Handling and transportation of pigs is an important aspect of pork production. The interaction between animals and their caretakers can have a positive or negative impact on a pig’s well-being. Additionally, transportation includes the introduction of novel surroundings and can be perceived as stressful to pigs. Therefore, it is important that animals are handled and transported in a way that is humane for pigs and safe for handlers.

Transport Quality Assurance™ (TQA™) is a certification program for pork transporters to ensure they are delivering the highest quality, safest product possible to remain competitive in U.S. and world markets.

Handling and Transportation
To demonstrate and ensure that animal handlers, producers, transporters and packers are accountable for the well-being of pigs during the transportation process, the TQA program was created by the U.S. pork industry in 2002. Since its introduction, the program has been reviewed and revised to incorporate new information based on new scientific findings. It is currently in its third version.

The objective of the program is to raise awareness about the well-being of all sizes of pigs during transport, loading and unloading. It also helps handlers, producers, transporters and plant workers to understand how handling and transport affect pork quality. The TQA program provides guidelines that address basic animal behavior, basic handling, managing temperature, preventing heat and cold stress, use of driving tools and low-stress loading and unloading. Additionally, TQA addresses weather conditions, loading density, time in transport, health and fitness of pigs for transport, biosecurity practices and emergency plans in the case of traffic delays and accidents.

The TQA program was developed for on-farm animal handlers, transporters and those who handle pigs at the destination site. It is a voluntary education-certification program, through which more than 13,000 individuals have been certified. Most of the major packers in the United States require TQA certification of all transporters delivering hogs to their facilities.

For more information on the program and how to be involved, please refer to the National Pork Board Web site.

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