Niki Ellis Puts Her Agriculture Education Degree to Work for Kentucky’s Pork Producers
Congratulations are in order for Niki Ellis, the Kentucky Pork Producers Association new executive director. Niki served as the Director of Education for the Kentucky Cattlemen’s Association for six years before earning her place among the agriculture community’s organization leaders.
We asked Niki to talk about her new role and what prepared her to be a bacon boss.
Provide a summary of your job and what you may do in a typical day
As the Executive Director of the Kentucky Pork Producers Association, I work on behalf of all of Kentucky’s pork producing families. I work to ensure that pork production in Kentucky stays successful and sustainable. Like the farm families I represent, we are focused on keeping our pig herds healthy, our environment safe, and supporting our communities across the state. I also must keep consumers at the front of my mind as well. What products do consumers like? What recipes are they looking for? What questions do they have about swine farms? Where do they get their information? I work with other professionals in the pork industry, elected officials, regulatory services, pork farmers, industry partners and all pork farm families. Working with each of them looks a little different than the one before. Some days I may be interviewing a farmer for a feature on social media, drafting a letter of encouragement for a change to help Kentucky farm families, or I might be flipping pork burgers at the state fair.
Why did you decide to study agriculture?
I knew I wanted to study agriculture because I was in love with the culture. A culture made up of individuals driven to work hard, who are constantly trying to improve, who are resilient and passionate about their work. Growing up in an agriculture-focused county I saw the impact the industry had on families in my own community as well as those far away. How a small farm in Central Kentucky had the potential to feed hundreds of people across the world. I learned about the impacts of American agriculture on the world through my time in the FFA, which sealed the deal on where I wanted to be, in agriculture.
How did your college/work experiences shape the job you have today? What was your path?
I am a graduate of the University of Kentucky College of Agriculture, Food and Environment from the Career and Technical Education Program with an emphasis in agriculture. I thought I wanted to be a traditional teacher in a traditional classroom. My time at UK allowed me to be immersed in all sorts of experiences and fields. My advisors, Dr. Rebekah Epps and Dr. Stacy Vincent prepared me well to tackle agriculture literacy. I’m forever thankful for the uniqueness of that program. When it came time to look for jobs however, I wanted to look at more non-traditional education roles. I happened to apply for a consumer affairs position at the Kentucky Cattlemen’s Association, educating consumers on all things beef. I was, however, offered a much different role as their Director of Education. I spent six years working with youth, producers, and consumers through various educational projects. My time at KCA showed me the importance of trade associations to those involved in agriculture and the need to keep passionate individuals involved in our industry to continue to grow to meet consumer expectations.
My husband (Brandon) and I, with our sons Colton and Blaine, raise hogs in Central Kentucky, so being an advocate for swine farm families is extremely important to me. When the call for applications opened for the Executive Director of the Kentucky Pork Producers Association, I felt that would be a natural fit for me. I wanted to continue to help Kentucky’s farm families and ensure a bright future for my kids if they choose to stay in the swine industry. With a strong producer board and state agriculture leaders, I am surrounded by great minds and great advice to keep improving.
I can’t say enough how important it is to build your network and accept all the experiences that you can to continue to grow.
Explain the skills (learned or soft) you need to accomplish your job.
The most important skill is showing up, being present in all areas that I need to be. Being organized, listening, knowing how to talk to people (written and verbal), setting goals and asking for help. I also need to know how to take out the trash, file papers, and stack boxes. I must be willing to learn every day.
If you knew you would end up in this career, what would you have done/studied differently?
Knowing what I know now, I would have taken more courses in spreadsheet design, marketing, and political science. Possibly a basic class in graphic design.
What is your favorite part about your job? Most interesting?
The favorite part of my job is meeting with producers. Learning what is important to them and their families. What I’ve found most interesting so far is learning how policy and regulatory services work at the national and global level. Seeing the impact of U.S. agriculture as a leader in food and fiber production is always stunning.
What advice would you give a young person looking at this career?
This career is a once in a lifetime position. There aren’t many opportunities to serve as an Executive for an agriculture commodity group. If given the opportunity, strongly consider it. It’s an extremely unique opportunity to safeguard an industry and help keep businesses sustainable for farm families. What is written in the job description is just a scratch on the surface of what the job really is. The diversity of people and topics that you encounter is wide. You just never know what might come across your desk or be in the text you get. Never the same thing twice and constantly trying to improve. It’s challenging but rewarding, frustrating but exciting. If you consider making this type of position a career goal, build your network and always accept opportunities to grow in experiences. The more immersed you are in the world the better prepared you will be.