May we present: John Quackenbush, CCO Minitube USA

John Quackenbush is an expert in pig reproduction and CCO of Minitube USA. In 2015, Minitube USA was established in Wisconsin to provide innovative products and optimal service to our customers within the US and Canada. Let us introduce John in an interview.
 

John, what do you like most about your job as CCO of Minitube USA?

The position of Chief Commercial Offer at Minitube had given me many different opportunities, all of them with our customers at many different levels, as well as compiling a team of professionals that are passionate about customer service.  I most enjoy the opportunity to teach, both co-workers and customers. Sharing knowledge on efficiencies and procedures and seeing people better understand how good they can be, is always enjoyable. I also enjoy the chances to chat with customers about their farms and even the weather, markets and what is going on in the industry.  
 

You have a lot of experience in porcine reproduction. Can you tell us a little bit about your professional background?

I grew up in West Central Minnesota on a livestock and row crop farm.  I’m a true farm kid and always thought that was the path that I would take. However, while attending the University of Minnesota-Crookston, during my summer internship at Gentiporc, I had the opportunity to work in a boar stud for the summer. That internship changed the direction. After college, I spent a year in southern Minnesota on a sow farm collecting boars and breeding sows.  My wife and I then moved to Nebraska, and I spent almost 14 years with Zoltenko Swine Semen Services, first as a site manager and then the Boar Stud Operations Manager. In 2014, we moved to Wisconsin where I was working with a distributor of Minitube International. In November of 2015, we started Minitube USA, Inc. and I have now completed my sixth year with Minitube.
 

What do you think are the topics that will be most relevant to the US porcine reproduction industry over the next 2 to 3 years?

I think the current conversations will still be the most relevant in the upcoming years. Keeping our swine herd healthy, PRRS, African Swine Fever and biosecurity of our farms, will continue to be in the forefront. With the respect to reproduction, post cervical insemination and its adoption in the industry, spreading the elite genetics across more sows, and what it is going to cost. On the boar stud side, how consistently accurate can we be with sperm counts in semen doses. The US industry wants to decrease sperm counts but we have some hesitation in the production sector to start. I believe that this has to do with the retail mindset of the boar stud and every customer is important due to the competition in the industry. Lastly, what role does bacteria play in the semen doses and the control of the bad ones. This conversation has to do with antibiotics and the reduction of antibiotics, but also how can on farm storage and semen handling help with controlling the bacteria that we find in the boar and the boar stud. 
 

You offer your customers the complete package including expert advice, high-quality products, and reliable service support. How can they profit from Minitube’s strong presence in the US?

The team at MTUS strives to be the best in the industry in customer service. The service team goals are to have an excellent response time to the equipment failures that happen, loaner equipment if the problem is not easily fixed and 7-day turnarounds on items to be fixed in our shop. All these goals keep our customers in production and working as efficiently as possible.  Downtime costs money. MTUS also can serve our customers with advice and consulting in all areas of their production. From building design to help with animal movement efficiencies, lab design, equipment and processes, the team at MTUS can help in the areas the customer is wanting to improve. With labor being an issue in agriculture, little tweaks to a system to create better processes and procedures can improve the bottom line. Along with the Minitube line of products, service and consulting offers, we can give our customers peace of mind that we are a partner with them in their business and will be there when they need us. Our team consists of 12 equipment and lab automation technicians and group of 8 salespeople to serve our customers.