Ag Minute: Illinois Pork, Jeff Galle and Laos

While most people associate Illinois agriculture with vast fields of corn and soybeans, Illinois is also a major contributor to the U.S. pork industry. According to the Illinois Pork Producers, Illinois ranks fourth in the United States in pork production, behind Iowa, Minnesota and North Carolina. The Illinois pork industry has a global reach. For example, one Central Illinois resident, Jeff Galle, has recently been assisting in modernizing pork production halfway around the world in Laos. 

Laos is a completely landlocked country in Southeast Asia, bordered by Vietnam, Thailand, China, Myanmar, and Cambodia. Pork plays an important role in Laotian diets. It is a good source of protein and affordable. However, the majority of port production in Laos is small in scale and primitive. Disease and poor nutrition suppress production. Jeff Galle is working to change all of this. He travels to Laos several times a year to work on creating more productive, more reliable, and more sustainable pork production. From building facilities on concrete slabs to teaching shower-in-and-shower-out techniques to advising on nutrition, Galle puts the knowledge and experience he has gained here in Central Illinois to work in an effort to transform pork production in Laos.

Galle was born in Cambridge, Illinois in Henry County on a farm where his family grew corn, soybeans, oats, and hay and raised pigs. This first-hand experience created the foundation for a long career of working with swine. Growing up, Galle would show pigs at the county and state fair. He was determined from a young age to produce the best pigs in the area and create the best FFA and 4H projects in the county. Every year he would show 10-12 pigs at the fairs. He went to Blackhawk East Community College to obtain an associate’s degree in animal science and then on to Western Illinois University to get a bachelor’s in agriculture education. He decided to further his education with classes at Southern Illinois University and Western Illinois University co-op programs, resulting in a master’s degree. He finished up his education at the University of Illinois with a PhD in animal science. 

Galle then devoted his life to agricultural education in Central Illinois. He spent most of his career at John Wood Community College, in Quincy, serving as a full-time professor for 30 years and 11 more as an adjunct professor. After retiring, he was asked to come to Illinois College in Jacksonville as part-time faculty in the agribusiness program, which soon became full time. Outside the classroom, Galle has remained engaged in the swine industry, serving in all aspects of the Pork Producers organization beginning as the President of Pike County Pork Producers, serving as President of the Illinois Pork Producers Association, and later appointed to the National Pork Board. Throughout his career Galle was fortunate to travel extensively and meet interesting people throughout the world. His first experience abroad was a 34-day trip to Europe a day after he graduated from Western Illinois University. This trip opened his appreciation for art, culture, and travel. Galle’s work in the pig industry has taken him to Russia, Ukraine, and Madagascar, in addition to Laos. 

This year, Galle is retiring from teaching at Illinois College. Looking back on his career in education, Galle credits the students as being the most important part, stating “I really enjoy working with the students in the classes. I love working with them and we have grown together.” Many of his students have contributed to the agriculture industry in their own ways as well. From Central Illinois to rural Laos, Jeff Galle’s work will have an impact for generations to come.