News from the National 4-H Poultry & Egg Conference

The USPOULTRY Foundation continues to provide support programs for students interested in becoming part of the poultry and egg industry. Providing today’s youth with the skills and knowledge necessary to excel has been the goal of the USPOULTRY Foundation’s sponsored programs, such as 4-H, FFA, collegiate poultry judging competitions and the College Student Career Program. The 4-H youth recruiting activity is made possible by a gift from Amick Farms.
Beverly Hampton, technical assistant for USPOULTRY, attended the 2015 National 4-H Poultry & Egg Conference held at the Kentucky Fair and Exposition Center in Louisville in November. Hampton presented awards in five separate competitive events that included poultry judging, chicken barbecuing, turkey barbecuing, an egg preparation demonstration and an avian bowl (poultry and egg trivia). The conference hosted 120 senior 4-Hers representing 19 states who competed in educational events that helped them learn to formulate and defend decisions, speak publicly and expand their poultry-related skills. For the poultry judging contest, Caroline Dunn, Justin Harper, Karen Ouano and Nicole Taylor from Georgia, were named top team overall winners. Dakota Horlocker, from Florida, was named the top overall individual poultry judging contest champion.
"We are all aware that agriculture faces some daunting realities. There will be 9 billion people to feed by the year 2050 and with less land, resources and people with an understanding of what it takes to cultivate food. I’m positive that with bright young people, such as the ones who attend the National 4-H Poultry & Egg Conference, we can be confident in our future," said Hampton.
A Poultry Careers Workshop was also held at the conference, which gave the 4-H students the opportunity to interact with poultry and food industry personnel and receive relevant information about career and educational opportunities in the industry.