Arbor Acres and Cairo Poultry Company celebrate 25-year partnership

Two of the leading contributors to the growing poultry industry in North Africa recently celebrated the distribution of 35 million parent stock chicks and the production of some 4 billion broilers for the Egyptian market.
This milestone marks a 25-year partnership between Arbor Acres® and Cairo Poultry Company (CPC) and was celebrated at the AGRENA trade show.
The companies have pioneered change in the region’s poultry industry with approximately six million metric tonnes of chicken meat produced for local and regional consumption since 1990 and slightly before.
Puzant Dakessian, International Commercial Manager for Arbor Acres in Africa and the Middle East, said: “CPC and Arbor Acres laid the foundations for partnership through innovation and a commitment to best practice in the industry. Together we have been pioneers of the African poultry industry through several generations and we are now looking to carry the flag forward for another quarter of a century of mutual success and growth.”
Arbor Acres collaborated closely at AGRENA with official distributor Misr Poultry Grandparents (MPG), which is owned by CPC. 
Dr. Khaled Mostafa, General Manager of the CPC Grand Parent division, commented: “Our partnership with Arbor Acres is founded on perseverance, hard work, honesty, loyalty, transparency and mutual trust. These are the characteristics we have witnessed within the Arbor Acres team and wider Aviagen family for many years and they are the reasons we hope to enjoy another 25 years of success together.”

Rabobank Foundation and FAO to expand partnership

FAO and the Dutch Rabobank Foundation will scale up their collaboration after two years of successful initiatives in East Africa.
"This is a flagship partnership for FAO," Director-General José Graziano da Silva, said in an address to the foodFIRST conference in Utrecht, which this year focused on the future of farming and food security in Africa.
In 2013, FAO and Rabobank Foundation began a partnership by collaborating on three projects in Tanzania, Ethiopia and Kenya, all oriented to improving smallholder farmers' incomes, access to financial tools and ability to invest in more efficient production of food crops.
Building on the progress achieved so far, the two institutions now intend to ramp up their pilot projects and establish similar collaborations in other countries in Latin America, Africa and Asia.
"We believe that working together with an organization like FAO can accelerate the realization of our mutual goals," said Pierre van Hedel, managing director of Rabobank Foundation. "We highly appreciate FAO's long-term commitment and vision with regard to the topic of food security, which is needed for smallholder development."
"No one organization can eradicate hunger and reduce poverty alone," FAO's leader said at the conference. "Only in partnerships with a broad range of stakeholders can we achieve this."
Queen Máxima of the Netherlands, the UN Secretary General's Special Advocate for Inclusive Finance for Development (UNSGSA), was also present at the event.
Successful pilots in Africa
The three initial joint projects in Africa all have focused on boosting food security through rural agricultural development.
In Tanzania, FAO and Rabobank Foundation are supporting access to financial services by organizations representing rice farmers in the Morogoro district. Greater yields from a new FAO-backed cultivation system are providing the incentive to invest in warehouses, which will allow farmers to store their output and sell it when seasonal prices are higher.
In Kenya, farmers working within a conservation agriculture project will have better access to loans in the form of seeds thanks to an initiative being developed by the partners.
In Ethiopia, FAO and the Rabobank Foundation are working with local microfinance lenders to select rural farming cooperatives that can tap into value chains, generating more jobs.
Founded in 1973 and based in the Netherlands, Rabobank Foundation is a corporate foundation funded by the Rabobank Group, which donates a percentage of its annual profits to the foundation's activities. Its main activity is to support cooperatives and member-based organizations through microfinance mechanisms. The Foundation assists small farmers and their cooperatives in rural areas of 24 Latin American, African and Asian countries.
Graziano da Silva also met with Rabobank Chairman Wiebe Draijer and Executive Board member Berry Marttin and agreed to work together on initiatives aimed at increasing access to seeds for smallholders in Africa and on increasing local purchases from family farmer cooperatives, especially those representing women, in West Africa.
They agreed that FAO and Rabobank Foundation will jointly explore ways to support more data and information sharing through mobile technology and to increase young farmers' access to technology in general.
Graziano da Silva met with Sharon Dijksma, the Minister for Agriculture of the Netherlands, who spoke at the conference.

