The Minnesota Pork Board will award as many as seven $1,000 scholarships to students who are pursuing careers with an emphasis in pork. Among the many qualifying educational pursuits are agribusiness, agricultural engineering, agronomy, animal science, environmental science, nutrition and large animal veterinary medicine.

The scholarship application deadline is May 15. Applicants must be Minnesota residents who are attending a two- or four-year school and pursuing an undergraduate degree that focuses on swine production or a related field. Applicants entering their freshman, sophomore, junior or senior year of college are eligible to apply.

Students must complete an application form, compose a letter indicating their plans for future involvement within pork production and/or the pork industry, submit an essay on a current or future pork industry challenge and their ideas for solving the issue, two letters of reference and a professional resume.

Literacy Grant Program

The Minnesota Pork Board, through its Literacy Grant Program, is offering youth organizations, such as 4-H clubs, FCCLA chapters, and FFA chapters, an opportunity to carry out educational projects to increase the public’s knowledge of pork.

Literacy grant topics are pork production, pork nutrition, career opportunities within pork and other pork-related subjects.

The deadline to submit a grant application is June 1. The application must be typed and filled out in its entirety. The MPB will award grants based upon an organization’s idea on how to increase pig topic literacy, identification of the target audience, the project’s ability to reach that audience and financial need. Grants as much as $1,000 per organization will be awarded. Organizations submitting grant applications, as well as the proposed project, must be based in Minnesota. The projects must be completed and the final grant project report returned to the MPB by Jan. 1, 2013.

For additional information on the MPB Literacy Grant Program, contact Resler at 507-345-8814 or jill@mnpork.com.