiative. Having a PQA Plus advisor review your operation can both improve the well-being and productivity of animals in your care by noting changes and adjustments that can be made. It opens the door to bring some new tools into the operation, and it provides tremendous operation and securing market access. Customers such as McDonalds, Burker King, Wal-Mart and Safeway have increasingly shown interest in having assurances about the way the food products they offer are produced. PQA Plus Site Assessment is the way to assure these consumers that Nebraska producers are participating in the industry's leading food safety and animal well-being education program.

Click here for current TQA advisors

Here's more informaton about the Transport Quality Assurance Program

Whether you are a producer who hauls his own pigs in a gooseneck trailer or straight truck, or if you are a trucker driving a big rig, this course is for you. The certification will identify you to producers and meat packers as a transporter who is conscientious about properly transporting hogs and who understands the value of producing quality pork products.

The Pork Checkoff introduced the Transport Quality Assurance Program in February 2002. TQA encourages dedication to transporting and delivering the highest quality, safest product possible to remain competitive in U.S. and world markets and is to be the "consumer's meat of choice." By completing this program, truckers demonstrate their commitment to "quality assured" pork transportation and delivery.

Click here for more information about the Transport Quality Assurance Program.

Click Here for a current list of PQA Plus Advisors  - - This list of PQA Plus Advisors contains individuals willing to conduct site assessments for the general pork producer.

Here's more information about the Pork Quality Assurance Program