WENONA, Ill. — Approximately 500 people came to view the three-barn Sandy Creek Lane sow farm open house, located on five acres northwest of Wenona in central Illinois, on April 26.

 

The future home to 5,600 sows and up to 21 full-time employees was hotly contested by environmental groups, including a local grassroots group called “Save our Sandy,” whose members cited the risk of accidental manure discharges from the barns as reason to prohibit construction of the buildings – among other considerations.

The event was attended by a cross-section of supporters and objectors to the project, including at least one of the Marshall County board members who voted to recommend the Illinois Department of Agriculture reject the application submitted by site operators VMC Management of Iowa.

The member walked back his earlier objections to the project after attending the open house and hearing Dr. Nicolas Rippel of VMC and others describe the innovative technologies featured within the barns, which increase security and comfort for the pigs.

“The turnout for the Sandy Creek Lane farm open house was overwhelming,” said Tim Maiers of Maiers Ag Consulting, working on behalf of the Illinois Livestock Development Group (ILDG). “This was the largest event that we have ever had.

“It was great to see so many neighbors and members of the community, as well as other farmers and people within the pork industry. Open houses such as this one help to relieve concerns of area residents because it offers a chance to meet who’s involved and see how things are going to be done.”

VMC personnel set up 10 stations throughout the farm to explain each facet of production, using photos to help visitors visualize what day-to-day operations will look like once the pigs arrive.

The tour also served to help allay local activists’ fears of accidental manure discharge polluting Sandy Creek, which is fished by many area anglers and considered a local treasure.

Tour participants saw how manure produced by the farm’s pigs will be collected and controlled under the pig barns in 8- to 10-foot-deep concrete pits, which are reinforced with steel to allow zero discharge. The manure will be tested for nutrient value before being applied to crop fields, using precision ag technology to control application rates and greatly reduce the likelihood of accidental runoff into the creek.

Construction of the farm involved about 40 businesses and supplied work for more than 200 people. The farm will contribute more than $2 million to the local economy by supporting other local businesses, providing a market for local commodities and increasing tax revenue to the county and local school district, according to a news release from the Illinois Pork Producers Assoc. (IPPA) and ILDG.

ILDG has been working with IPPA to sponsor a series of pig barn open houses to call attention to the innovative environmental and animal health technologies and practices employed by the state’s livestock producers, along with the economic benefits of livestock development to local economies, employment and tax revenue. “We’re trying to be open, be transparent and let people know what’s going on,”

Maiers said in an email. “That’s the reason we have open houses – to get people out so they can see how farmers care for their animals and the environment firsthand.”