Dale Stevermer stands outside of his house on the family farm south of Easton.

Promoting and being involved in agriculture have always been a part of Dale Stevermer’s life.

As a youngster he was active in 4-H while growing up on the family farm south of Easton. He remained active in the organization as an adult. Later, he served on the board of the Faribault County Pork Producers.

His service to the pork industry continued on a state level and he is a past president of the Minnesota Pork Producers Association (MPPA) and still serves on multiple committees for the organization.

He is also on the National Pork Board (NPB) which is comprised of 15 pork producers or importers, nominated by Pork Act Delegates at the National Pork Forum and appointed by the U.S. Secretary of Agriculture.

Recently, Stevermer’s service to agriculture put him on the international stage.

“I was contacted on April 4. The first question I was asked was if I wanted to go to Japan to speak at the G7 Agricultural Minister’s Meeting in Miyazaki City, Japan, which was to be held later in April,” Stevermer explains. “The next question they asked was if my passport was up to date.”

Over the last couple of years Stevermer shares he has become more involved in sustainable issues and in particular, the NPB’s Advancing U.S. Pork Sustainability Grant.

“The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) selected 141 recipients for their Climate-Smart Commodity Grant and the NPB was one of the 141 recipients to the tune of $155 million,” he explains. “Out of the 141 groups who received the grant, the USDA tapped the NPB to send a representative to the meeting. That is why I was asked to go to Japan.”

He had a short time to make his decision and Stevermer decided to take the opportunity and go.

“I was part of a three-person delegation which also included Bill Even, who is the CEO of the NPB, and Courtney Knupp, who is the vice president of international market development for the NPB.”

Stevermer was gone from April 17-21.

“This was not a trade mission although a day was spent talking about trade,” Stevermer comments. “I was involved in a side-event seminar and I did get to attend a welcome reception for all of the ag ministers who were in attendance at the meeting.”

Stevermer’s presentation in Japan was on tackling climate change with innovations and actions.

“I was able to share management practices and technologies I have adopted on my own farm,” Stevermer says. “I told them about cover crops and no till practices we use for our row crops. I also explained how we use low-disturbance injectors when applying hog manure to our fields. The other thing I shared with them was how I utilize variable rate technology as much as possible.”

He mentions his presentation lasted about 10 minutes.

“Improvement in technologies and adapting different management practices have allowed farmers to be more productive and efficient while lessening the impact on the environment,” Stevermer explains. “I also explained that adapting new technologies and practices can carry a financial risk for farmers.”

After his presentation, he shares he spent 10-15 minutes answering questions.

Former Iowa governor and current United States Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack also spoke at the meeting.

“It was a good trip. Prior to my talk I was able to spend a day in Tokyo with two of the largest meat importers of pork. We looked at meat displays in a variety of stores,” Stevermer mentions. “It was very interesting just being in Tokyo and seeing how respectful people are with each other and with other people’s property. They are very industrious.”

When the meeting was over, Stevermer flew home and continued getting ready for planting season on a farm that has been in his family for over 100 years.

“I was raised on this farm in the house my grandparents built,” Stevermer says. “My wife, Lori, and I raised our three children here.”

Lori has also been active in agriculture for many years. She is currently the president-elect of the National Pork Producers Council and is the Customer Success manager for Alltech’s U.S. Pork Business.

Stevermer farms 450 acres of corn and soybeans and 90 percent of his acres are in cover crops during the winter. He also raises 4,000 pigs each year and has an inventory of 2,000 hogs on his farm at any one time.

Stevermer’s time promoting sustainability in the ag sector looks like it will continue.

“There have already been two requests from USDA’s Foreign Ag Service for videos regarding the topic and how sustainability works on my farm,” Stevermer remarks.

Whether it’s on the county, state, national or international stage, Stevermer is excited to share the positive steps U.S. agriculture is taking to produce food that is safe and raised with respect for the environment.

“It makes an impact with people when you can show how it works on your own farm,” he concludes.