NPA Elections 2021: 31 candidates to contest first NPA Pig Industry Group Election!

A total of 31 people from across the pig sector will compete for 17 places in the first ever NPA Pig Industry Group (PIG) elections.

With voting opening to NPA members on January 25, a hugely impressive total of 16 producers and 15 allied industry representatives have put their names forward. They include a mix of current PIG members and those seeking to represent their sector on the NPA’s decision-making body for the first time.

The full list of candidates is:

PRODUCERS

There are seven producers standing from the hotly contested Eastern region, three each from the North and South West, two from the South Central region and one from the Midlands. The 16 producer candidates will be competing for 10 places on the PIG.

East

• Jack Bosworth
• Steve Hart
• Andrew Houston
• Fergus Howie
• Robin Lawson
• Rob Mutimer
• Howard Revell

Midlands

• Sam Godfrey

North

• Joe Dewhirst
• Matthew Donald
• Phil Stephenson

South Central

• Sally Stockings
• Tom Allen

South West

• Andrew Freemantle
• Sophie Hope
• Richard Knox

YOU CAN READ ALL THE PRODUCER MANIFESTOS HERE

ALLIED INDUSTRY

There are four candidates from the Feed/Nutrition sector, three each from Feed/Equipment and Pharmaceutical, two each from marketing and processing and one veterinary candidate. The 15 candidates will be competing for seven allied industry places.

Feed/Nutrition

• Peter Bryant, A-One
• Charlotte Evans, ForFarmers
• Jason Evans, Cargill
• Michelle Sprent, Premier Nutrition

Housing/Equipment

• Hugh Crabtree, Farmex
• Paul Hutton, Collinsons 
• Andrew Maskery, Andrew Maskery Associates

Marketing

• Chris Barlow, Yorkshire Farmers
• Oli Bown, Thames Valley Cambac

Pharmaceutical

• Jack Fellows, Elanco UK
• Laura Hancox, Zoetis
• Eduardo Velazquez, Ceva Animal Health

Processing

• Ash Gilman, Cranswick
• Steve Urwin, Karro Food Group

Veterinary

• Gemma Thwaites, Garth Pig Practice

YOU CAN READ ALL THE ALLIED INDUSTRY MANIFESTOS HERE 

NPA chief executive Zoe Davies said: “We are absolutely delighted to have such a strong field of candidates covering all our producer regions and all our allied sectors for the first PIG elections. Thank you to all the candidates for coming forward to represent your industry.

“It is now important that as many members as possible cast their votes when voting opens. So please read the manifestos and help elect the strongest possible PIG!”

How the elections work

NPA members will now elect the 17 members of the PIG:

• The newly elected group as of March will consist of 10 producers and 7 allied industry members.
• There will be a guaranteed producer seat for the candidates with the most votes in each of the five NPA regions – East, Midlands, North, South Central and South West – with the remaining five spaces taken by those with next highest number of votes.
• There will be a guaranteed seat for candidates with the most votes in each of the six allied sectors – Feed/Nutrition, Pharmaceutical, Marketing, Veterinary, Housing/Equipment and Processing – with the remaining seat being taken by the candidate holding the next highest number of votes. 

Voting process and rules

• Voting via email opens on January 25. Ballot forms will be emailed to members and available in the Members' Area.  
• Postal ballots will be sent to those who have not (or cannot) voted online on Monday, February 8. 
• Forms should be returned to the special elections email address: ELECTIONS@NPANET.ORG.UK
• Voting closes on February 26. The results will be published in the March edition of Pig World and on the NPA website. 
• Producer members can only vote for producer candidates and allied industry members can only vote for allied industry candidates.
• A current producer member of NPA may vote for up to ten producer candidates.
• A current allied industry member of NPA may vote for up to seven allied industry candidates.
• The voter is not obliged to use all votes, but you are encouraged to do so. Make sure you read all the manifestos before casting your vote!
• Only one vote may be cast per membership number - you must therefore agree who puts the casting vote forward.

More information

For more information on the elections, see the special NPA Elections 21 section of the website.

For full election rules, see the Members’ Area Hot Topics section.