This week, the National Pork Board announced Leslie McCuiston, a pig farmer from Columbus, Neb., was named the 2017 America's Pig Farmer of the Year.

The award, which McCuiston won by achieving the highest combined score from a third-party judging panel and online voting, recognizes a pig farmer who excels at raising pigs using the We Care ethical principles and who connects with consumers regarding pork production.

Despite having made a career in pork production, McCuiston notes she didn't come from a hog farming background. "I actually grew up on a cattle and small-grain farm in southwest Oklahoma," she says. "I graduated from college, did an internship in between semesters at Cargill Pork and went to work for them right out of college. I initially thought I was going to work in the beef industry, but the pork industry presented a couple different options, and it's been a great career for me."

McCuiston, who is senior production manager for The Maschhoffs LLC, oversees 70 employees who care for more than 18,000 sows and 10 breed-to-wean facilities in central Nebraska and South Dakota. She notes focusing on people as her main objective, and says in the world of agriculture — a historically male-dominated industry — women are taking on a greater number of leadership positions.

Related:Nebraska farmer named 2017 America's Pig Farmer of the Year

"I think one of the unique things about my team is how many women in leadership there are. It's not only myself, but six out of nine managers I work with are women," she says. "What we're seeing more and more, as an industry as a whole is more women farm owners, more women in leadership and more women as veterinarians."

McCuiston notes equipping employees with the right tools to provide the best animal care as a cornerstone of the company.

"When we bring a new employee on to the farm, we first have them come in and tour the farm to make sure it's the right fit for them and for us. We want them to be just as passionate about taking care of pigs on a day-to-day basis as we are," she says. "We have an on-board training program that starts them with doing some basic tasks, but not caring for animals until they've gone through the training. We get some people that have livestock backgrounds, but there are a lot that don't, and we want to make sure they have the training they need to handle pigs."

McCuiston was named America's Pig Farmer of the Year following a third-party audit of on-farm practices and after taking part in a series of written and oral interviews by subject-matter experts. Through the audit and interview process, she has achieved excellence in all aspects of pig farming, including animal care, environmental stewardship, employee work environment and outstanding community service.

A panel of expert judges met in early September with the four finalists for the award.