The application deadline for the Iowa Pork Industry Center's next Pork Quality Assurance Advisor certification session is approaching, and those interested in attending should submit their application soon. The session date is Tuesday, July 18, and the application deadline for this virtual session is Tuesday, July 11.

Iowa State University Extension and Outreach swine veterinarian Chris Rademacher organizes these sessions, and said the session, including the exam, will take approximately six hours to complete.

"Anyone whose certification has expired or who is a first-time advisor must do an in-person training like this virtual offering," he said. "Interested and qualified people should complete and return the application form soon."

Qualification requirements are listed on the two-page application form, available as both a fillable pdf document and a Word document from the PQA page on the IPIC website. Applicants may use either version.

Rademacher, who also is the IPIC interim director, said no individual spot is guaranteed until the application is approved and specific payment is accepted by IPIC. The cost is $85 per person and includes all materials and online access.

Registration starts at 8:30 a.m. Central time on July 18 and the session begins at 9 a.m. Connection information will be shared with approved applicants closer to the session date.

One more session remains in 2023 on Oct. 2. Applications close one week prior to the session date, and can be submitted at any time prior to then. Forms are available on the IPIC's PQA webpage. Five hours of CE credit have been approved by the Iowa Board of Veterinary Medicine for each session.