Putting More Pork on More Plates During the Holidays

Putting More Pork on More Plates During the Holidays

On this page:

• Expanding the Network: IGA Partnership
• The H-E-B 2025 Holiday Push
• Sustaining Momentum into 2026

NPB is focused on continuing to grow pork demand and putting more pork on more plates every day, but the holidays last season offered a critical opportunity for pork to take center stage as the main dish of every gathering.

To capitalize on this high-volume period, NPB's market growth team leaned in with retailers across the country, supporting promotions that helped families plan their holiday menus with fresh and processed pork cuts.

"This time of the year is about special occasions, but NPB's goal is getting more people to eat more pork more often," said José de Jesús, NPB, assistant vice president of consumer marketing.

Expanding the Network: IGA Partnership

In late 2025, NPB was invited to join an exclusive group of industry partners to meet and discuss activation across 2026 with the Independent Grocers Alliance (IGA, Inc.), the largest network of independent grocers in the world.

Why this matters for producers: IGA is a retail cooperative supporting over 2,600 stores across the U.S. When you think about IGA members, these are your "hometown" grocers, the backbone of many communities. IGA operates as a not-for-profit to help non-publicly traded grocers. This partnership reaches an important retail segment with pork-focused marketing, promotion and educational opportunities at an unmatched scale. 

2025 Holiday & New Year Activations with IGA:

• November "Family Meals Made Easy": A two-week feature focused on the pork loin roast. The campaign drove shoppers to the Balsamic Rosemary Pork Loin recipe through national digital circulars and the IGA Recipe Club e-newsletter.

• December "Ugly Sweater" Program: This month long festive promotion highlighted ham. The campaign included a national digital ad, social media pushes and an interactive Ugly Sweater Contest to keep pork top of mind.

• January National Digital Ad: Two-week placement in their second ad of the year featuring the Pork Power Bowl recipe, boasting 36 grams of protein, for those looking to eat more protein in the new year.

Looking ahead, for 2026, NPB is an official IGA Red Oval Partner, with a full calendar year of pork promotion planned as well as a series of pork education opportunities for independent retailers.

The H-E-B 2025 Holiday Push

Everything's bigger in Texas - including the impact of partnership! Working alongside one of the state's largest independent grocers, H-E-B, a seven-week promotion showcasing what's possible when alignment, strategy and shoppers come together to deliver during the high-traffic windows of Thanksgiving and the lead-up to Christmas.

Campaign Highlights:

• Curated Holiday Selection: Marketing efforts prioritized high-demand holiday cuts, specifically pork butts, hams and chops.

• Integrated Path-to-Purchase: Digital end caps, onsite banners in category aisles and onsite video carousels provided a seamless shopping experience for pork consumers.

• Digital-First Outreach: Offsite display ads and "Friday Feature" emails placed pork on digital shopping lists before consumers even entered the store.

Sustaining Momentum into 2026

These strategic retail activations represent more than just seasonal promotions; they are a vital component of a long-term roadmap to increase pork demand. By leveraging the national scale of the IGA network and the deep regional influence of H-E-B, we can achieve putting more pork on more plates, more often.

As NPB expands existing relationships and cultivates new ones, the 2026 consumer strategy serves as the guide for partner alignment. This collaborative approach ensures the continued stewardship of checkoff dollars to drive growth in pork demand.