Kendra Leslie grew up surrounded by farmers but did not gain any firsthand experience with agriculture until taking a part time job with a local pig farmer. Her experience with swine turned into a greater interest in agriculture and influenced her decision to enroll in the Associate Diploma in Agriculture program at Ridgetown Campus in 2010.

“There are so many misconceptions about the pork industry. I’ve made my personal mission to dispel myths and try to help those who may not be fully aware of where their food comes from and how it’s produced.” – Kendra Leslie

Kendra is a farrowing supervisor at a 1,200 head sow barn. Her responsibilities include checking expectant mothers with ultrasounds, ensuring all animals are eating properly, weighing and other routine health checks to monitor the overall health of sows and piglets. The skills that she practices on a daily basis link to several of her OAC courses, especially those involving the handling and feeding of livestock, and the use of social media to communicate.

Kendra’s fondest memory of her time at Ridgetown Campus is tied to a specific lecture regarding social media. The lecture focused on how effective twitter communication can be in the agricultural community. This is something Kendra is familiar with; she met her current employer on twitter and still uses her personal account to debunk myths about the pork industry. Kendra also belongs to a blogging initiative called Dinner Starts Here [1]. Using videos and personal blog postings, in addition to her twitter activity, Kendra shares her experiences working in a swine facility in hopes of addressing consumer misconceptions. Kendra ties much of her success and inspiration to the classes that taught her the importance of social media and encouraged her to use it as a positive line of communication.

Posted on September 18, 2014