Harim Group acquires Pan Ocean shipping company

Harim Group has acquired 58 percent of Pan Ocean Co. Ltd., South Korea’s largest bulk shipping company, for KRW1 trillion (US$8.94 million). Shareholders and creditors approved the deal this week.
In May, the South Korean livestock and animal feed group said it plans to grow sales at Pan Ocean seven times to more than KRW10 trillion (US$8.94 billion) annually within six years.
Harim has said it plans to add a grains trading business to Pan Ocean and plans to grow it into a major dealer, increasing efficiencies in shipping.
"Those who had previously owned Pan Ocean did only shipping, but we will add grain trading," Harim Chairman Kim Hong-kuk has said. "We have done lots of business in livestock sectors requiring grains as raw materials. We know how to do it and we also have a demand base," he said.
Kim said the addition of Pan Ocean and a grains trading business would increase efficiency because fewer ships would be making empty return trips. The purchase also will help Harim reduce costs in its poultry, pork and feed business.
"Prices of grain and corn are determined by international markets, so there is not much room for cost efficiency," said a Harim spokeswoman. "However, efficient and reliable transportation for grain and corn, much of which are imported from the U.S. and Brazil, will help us save costs, (increasing) overall operational efficiency."

H5N1 avian influenza in Iran for first time since 2012

Highly pathogenic H5N1 avian influenza has been detected in a backyard flock of free-range chickens in Iran, the World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE) reported. With the detection, this is the first time the virus has been confirmed in Iran since 2012.
The flock, located in Iran’s Mazandaran province near the Caspian Sea, included 25 susceptible birds. Seventeen birds died as a result of contracting avian influenza, while the remaining 8 chickens were culled.
The case was reported in accordance with passive surveillance that is in place in Iran. Samples taken to the Central Veterinary Laboratory of Iran Veterinary Organization and the Razi Vaccine and Serum Research Institute national laboratories tested positive for H5N1 avian influenza.
The source of the H5N1 avian influenza outbreak in Iran has not yet been determined, but a post-outbreak investigation to determine a cause and to detect a possible spread of the virus has been initiated.
The property has been quarantined and disinfected. In addition, screening and zoning practices have been put in place. Movement control inside the country and control of wildlife reservoirs is also being conducted.
OIE will submit follow-up reports on the case on a weekly basis.
Bookmark the WATTAgNet avian influenza update page for current news and analysis on the avian influenza virus and its impact on the global poultry industry.

Petersime launches Chinese language version of website

Petersime is proud to announce that from now on www.petersime.com is also available in Chinese, as part of a continuing effort to expand its reach and support to their international customers.
Petersime serves a worldwide customer base in over 150 countries. With production facilities, R&D and Customer Centre in their headquarters in Olsene, Belgium, and a network of regional sales & customer support offices, Petersime strives for a strong global presence coincided with easy to access local service.
Early 2014 Petersime has opened a representative office (spare parts logistics center and service team) in Tianjin, China. With this local presence Petersime invests in ensuring customers the best local service and customer support. Making it able to consult their website in Chinese will enable a wider and more convenient spread of Petersime product information, service and training offering, news and more. Furthermore their continued investments into technically qualified and customer oriented people has led to a team of highly skilled certified field Service Engineers specifically for the Chinese market. 
The demand for poultry meat continues to rise and poultry meat is set to become the number one meat in Asia, with China being one of the main players. Mandarin Chinese is the most widely spoken language, based in the most populated country on the planet. With such a big market and significant audience, it is important to Petersime to be able to address their customers in the right way.

Analysis: Avian influenza and the role of the OIE

The current spread of avian influenza throughout the U.S. and its impact on trade may have focused attention on the virus and the international trade rules relating to animal diseases, but the virus’ impact on the global poultry market, and the rules governing trade, are not new.
Twenty-four outbreaks of highly pathogenic avian influenza were recorded between 1959 and mid-2003, and all were relatively short-lived. However, the highly pathogenic virus strain that emerged in Korea in December 2003 had, by early 2004, been confirmed in Cambodia, China, Hong Kong, Japan, Thailand and Vietnam.
Its spread continued throughout Southeast Asia and by 2006, the virus had been confirmed in Europe, Africa and the Middle East.
Hundreds of millions of chickens either died or were culled as a result of the virus, poultry meat production was reduced and trade patterns have shifted. The virus has continued to hit poultry meat production and countries' ability to export or willingness to import.


