National Pork Board CEO David Newman says U.S. pork’s next phase depends on three priorities: building demand at home and abroad, working more closely with state pork associations, and improving swine health. The Board’s current health strategy turns that last priority into a set of planned work areas—not a claim that disease has been eliminated or that the initiatives have already succeeded.
Who is David Newman?
According to Successful Farming’s March 17, 2026 profile, Newman became National Pork Board CEO in September 2025 after spending two years leading the Board’s market growth team. The profile describes him as a third-generation farrow-to-finish producer on his family’s farm in Myrtle, Missouri, and says he holds a PhD in meat and animal science. It also notes his teaching and research leadership at North Dakota State University and Arkansas State University, and his service as a producer-leader on the Board from 2015 to 2020.
In the interview, Newman describes the Board as representing 60,000 producers and working through a network of 42 state pork associations. Those figures are his, as quoted in the profile.
What are Newman’s three priorities for U.S. pork?
Grow pork’s long-term value
Newman’s first priority is to increase pork’s value over the long term by expanding demand in the United States and international markets. He sees the industry facing a different competitive landscape over the next 30 years than it did over the previous 30. In the interview, he points to Brazil and other countries competing as least-cost producers and says market access is changing. That is his assessment, not a quantified comparison of production costs.
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Work with state associations
His second priority is deliberate collaboration with the 42 state pork associations in the Board’s network. Newman emphasizes that states have different needs, so coordination should account for local circumstances rather than assume one approach fits every producer group.
Build a national swine-health strategy
Newman’s third priority is a national strategy for swine health that addresses both endemic diseases—those already present in the industry—and foreign animal diseases. The Board’s National Swine Health Strategy provides the current implementation detail. Developed with the National Pork Producers Council and state associations, it sets two goals: reduce the impact of domestic diseases and keep foreign and emerging diseases out of the U.S. swine herd. The Board says its directors approved a tactical work plan and shared it with delegates at the 2026 Pork Industry Forum.
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What work does the health strategy include?
The Board lists a range of planned work areas under its health strategy. They are initiatives and priorities, not evidence that the diseases have been eliminated or that a particular measure has already succeeded.
- Taking first steps toward PRRSV and PEDV elimination.
- Benchmarking biosecurity and raising awareness of biocontainment.
- Addressing biosecurity during transport.
- Preparing for foreign animal diseases, improving traceability, and monitoring disease activity globally.
- Monitoring and detecting emerging diseases early.
The Board reports that 98% of producers who completed its 2024 survey said herd health is essential to the industry’s future success. The strategy page does not provide the survey’s sample size or more detailed methods in the material available there, so the figure describes respondents, not necessarily all U.S. producers.
The same page quotes National Pork Board Chief Veterinarian Dr. Dusty Oedekoven: “The National Swine Health Strategy is informed by producers, for producers. This is just the beginning as we work to tackle some of the industry’s most pressing swine health challenges. Together, we’re laying the foundation for a healthier herd and a more resilient future for U.S. pork.”
Successful Farming’s interview reports that PRRSV costs the U.S. pork industry more than $1 billion per year, citing a linked scientific article. Because the underlying article could not be accessed for independent review, this should be treated as a figure reported in the interview, not as an independently verified estimate here.
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Where does Newman see room to grow consumer demand?
Connect pork with familiar food traditions
Newman sees opportunities to build pork’s relevance in Mexican, Chinese, and Italian cuisines. These are strategic opportunities he identifies in the interview, not evidence that demand in those cuisines has already increased.
Make ground pork an easy option
He describes ground pork as affordable, flavorful, versatile, and convenient, and says the Board’s consumer-segmentation work indicates those traits appeal to Millennials and Gen Z. The interview does not include the underlying segmentation data, so this is Newman’s account of the Board’s findings rather than a separately documented consumer result.
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The Board says its Taste What Pork Can Do campaign launched in May 2025. Its stated approach centers on consumer needs and pork’s taste, flavor, nutrition, convenience, and versatility, with audience segmentation focused on Millennials and Gen Z. The campaign page describes the strategy; it does not establish a measured sales effect.
What should producers take from the plan?
Newman’s priorities connect three different parts of the industry’s outlook: demand and market value, coordination among state producer groups, and prevention and herd health. The official health strategy gives the clearest list of current work areas, while the interview offers Newman’s view of future competition and consumer opportunity. For producers, the distinction matters: the Board has identified areas of work, but the materials do not show that the initiatives have already delivered disease-elimination or sales-growth outcomes.
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