VOLGA, SOUTH DAKOTA / MOWEAQUA, ILLINOIS — Hundreds of truck drivers hauling soybeans during harvest season were greeted with free pork burgers, chips, and cookies last week at two locations in the Midwest — one organized by industry partners in South Dakota, another by high school FFA students in Illinois — as a small gesture of appreciation for the drivers keeping the harvest moving.
At South Dakota Soybean Processors in Volga, the South Dakota Pork Council and South Dakota Soybean set up a grill on October 9 and cooked over 300 pork burgers for truckers waiting in line to dump their loads. Drivers who wanted to take sack lunches back to their fields were welcome to do so.
Rafe Royall, SDSU Extension swine specialist, said the event was a way for pork producers to thank the farmers and truckers who make their industry possible. “Without the guys that are out in the fields everyday, toiling away, producing our soybeans, I wouldn’t be able to feed pigs like I do here in the U.S. So for me, it’s an awesome opportunity to give back to the guys that make my job possible.”
Soybean procurement manager Kari VanderWal said the gesture is about more than food. “I think it’s important because you want to make sure your customer understands they are appreciated and not just that we expect them to come here. So, this is just a thank you for them for their business.”
At grain elevators in Moweaqua, Illinois, the tradition was carried by local FFA students who organized and handed out lunch bags to drivers leaving the elevators — a ritual they repeat every harvest season.
“We do this every single year,” said FFA senior Isabella Martin. “Farming is a really important part of our community.”
Interviews courtesy of local media.
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