Role of the OIE
The risk of spreading disease through trade in animals and animal products has long been recognized, and in 1924 the Office International des Epizooties (OIE) was established to fight disease and protect trade at a global level. The 180 member body changed its name to the World Organisation for Animal Health in 2003, but kept its original acronym.
The OIE is an intergovernmental organization responsible for animal health worldwide, and recognized as a reference organization by the World Trade Organization (WTO).
To help facilitate trade without spreading disease, the OIE has a number of objectives.
It aims to ensure transparency in the global disease situation, with its members reporting diseases detected within their territories. This information is then disseminated to allow any preventive actions to be taken.
It collects, analyses and disseminates veterinary scientific information to improve disease control and eradication methods. Guidelines are prepared by its 284 collaborating centers and reference laboratories around the globe.
The OIE also works to encourage international solidarity in the control of animal diseases. It provides technical support to member countries requesting assistance with disease control and eradication operations, including diseases transmissible to humans.
The OIE safeguards world trade by publishing health standards for international trade in animals and animal products. It develops rules that member countries can use to protect themselves from the introduction of diseases and pathogens, without setting up unjustified sanitary barriers. The main normative works produced by the OIE are the Terrestrial Animal Health Code, the Manual of Diagnostic Tests and Vaccines for Terrestrial Animals, the Aquatic Animal Health Code and the Manual of Diagnostic Tests for Aquatic Animals.
OIE standards are prepared by elected specialist commissions and by working groups bring together internationally renowned scientists, most of whom are experts within the network of collaborating centers and reference laboratories.


Standard setting not an easy process
For any international system to work there needs to be agreement between participants during the elaboration of standards and on their application.
The difficulties in achieving this are perhaps illustrated by a recent statement from the USDA Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS).
It notes that the U.S. actively participates in helping to draft animal health inspection standards proposed by the OIE, and is a member of the OIE’s Regional Commission for the Americas.
It continues that, generally, if a country has concerns with a particular draft standard and supports those concerns with sound technical information, the pertinent specialist commission will revise that standard accordingly, and present the revised draft for adoption at the OIE’s General Session in May. In the event that a country’s concerns regarding a draft standard are not taken into account, that country may refuse to support the standard when it comes up for adoption at the General Session.
While it is in the interest of the U.S. to support adoption of international standards – and to participate actively and fully in their development – it should be recognized that the U.S. position on a specific draft standard would depend on the acceptability and technical merit of the final draft.


Need for adherence
Even where a standard has been accepted by the OIE and whichever of its member countries find it acceptable, there is no guarantee that the standard will be applied in the event of a disease outbreak that is seen, via trade, as a threat to herds or flocks, and the OIE cannot force its member countries to stick to its rules.
Earlier this month, the International Poultry Council (IPC) wrote to the OIE to encourage its members to abide by guidelines when imposing trade restrictions on poultry and breeding stock in response to avian influenza outbreaks, adding that many countries were imposing unwarranted trade restrictions that go against the OIE’s recommendations.
It further pointed out that those countries that are members of the OIE “have agreed to procedures for the conduct of trade in breeding stock, live poultry, and poultry meat, including compartmentalization, zoning and regionalization, for managing safe trade in the event of notifiable avian influenza outbreaks in exporting countries.”

Register for on-demand global avian influenza webinar

With widespread outbreaks being reported in the North America, Europe and Asia in 2014 and 2015, avian influenza continues to plague the global poultry industry.
Register at http://www.wattagnet.com/OnDemandWebinarVideo.aspx?id=173589 to attend the on-demand webinar “Global overview on avian influenza,” presented by WATT Global Media.
By viewing the webinar, you will learn:


• Biosecurity is the most important tool to prevent the introduction of wild bird avian influenza virus or poultry influenza virus onto a naïve farm
• Highly pathogenic and H5/N7 low pathogenicity avian influenza viruses are nationally and internationally reported and controlled diseases
• Stamping-out of highly pathogenic avian influenza virus is the most direct and efficient form of eradication
• Avian influenza vaccines can reduce disease but cannot absolutely prevent infection or result in eradication, and may complicate disease surveillance
Webinar speakers are:


