Barb Becker has a passion for pigs and people! Recently at the Pipestone Management All Farm Employee meeting, she was recognized for just that. Barb was honored with the Pipestone Pioneer award for being one of the first Pipestone team members to forge the path of the Pipestone Management.

Barb Becker has worked with pigs all of her life. She started by raising her own sows in dirt lots… Prior to working for Pipestone Management, she managed a small farm near Truman, MN, then purchased shares in a 1200 head sow farm near Truman where she lived and managed the farm. In 1997, she started working with Pipestone Management. Barb’s work ethic usually had her starting at 4 in the morning and working until the job was done.

Barb has held many positions within the company, but no matter what position she held, she had a passion for the people she worked with. When managing Cougar Run 1, she was known for her lasagna that she baked for the team when they had potlucks (which was often). She liked to make her team members feel part of a family. For example, the Cougar Run 1 farm there was a bulletin board where the staff could put pictures of their families. Even though she was a caring, she still expected each person to give 100% to their jobs. She did not ask anyone to do anything that she was not willing to do herself and was a great mentor to her team members. She always worked with the System, the shareholders, and the pigs best interest in mind. She appreciated the opportunity to work for the shareholders and produce a great product for them.

The Information Bureau team grew to appreciate Barb’s eagerness to make things right. She helped the farms learn how to enter data accurately. She has been a great asset to the bureau team.
Over the years with Pipestone, Barb has hosted guests for the System and helped find housing for new employees. She helped HR with new hire paperwork when she was training new staff. Here at Pipestone, we think her biggest contribution was showing people that they matter. They are all important to Pipestone Management. She took to heart our core values of Caring, Commitment, Growth, Integrity and Teamwork. Every day she worked, she strived to uphold these core values, and she made sure that the people she worked with understood and acted upon them… She worked with compassion for the System.

Thank you, Barb, for a great 20 years at Pipestone Management. Your passion to pigs and people were above extraordinary and we are truly grateful for your dedication to both.