The Canadian pork sector finds itself in an extremely difficult situation. To summarize: it operates in a market where price is determined by its major competitor (who is also the low-cost supplier); it is now a high cost production region within North America; it is loosely organized as an industry; and it depends upon a processing sector that is structurally uncompetitive. And, the financial disturbance caused by the convergence of these factors, have been further exacerbated by the untimely advent of low pork prices due to excess supplies of pork.

The Way Forward
A Strategic Plan for the Alberta Pork Industry
The Marketing Platform

Toma & Bouma Management Consultants
George Morris Centre
May 2008

This document presents a high level summary of the strategic direction for the B.C. Pork Industry. The summary is for the use of the British Columbia Pork Producers Association (BCPPA), the organization responsible for spearheading this initiative. In turn, it is our expectation that this document will be made available to the public at large as the BCPPA continues to promote the B.C. pork industry.

Reflecting its setting, resources, and history, Strathcona County is a ‘specialized municipality’ with a mosaic of economic and social activities including agriculture, industry, and commerce. Strathcona has a welldeveloped agricultural base. Furthermore, it is home to a rapidly growing urban and rural residential population. It is this blending of both urban and rural uses that is at the heart of the character and mission of Strathcona.

This document is a strategic plan for the revitalization of the Alberta pork industry. It represents the third phase of a detailed strategic planning process initiated by Alberta Pork. As such, it proposes a number of directional and structural changes that need to be vetted and discussed by the industry stakeholders.