• Professor Ian Brown, head of Virology at the U.K. Animal Health and Veterinary Laboratories Agency and director of the international reference laboratories for animal influenza and Newcastle disease.  Brown is a designated OIE expert on avian influenza, swine influenza, and Newcastle disease and also provides high level scientific advice in relation to these diseases and pathogens at international level.
• Dr. David E Swayne, center director of the USDA in-house high biocontainment laboratory for poultry health research, Southeastern Poultry Research Laboratory since 1994.  For the past 28 years, Swayne’s personal research has focused on pathobiology and control of avian influenza in poultry, especially vaccines and vaccines for control. Swayne has served on OIE international committees and has participated in missions or conferences on avian influenza control and biosafety/ biosecurity in 44 countries over the last 16 years.
To keep updated on the latest confirmed cases of avian influenza in North American poultry flocks, see WATTAgNet’s avian influenza map. Also, bookmark the avian influenza update page, which offers news updates and analysis of the global avian influenza situation.

Analysis: Solutions for trade during avian influenza outbreak

Compartmentalization is a procedure to establish bird subpopulations of distinct health status based on management and biosecurity factors. 

The emergence of avian influenza symptoms in part of a country does not have to lead to a total trade suspension.

As avian influenza continues to spread, concerns are growing over its impact on trade in broiler meat and poultry genetics.

Through its Terrestrial Animal Health Code, The World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE), the standard-setting body for animal health, provides guidance for veterinary authorities to establish zones and regions free from avian influenza, and for poultry companies and veterinary authorities to maintain compartments recognized as free from the disease for the purposes of exports.

Some countries have been quicker than others in publishing national legislation to allow companies to apply for recognized compartment status, however, failure to update avian influenza legislation nationally should not be seen as a barrier to companies implementing the OIE’s recommendations.




How compartmentalization works

Where breeding stock is concerned, compartmentalization is particularly important as it should allow the shipment of stock, even if there is an avian influenza incursion in the country where the company has its breeding facilities.

The concept was first put forward by the OIE a decade ago in recognition of the difficulty faced by some countries in fully eradicating certain diseases from their territories as a whole, or to maintain disease-free status in part of their territories.

In the case of the poultry industry, compartmentalization is a procedure to establish bird subpopulations of distinct health status based on management and biosecurity factors.  Flocks within the compartment should be contained within one or more establishments under a common biosecurity management system to preserve a distinct status with respect to a specific disease or diseases within a country.

While zoning applies to subpopulations defined primarily on a geographical basis, compartmentalization is applied to subpopulations defined primarily by management and husbandry practices related to biosecurity. In practice, however, spatial considerations and good management play important roles in the application of both concepts.

The establishment of a compartment is a preventative measure where avian influenza or Newcastle disease is concerned, serving both to guarantee the health status of a bird subpopulation and to avoid interruptions to trade in poultry and poultry products.

It is preferable, the OIE says, to establish a compartment at a time when a country or zone is free from the disease or diseases for which the compartment is being created, however, not all countries have been active in developing their own legislation to aid the industry in the establishment of compartments.

Compartments can, through bilateral agreements between the veterinary authorities of the countries involved, result in the continuation of trade even in the event of changes in the health status in the country or zone.

The recommendations for compartments in the OIE’s Terrestrial Code cannot be applied in all situations. The effective implementation of the concept depends, amongst other things, on the epidemiology of the disease, individual country factors, environmental factors, biosecurity measures which may be applicable, the health status of adjacent areas, surveillance and the relationship between the public and private sectors.




Unjustified avian influenza outbreak restriction

While compartmentalization and zoning are designed to allow trade to continue in the event of a disease outbreak, do the systems work? Internationally accepted rules may be followed to the letter by one party, but the final decision to accept exports in the event of an avian influenza outbreak will always lie with the receiving country.

Following the outbreaks of avian influenza in Europe late last year, the International Poultry Council (IPC) said that it was essential that measures taken by national authorities to protect their flocks against the virus were appropriate and adequately resourced, but that they must also be proportionate to the actual level of risk, and must not needlessly disrupt trade, particularly in breeding stock.

The IPC called on its members to urge their national authorities to consider only those measures that relate to real risk to domestic poultry flocks, adding that some importing countries had needlessly banned transit of poultry, including breeding stock, through affected countries, without considering real risk level.

National authorities must be urged to recognize regionalization as a more proportionate and risk-based alternative to country-wide bans in poultry and poultry products, it said.

