The holidays offer a great time to spread the word about pork, according to Kevin Sheehan, Senior Director of Processing and Engagement at the National Pork Board. Sheehan talks about pork options for families during the holiday season.

“Pork is of tremendous value to families to help them stretch their dollar whether they are buying a fully cooked ham or maybe some ground pork that you can put in some wonderful meals. Pork is of great value and is also quite nutritious.” 

Sheehan talked about the various ways pork can be served, as pork is extremely healthy and nutritious.

You know, you put pork in a recipe and sometimes you look at that and you go man, this is surprisingly pork. This is wonderful. You know, consumers, myself, who are of the boomer generation, were aging out and we need to really engage consumers, the Gen X, Gen Z, millennial consumers, who can enjoy pork. Now, somebody like myself, who will like a pork chop and take a pork loin and know how to cut it down, I know my kids don’t necessarily know how to do that. So, it is important for us at the (Pork) Checkoff to be showing recipes and cooking recipes for air fryers, for instapots, and how to properly grow and cook pork.” 

Pork is the most consumed meat protein across the world, Sheehan said, and many individuals immigrate to the U.S. from other countries that primarily eat pork. Some of the Pork Board’s priorities at the moment, Sheehan adds, consist of making sure that multicultural consumers are tied into great pork items available in the United States.

“Sometimes we hear from them I’m not cooking it as nutritionally as I think I might be able to. So, showing them that a pork chop can be nutritious and giving them recipes for wonderful pork chops or loin roast that they can cook at family events and bring everybody over to enjoy pork.”