At Manitoba Pork’s Annual General Meeting on April 5, 2017, Chair George Matheson presented Manitoba’s Chief Veterinary Officer, Dr. Megan Bergman, with a 2017 Pork Industry Award in recognition of her exemplary support of the industry as it met recent swine health challenges, through her strong leadership, knowledge, and genuine empathy in dealing with Manitoba pork producers.
Dr. Bergman has rural roots, growing up on a mixed farm in the Interlake area and helping her dad with his cattle herd, vaccinating and calving. Her passion for animal care grew from there, and she has dedicated her career to working with animals.
Megan graduated from the Western College of Veterinary Medicine as a veterinarian in 2002, and then entered clinical practice in Manitoba, spending five years in private equine practice. Following that, she spent eight years working for the Canadian Food Inspection Agency as an animal health veterinarian, and later as an Inspection Manager and Regional Director. Megan was appointed Chief Veterinary Officer (CVO) for Manitoba Agriculture in August 2014. As CVO, she is responsible for responding to all concerns about animal care and welfare, supporting biosecurity efforts, leading disease surveillance, food safety inspections and connecting farmers, processors and others with information and resources on these issues.
Manitoba Pork owes Megan a huge debt of gratitude for her role in limiting PED’s impact on the provincial swine herd. Understanding the critical importance of keeping PED out of Canada, Megan worked closely with us to design and implement the emergency truck washing protocol, allowing Manitoba trailers to be sealed in the U.S. and washed at certified wash facilities in Manitoba. Megan is still advocating keeping that protocol, which we all believe has kept Manitoba and Western Canada virtually PED-free.
Simply put, Megan makes every effort to work in harmony with the livestock industry and stakeholders to ensure that Manitoba continues to have strong animal health and welfare activities, and to protect animals, food and people in order for the industry to be successful and grow. The pork producers of Manitoba sincerely thank Dr. Bergman for all of her contributions to our industry.
