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Iowa Hog Farmer

Matt Schuiteman

“It’s important to keep them protected and comfortable – a happy hog is a healthy hog.”

Matt Schuiteman
Hog Farmer

Name: Matt Schuiteman
Location: Sioux Center, Iowa
Years farming: 12
My family: My wife and I have five kids. Micah is nine, Marshall is seven, Miles is four, Margo is two, and McArthur is two-and-a-half months-old.
How I came to be a farmer: Both my wife and I grew up on farms. We had the opportunity to join my dad and grandfather in the family farm east of Sioux Center after graduating from college, and have been working with them every day.
The best thing about being a farmer: I really enjoy seeing different aspects of creation every day.
My personal philosophy on farming: We believe in achieving success through business diversity and proper stewardship of the resources that have been entrusted to us.

Pork Production in Iowa and the United States
  • There are more than eight million pigs in Iowa, making it the leading pork production state in America.
  • A majority of the pigs raised in the U.S. are in the upper Midwest, known as the “corn belt.”
  • Hogs are the single largest consumers of Iowa’s corn and soybeans, eating nearly one-third of Iowa’s grain.
  • The pork industry has invested nearly $300,000 in environmental research projects at Iowa State University.
  • Pork is 31% lower in fat today than it was 20 years ago.
  • Cooking pork to an internal temperature of 160-degrees will produce a juicy, tender meal.
  • A 2006 survey showed ham was the most popular sandwich meat consumed in homes.
  • Americans, on average, eat more than 60 pounds of pork each year.
  • Insulin from hogs is used to treat diabetes, heart valves from hogs are used to replace diseased human heart valves, skin from hogs is used to treat severe burn victims.
  • More than 40% of the meat consumed globally is pork – making it the most popular meat in the world!
  • China accounts for about half of the pork consumption in the world.

For more information about hog farming in Iowa, please visit www.iowafarmbureau.com

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