A Message From the President

• By: admin
• On: 10/05/2021 11:48:25
• In: Member News

Many greetings and blessings to you all. Thank you to the association for allowing me to serve as president and to be a part of an organization that not only gives knowledge back but creates life-long friendships within the industry. I am following the footsteps of some great leaders in the industry and pray that I can continue to make the association successful during my term as president.
 
I am the owner of Ely Farm Products in Newtown, Pennsylvania. I'm a seventh-generation farmer and have operated my business for more than 40 years. My father and grandfather were dairy farmers. My family and I carry on the tradition and make hundreds of pounds of aged cheese each year; however, our passion is meat processing. I have been a member of the Pennsylvania Association of Meat Processors and the American Association of Meat Processors since 1989. My wife Susan and I have three children: Aldan, who is married and expecting a baby in the new year; our daughter, Elizabeth; and our son, Luke. Our children are the eighth generation and work on the farm with us, and soon, our grandchild will be the ninth generation.
 
The new year comes as a challenge as we continue to find new ways to improve the association. We are coming off a very successful convention this year in Oklahoma City. Despite the challenges we faced with COVID-19 mandates and restrictions, we were able to pull off one of our most successful conventions to date. I would be thoughtless if I didn't thank the Convention Planning Committee, attendees, exhibitors, sponsors, and the AAMP staff for all their work in making it a success. We hope we can carry that same energy over next year to the AAMP Convention in Iowa. I met with the Convention Planning Committee last month in Des Moines for the preparation of the event. The committee has lots of exciting things planned. We can't wait to share them with you. Please watch your communications from AAMP for the latest details. We hope you save the date for the 83^rd convention, July 14-16, 2022.
 
Another exciting upcoming event for the association is the DFV-AAMP Quality Competition for Sausage and Ham. The event will take place January 15-22, 2022, at Penn State University in State College, Pa. This event is the third satellite competition we have partnered with the German Butchers' Association (DFV) to host for our AAMP Members. IFFA is considered the world's leading trade fair for the meat industry and only happens every three years. The medals from this competition will be awarded at the IFFA in Frankfurt, Germany, in May. I encourage you to participate as it's a unique opportunity to see how our products match up against the German standard. Also, it's a chance for you to earn international recognition for your award-winning products. More details on this are available under the events tab on the AAMP website.
 
For our current members and prospective members, I want to assure you that my intention, and that of the board of directors, is to grow AAMP without limits. We will stay focused on remaining a benefit to our members while staying current with industry standards and requirements. I look forward to the remainder of my presidency and invite each of you to become involved in the association. Please reach out to me or the staff at AAMP if you have any comments or concerns.