Pork producers in North Carolina experienced widespread power outages from the weekend tornadoes that pummeled the state. “Farm damages ranged from a little peeled back metal sheathing on barn roofs to significant structural damages and destruction,” reports Deborah Johnson, chief executive officer of the North Carolina Pork Council headquartered in Raleigh.
“There were a lot of pigs moved out of damaged farms on Saturday night and Sunday. Reports seem to indicate minimal losses of animals. I know of approximately one dozen farms that were destroyed. Some of those are company farms, but the majority are contract grower farms. We are still assessing damages,” she notes.
Support services, such as feedmills and trucking/transportation were “getting cranked up” on Monday.
“I give all the credit to our producers and production company employees for their prompt actions after the storms passed to ensure the animals’ well-being by getting generators in place and assessing damages,” Johnson says. Several growers and industry employees suffered damages/destruction of homes and personal property,” she adds.