Board of Directors and Staff

Dan is a third generation farmer, with a fourth generation interested in following their father’s footsteps. Dan and his wife have four sons and run a mixed family farm focusing on grain and hogs. A family man, Dan believes that being on the Board of Directors for Alberta Pork is important because it keeps him involved in the industry as it changes and evolves. When Dan is not farming he will either be found abroad with his family, or on his motorcycle.

Mark and his wife Janet have four children; Scarlett, Troy, Lilly and Boe. Mark manages a 500 sow farrow to finish operation at Lakeside Colony near Cranford, Alberta. Mark likes working with hogs and feeding people. He wants to ensure that Albertans have access to high quality pork every day. Mark has been involved with Alberta Pork for 10 years. As an Alberta Pork director, he wants to help build a strong and sustainable pork industry for the short and long term.

Rein started working at his family’s hog operation at the age of 12 and continued in that industry after moving to Canada and buying some land. Emigrating from Holland when he was 37, he and his wife Jannet manage a 350 sow farrow to finish production in Coaldale. He can’t see himself working anywhere else as he loves what he does and like most people in the agriculture industry, will probably be doing it for a long time. Although Rein loves what he does on the farm, he enjoys watching and attending hockey games, spending time with his three kids and three grandkids. Rein decided to become a board member because he believes that you will always learn something and meet new people from the industry.

Hendrik was born and raised in South Africa. He holds a Bachelor’s degree in Animal Science and is involved in mixed farming including pigs, dairy, sheep and crops. Hendrik immigrated to North Carolina in 2005, where he spent 5 years before coming to Canada in 2010. Hendrik has been married for over 2 years and has two children. As a board member for Alberta Pork, Hendrik knows that we are facing some challenging times in the pig industry, and hopes to contribute in any way to make this sector more secure.

Ruben is from Parkland Colony near Nanton, Alberta. Ruben is married with 3 daughters and is the Assistant Hog Manager at Parkland Colony where they operate a 500 sow farrow to finish operation. Ruben knows the industry is facing challenging times and he wanted to do his part to represent the industry and help to strengthen the future for all in the Hog industry.

Martin is from Hartland Farming Co Ltd. in Bashaw, Alberta. Martin manages a 750 sow farrow to finish operation at Hartland Farming Co Ltd. Martin is married to Martha and is the proud father of three boys and three girls. Martin has been working with hogs since the late 90s and enjoys working with pigs. Becoming an Alberta Pork Director was a choice he made to try and learn all he can about the challenges this industry faces, and help this industry become stronger and better.

Currently the Executive Director of Alberta Pork, Darcy has a technical diploma in Biological Sciences and holds a BSc and MSc from the Faculty of Agriculture at the University of Alberta. Darcy has spent his career in the agricultural industry. Previously Darcy has worked for the Alberta Livestock and Meat Agency, the Alberta Livestock Industry Development Fund, Alberta Agriculture and Rural Development, and Esso Chemical.

Marilyn started with Alberta Pork in February, 1977. She makes sure the office runs smoothly and efficiently. She administers payables and receivables, maintains financial records, prepares financial statements for the Executive Director, and she manages all personnel files and office requirements.

Kassandra is a MacEwan University graduate with diplomas in Fine Arts, Arts and Cultural Management, and Public Relations. Kassandra joined the Alberta Pork team in September, 2016 as a creative mind and versatile worker. As the Executive and Corporate support coordinator you will see Kassandra involved in many of the public events that Alberta Pork is a part of. She also coordinates our social media, marketing, public and community relations and assists the Executive Director.

Scott graduated from MacEwan University with a Bachelor of Communication Studies. He started at Alberta Pork as a summer student in May, 2016. He joined the team full-time as Communication Programs Coordinator in March, 2017. He is responsible for coordinating all direct communication with producers and industry, government relations, public relations and other communication programs.

Alberta Pork welcomed Charlotte in 2007, and she has worked with producers in this role for the last 5 years. In addition to administering the Alberta hog Feeders Association (AHFA) since 2010, she works directly with producers on a wide range of programs. In the course of her work, she has liaised with producers, government and industry partners. She supports our producers through helping grant applications and managing labour initiatives.

Sara hopped on board with Alberta Pork in March, 2016. As Industry Program Assistant she directly supports producers in a variety of ways. She provides grant support, pursues Growing Forward initiatives with producers and administers financial services via the Alberta Hog Feeders Association. She reconciles levy reporting, provides operational and administrative support, and coordinates events directly related to producers. Previous roles with organizations such as ATB Financial, Iron Mountain, Suncor and the Government of Alberta have provided Sara with a diverse skill set that makes her proud to serve producers and be a part of the Alberta Pork team.

Christina originally hails from northern Alberta, specifically around the Municipal District of Smoky River. She grew up in a culture surrounded by agriculture. She moved to Edmonton to pursue a degree at the University of Alberta. She started working at Alberta Pork as a summer student in 2007, and she has been with us ever since. Currently she is the Traceability Coordinator with Alberta Pork, and she also is the resident handler and translator for the entire office IT infrastructure.

Lesley joined Alberta Pork in May, 2015. She was raised in an agricultural family in the Elk Point-St Paul area. She supports Christina and producers directly, as well as being responsible for the data entry of swine movement details to provincial and national databases, ordering of ear tags, registration of new producers, manifest distribution and swine compliance. She coordinates all incoming and outgoing communications for the Traceability program, including inquiries, compliance activities and answering calls.

Javier is an Animal Scientist passionate about swine production. He was born in Colombia, surrounded by a culture of cattle and swine production. He graduated university in 2001, and has been involved with the swine industry for more than 13 years. Since 2008, he has worked with different companies within the industry, and he now has the opportunity to work as the Quality Assurance and Production Manager. He leads the production team made up of himself, Felipe Silva and Bill Mullen. This is our ground team who serve producers and consumers with the best biosecurity, animal welfare, and quality assurance practices.

Felipe started with Alberta Pork in February, 2017. He has a bachelor’s degree in Veterinary Medicine from the Universidad de la Salle, in Bogota, Colombia. He recently finished his Masters of Science in Animal Science at the University of Alberta. His work experience in Colombia was in the poultry industry. He worked at Avicol, managing Broiler Grandparents and Layer breeders. Avicol is a certified company in ISO 9001, and GPP (good production practices). They have strong policies regarding biosecurity, quality assurance and work safety. He is also trained as an internal auditor focused on good production practices and biosecurity. This breadth of knowledge helps Alberta Pork and our production team better serve our producers.

Bill joined Alberta Pork January, 2017, but has 30 years of experience in the Alberta Pork Industry. He is a certified Instructor of the Transport Quality Assurance (TQA) program. His background is in hog marketing & carcass grading. Along with Javier and Felipe, he is a member of the Producer Production support team. Lastly, and most unfortunately, he is a Toronto Maple Leafs fan.