The National Pig Association (NPA) has awarded its first Lifetime Fellowship, in recognition of exceptional service to the British pig industry. The association’s Board and Producer Group have unanimously voted to bestow the Fellowship on North Lincolnshire producer John Godfrey CBE, who together with the late Sir. Ben Gill, was responsible for bringing together the NFU pig committee and the commercial arm of the British Pig Association to form the National Pig Association in 1999.
“Pig producers had been calling for a single voice for the country’s commercial pig sector for many years but it took two exceptionally talented men, both respected and trusted by farmers, to overcome the obstacles and make it happen,” said North Yorkshire producer Richard Lister, chairman of NPA.
East Yorkshire producer Phil Stephenson, chairman of NPA Producer Group, said, “I am delighted we are recognizing John Godfrey in this way. NPA has proved itself to be an exceptional trade association which consistently punches above its weight — and without John’s wisdom and foresight, none of it would have happened.”
Hugh Crabtree, chairman of NPA Allied Industry Group, said, “I was involved alongside John at the foundation of the NPA and his clear vision was to retain and develop the allied industry members of the BPA which I was chairing at the time. He knew it was vital to have an organization that represented the whole sector. That's what makes us different and more relevant, and provides producers with specialist knowledge across many disciplines. Wise man that John Godfrey!”
Dr. Zoe Davies, chief executive of NPA, said, “John Godfrey is a giant figure in the British pig industry and has been a great support to me personally over the years. Many of us rely on him for his knowledge of pig production economics and his wisdom in helping us plot a way forward in a cyclical and sometimes volatile sector that doesn’t benefit from a subsidized safety net.”
