Dr. Pamela Zaabel has joined the National Pork Board as director of Swine Health Information and Research.
Zaabel graduated as a doctor of veterinary medicine from Iowa State University in 1997. She has worked as a practicing veterinarian with experience in swine medicine and production at a mixed-animal veterinary clinic in Newton, Iowa until 2004. Zaabel and her husband raise sheep and cattle near Newton.
Zaabel’s academic interests included research in sheep and swine embryo cryopreservation. She has coauthored several articles on this topic. While obtaining her veterinary degree, Zaabel worked at Iowa State University’s Department of Veterinary Pathology and Veterinary Medical Research Institute’s laboratories and taught in the Department of Veterinary Physiology and Pharmacology.
Zaabel’s responsibilities for the Pork Checkoff will include coordinating the Checkoff’s Porcine Reproductive and Respiratory Syndrome Initiative (PRRS Initiative), coordinating research and research programs in other endemic and emerging swine diseases and developing educational material for producers.
Zaabel joined the National Pork Board on Jan. 3 and will work out of the Des Moines, Iowa office.
The National Pork Board has responsibility for research, promotion and consumer information projects and for communicating with pork producers and the public. Through a legislative national Pork Checkoff, pork producers invest $0.40 for each $100 value of hogs sold. The Pork Checkoff funds national and state programs in advertising, consumer information, retail and foodservice marketing, export market promotion, production improvement and education in swine health, pork quality and safety. For information on Checkoff-funded programs, pork producers can call the Producer Service Center at 800-456-PORK or check the Internet at www.pork.org.