Saving Our Bacon

Talk about bad timing. This spring, Alberta’s beleaguered pork producers were breathing a sigh of relief, finally poised to turn a profit for the first time in three long, hard years. As market prices rose, so had hopes of reversing the unsustainable trend of raising pigs at $1.50/kilogram and selling them at $1.20. But come March, pigs started sneezing in Mexico and, faster than bacteria grows in a Petri dish, everything changed.

Suddenly two words were on everyone’s lips as “swine flu” infected headlines worldwide. The scientific community called the novel strain “2009 Influenza A virus, subtype H1N1, human,” which the politically correct whittled down to “H1N1 influenza.” Still, the swine flu misnomer stuck like a bad cold. As confirmed cases spread outward from the mutation’s Mexican epicentre, concern about H1N1 threatened to translate into fear of the pork on our forks. From the perspective of a public hyper-sensitized by bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) in beef, avian flu in chickens, listeriosis in packaged meats, history was repeating. And with that, the virus threatened to add an entire agricultural industry to its growing casualty list as countries began banning North American pork.

Alberta’s pig farmers nervously tracked swine-flu developments abroad, but their worst fears were soon confirmed in their own backyard: testing confirmed H1N1 in Arnold Van Ginkel’s swine herd near Rocky Mountain House. With the eyes of the world focused on Alberta, the industry recognized what was at stake in the province’s response. Could it successfully handle the crisis and convince buyers it was still fine to dine on swine? Or would the emotionally charged powder-keg blow into an industry-wide disaster with global repercussions?

What happened next is a lesson in crisis communication and emergency marketing worthy of scrutiny by MBA wannabes who ponder Harvard Business School case studies. Let’s call it the Alberta Pork Producers’ SOS: Saving Our Swine, 2009. Read on to grade their response: do they merit a shiny gold star, a respectable passing grade – or, as some would assert, little more than “E” for effort?

At the helm of Alberta Pork at this pivotal moment was Paul Hodgman. With more than a decade at the non-governmental hog marketing board that represents the province’s pork producers, Hodgman instantly realized tough times were about to get tougher. When he became executive director two years ago, most Alberta pork producers had been in the red since September 2006. Just beginning to turn that around had meant aligning staff, producers and partners as Alberta Pork devoted a good year to developing a revitalization strategy. The result was unveiled in late 2008 and initial testing and marketing pilots were just taking off. That’s when H1N1 threw an unexpected wrench into the works.

“The outbreak came right as we were starting to rebound after a very difficult time dealing with a combination of factors – export problems caused by the rise of Canada’s dollar, higher feed prices and rising labour costs,” says Hodgman. “Its impact on Alberta pork producers was immediate and devastating. Three days after testing confirmed H1N1 in Alberta pigs, prices dropped $20 to $30 a head.”

Jurgen Preugschas estimates losses even higher, at $40 to $60 per pig. A second-generation hog producer who markets about 12,000 swine annually, Preugschas produces world-class breeding stock at his Five Lakes Farms near Mayerthorpe. And as president of the Canadian Pork Council, he emphasizes Canada’s entire pork industry was in the same dire straights as Alberta’s before swine flu struck. “Families across Canada were borrowing to cover losses. Many were close to losing their homes and being forced out of [raising] hogs. In 1995, Alberta had nearly 2,000 pork producers. Today it’s less than 400.”

So when Alberta Pork first caught wind of sick swine in Mexico, Hodgman prepared for action. Even before reports of H1N1 in Alberta pigs or people, he dusted off the organization’s emergency management plan, developed five years earlier in the aftermath of BSE and hoof and mouth outbreaks. Although the comprehensive plan covers many measures, Hodgman knew its communications components would be crucial. Then he called in Lee Funke of Torque Communications.

Funke’s well versed in swine-industry issues, having consulted with Alberta Pork for nearly nine years – and, unlike Hodgman, Funke had experience in crisis control from his previous work on BSE issues. He knew what was at stake, and hoped for a more balanced response this time around. “My emotions quickly went from surprise and shock to dismay – then straight into crisis management mode,” Funke says. “We had to get facts out as quickly as possible.”

Just as important, however, would be how those facts were presented. Maintaining confidence in pork products was priority one. Yet, could Alberta Pork convince consumers weary and wary of media spin that it was putting their health and safety first, not its own vested interests?

The basis of Funke’s advice to Alberta Pork was simple, as all good communication is: No spin, just tell the truth and let the public decide. Be as transparent and accessible as possible with the public, producers and government. An approach implied in Ralph Klein’s infamous observation that “any self-respecting rancher would have shot, shovelled and shut up,” during the BSE crisis of 2003, would be disastrous. Instead, give media as much info as you can, Funke counselled, and if you can’t, say so and say why.

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