Meet Busy Mom, Pork Producer and Former National Pork Board President Heather Hill
In partnership with: Indiana State Department of Agriculture
When you’re a pig farmer, there’s no downtime. The animals’ health, wellness and prosperity are your No. 1 priority.
“They have to be fed and cared for twice a day – pigs are another living and breathing animal depending on us every day, and we care about them,” Heather Hill says.
Nearly 3,000 pig farmers reside in Indiana, caring for around 4.5 million pigs. Indiana is the country’s fourth-leading state in pork production, which provides approximately 15,000 jobs.
As the outgoing president of the National Pork Board, Hill says, “It’s been a true honor and very humbling to serve and a pleasure to give back to the industry.”
Hill has proudly held many offices – treasurer, vice president and, most recently, president. With her three-year term ending in 2023, Hill becomes the immediate past president of the National Pork Board, where she will attend meetings instead of leading them.
“Right now, markets are challenging for pork producers,” Hill says. “Much of our focus is helping to promote demand domestically and internationally and work on our priorities.”
Farming Roots
Growing up in LaPorte County, Hill and her siblings showed livestock in the 4-H program. Her grandfather was a pig farmer, and her mother was raised on the family farm. In 2000, after studying animal science at Purdue University, she married Marc Hill, a farm boy from Greenfield.
“At first, I wanted to be a large animal veterinarian, but I soon realized that I wanted to work with people and animals daily,” Hill says.
She became an integral part of Hill Farms, a multigenerational farm in Hancock County managed by her family and her husband’s parents, Steve and Debi Hill.
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Raising corn, soybeans, wheat and pigs, they operate a 600-sow farrow-to-finish operation in Greenfield, east of Indianapolis. They happily raise their three children and give back to their local community.
Along with raising pigs, Hill and her family have operated the Pork Shoppe since 2006.
“It’s become a nice way to save money for our kids’ college accounts and educate our neighbors on our farm,” Hill says.
With four freezers in their garage, they package and sell cuts of pork at local farmers markets, a local orchard and online.
Giving Back
Being involved in her industry and her community is important to Hill.
“I encourage people to get involved in their local community, civic organizations, church or industry organization,” she says. “I firmly believe you get way more out of giving back than you put in.”
Hill spends much of her spare time driving her kids to various activities.
“Right now, with our kids’ ages, our lives are centered around them,” she says. “Our son, Reese, is 17 and plays football and throws shot put and discus. Our daughter, Addison, is 20 and a junior at Purdue University. Our younger daughter, Hadley, is 14 and plays basketball and also throws shot put and discus.”
When she has time to herself, Hill enjoys reading.
“I’m a big reader, but I go in spurts. I love a good mix of books,” she says.
From biographies to murder mysteries to historical fiction, Hill appreciates the whole gamut from fiction to nonfiction.
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Pork at Home
Although they operate a pork farm, Hill says, “We eat it all. Pork is definitely a favorite, but we eat everything. We love beef, chicken and seafood, too.”
Their favorite pork meals are pork chops, pulled pork and pork patty burgers – like hamburgers but with pork.
With her National Pork Board presidential term concluded, Hill will still be as busy as ever with caring for her pigs and crops, spending time with her kids, and helping the pork industry and her community.
“I’ve never regretted the time and energy I’ve put into my community or organizations,” Hill says.