AMES, Iowa — Iowa State University agricultural engineer Jay Harmon has been named the interim director of the Iowa Pork Industry Center.
Harmon, a professor of agricultural and biosystems engineering and an extension livestock housing specialist, brings expertise in pork production systems to the position, which promotes efficient pork production technologies in Iowa. His goal is to increase awareness of the center and support member organizations in promoting their services and knowledge.
“Iowa State has great people, doing great work,” Harmon said. “My role is to increase visibility of the Iowa Pork Industry Center and encourage the continued cooperative work of the partner departments and organizations.”
Harmon succeeds Rodney “Butch” Baker, who served two years as interim director. Baker is senior clinician at ISU’s Department of Veterinary Diagnostic and Production Animal Medicine.
The Iowa Pork Industry Center, established in 1994, is a coordinated effort of the colleges of Agriculture and Life Sciences and Veterinary Medicine at Iowa State. Through the center, Iowa pork producers receive accurate and timely information to aid in making their operations more efficient and profitable.
Harmon works with producers, on-farm construction businesses, veterinarians, appraisers and other agribusiness groups in his role with Iowa State University Extension and Outreach. His main research and extension programs involve ventilation training, for which he has developed a training trailer to be used with clients across the state, along with programs on energy conservation, building design to meet animal welfare concerns and air quality. He teaches animal production systems in the Department of Agricultural and Biosystems Engineering.
Harmon also serves as professor-in-charge of Midwest Plan Service, a university-based publishing cooperative dedicated to disseminating research-based, peer-reviewed and un-biased publications that support the outreach missions of the Midwest land-grant universities and the USDA.
In 2011, he was named a Fellow by the American Society of Agricultural and Biological Engineers. He received the Dean’s Citation for Extraordinary Contributions from ISU’s College of Agriculture and Life Sciences in 2009. He has a doctorate in agricultural engineering from Virginia Tech and a master’s degree in agricultural engineering from the University of Minnesota. He earned his bachelor’s degree in agricultural engineering from Purdue University. He is a registered professional engineer.