Source: NCDA&CS, 5/30/14
 
Representatives of North Carolina’s pork, beef and dairy industries will be at the General Assembly June 3 for Livestock Legislative Day. The event includes a full day of activities, including the annual legislative milk-chugging contest.

“Pork, beef and dairy products make up nearly a quarter of the state’s agricultural cash receipts,” said Agriculture Commissioner Steve Troxler. “Livestock Legislative Day gives us an opportunity to highlight the importance of the state’s $78 billion agriculture and agribusiness industry.”

At noon, N.C. General Assembly members will compete in the 15th annual milk-chugging contest on the North Portico of the Legislative Building. Teams of three legislators will race to see which team can finish six pints of milk in the fastest time. All attendees will be able to enjoy ice cream following the contest.

The House All Stars team consists of Rep. William Brisson, Rep. John Bell and Rep. Jonathan Jordan. They will face off against the Senate Super Sippers, made of Sen. Andrew Brock, Sen. Brent Jackson and Sen. Dan Soucek. The first-place team will receive $200 for a charity of its choice, and the second-place team will receive $100 for its selected charity. The House will chug on behalf of the N.C. FFA Foundation, and the Senate will compete for the N.C. 4-H Foundation.

The milk-chugging event is sponsored by the Cooperative Council of N.C., N.C. Dairy Industry Promotion Committee and the N.C. Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services. Milkco will provide milk for the event, and Harris Teeter will provide ice cream. Other Livestock Legislative Day sponsors include the N.C. Pork Council and the N.C. Cattlemen’s Association.

North Carolina is the second-largest producer of hogs in the nation, contributing more than 13 percent of the national supply. The state’s ranchers raise 364,000 beef cows and 46,000 milk cows. North Carolina leads the Southeast for most milk production per cow, and more than 100 million gallons of milk are produced annually. In addition, the N.C. dairy industry produces 15.9 million gallons of ice cream annually. More information about the state’s livestock industry is available at www.ncagr.gov/markets/livestock.