Registrations for the 2023 Banff Pork Seminar are on track for more than 700 people, a return to pre-pandemic numbers, says the seminar coordinator. 
In an email to Prairie Hog Country, Ashley Steeple announced from her desk at the University of Alberta that the first in-person seminar since the COVID-19 outbreak of 2020 is well subscribed and offers a new option for delegates to review the presentations afterward. 
For the first time, all presentations will be recorded and posted online and on demand for the benefit of delegates. 
“We always bring in top speakers and this is one way delegates can be sure they get every bit of information from these industry leading presenters,” she said in a news release issued on November 10. 
The 2021 seminar was held entirely online, scuttling hopes for a major 50th anniversary celebration. Thoughts of hosting a special event in 2022 were dashed again with a hybrid event that took a hit when some of the delegates who had planned to attend in person changed their plans just days before the seminar due to COVID issues among their staff. 
Anticipating a full-on live event in 2023, expectations are high for the return to the vibrant social event that had been so important to BPS in previous years. 
“The past few years have dramatically cut into the opportunity to be together as an industry,” Steeple said in her news release. 
“We are already seeing strong hotel bookings and related events being planned around the seminar week.” 
Delegates can expect the same level of knowledge sharing and on-site reporting that they have experienced in the past. Terry Hockady and his crew from Meristem will post updates throughout the seminar. 
Banff Pork Seminar opens in the Convention Centre at the Fairmont Banff Springs on the evening of Tuesday, January 10 and continues through Wednesday and Thursday starting with plenary sessions each morning and followed by breakout sessions to provide technical updates on all aspects of hog production and marketing. 
The final session, starting at 4 p.m. on January 12, features Fresh Air Media owner Andrew Campbell offering his views on Fresh Air Farming. 
Banff Pork Seminar is a project of the University of Alberta Department of Agricultural, Food and Nutritional Sciences with support from major partners including Alberta Pork and Alberta Agriculture and Forestry. 
Please visit  banffpork.com for registration and program information. •
— By Brenda Kossowan