It also continued that a few poultry companies in conjunction with national authorities had already adopted compartmentalization and that importing countries should accept and approve the few compartments that already exist and the concept should be more widely adopted.

In May this year, the IPC wrote to the OIE urging it to encourage its members to abide by the OIE guidelines when imposing trade restrictions on poultry meat and breeding stock.

“The reaction of many national veterinary authorities has been to impose national bans on all poultry imports without consideration of alternate risk management strategies. National veterinary authorities may not be using all the available measures agreed by the OIE for continuation of trade, specifically in the kind of disease circumstances currently being experienced.”

The IPC continues that countries that are members of the OIE have agreed to procedures for the conduct of trade in breeding stock, live poultry, and poultry meat, including compartmentalization, zoning and regionalization, for managing safe trade in the event of notifiable avian influenza outbreaks in exporting countries.

Rabobank: 2015 global poultry industry outlook upbeat

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  Freeimages.com/bugdog

  The global poultry industry outlook is upbeat, according to a quarterly report from Rabobank.

  From WATTAgNet:
  The outlook for the global poultry industry remains upbeat, but global trade is under pressure from outbreaks of avian influenza, according to Rabobank’s Global Poultry Industry report for the first quarter of 2015.
  In the report, the bank's Food & Agribusiness Research team says that pressure is being felt from the further spread of avian influenza across the globe, with new outbreaks in Asia, Europe and North America.
  "Avian flu is further spreading across the globe and could affect global trade streams, especially as the virus has moved further in Europe to Hungary, and in the U.S. to central states like Minnesota, Missouri and Arkansas," said Rabobank Animal Protein Analyst Nan-Dirk Mulder. "Joint global approaches, optimal biosecurity, and strong monitoring and compensation systems are necessary to stop the spread of the disease."
  Global outlook
  The margin outlook for the global poultry industry remains upbeat, with continuing bullish drivers like high beef prices, lower feed costs and relatively strong demand in most regions.
  However, the global poultry trade is under pressure from avian influenza outbreaks. The exchange rate volatility and turmoil in regions such as the Middle East and Eastern Europe, are leading to lower trade volumes, prices and shifts in trade streams.
  United States
  Rabobank says the poultry sector in the U.S. has a favorable outlook, but some uncertainties remain. The margins are expected to remain high in 2015. The biggest unknown in 2015 is industry expansion.
  Brazil
  The Brazilian poultry market began 2015 bullish despite export challenges, according to Rabobank. The lower oil price will hit the Middle East demand. Still, exports are expected to be strong in 2015, mostly driven by Asia. Margins will be supported by reduction of feed costs as well.
  Europe
  The poultry industry in the European Union shows some recovery and although supply is currently tight, the outlook is threatened by ongoing avian influenza concerns and still closed export markets.
  China
  Entering the first quarter of 2015, China has an ongoing struggle of oversupply due to avian influenza and food safety issues. As a consequence of human avian influenza cases reported, live bird markets were shut down. During the seasonal peak month, poultry retail prices remained flat.
  Russia
  The Russian market remains very bullish on low supply. The outlook remains strong, with expected ongoing tight market conditions due to expensive, limited imported volumes and restrictions on growth.
  Other regions
  Mexico has ongoing avian influenza issues and lower pork prices will soften poultry meat consumption growth. Japan's poultry industry is still bullish despite ongoing avian influenza outbreaks.  In Thailand, the export position is supported by a strong Thai baht.

Slovenia’s Perutnina Ptuj considers sale

Slovenian poultry and meat producer Perutnina Ptuj is considering a sale that could value the company as high as EUR140 million (US$181.44 million), according to sources. The company comprises of 18 companies in countries across Europe, including Slovenia, Croatia, Serbia, and Bosnia.
Perutnina Ptuj’s key product categories include chicken, turkey, table eggs, feed sales, pork and beef, but 90 percent of its sales are in poultry and poultry products such as chicken sausages. Its annual revenue is estimated at EUR270.7 million (US$347.9 million), according to the WATT Global Media Top Companies Database.
Brands of Perutnina Ptuj include Naturally Fit, Poli and Jata.
Perutnina Ptuj has hired BNP Paribas as an advisor to help it explore strategic options, two sources told Reuters. However those sources, as well as spokesmen for  Perutnina Ptuj and BNP Paribas declined further comment regarding arrangements between the two companies.
Larger European meat companies, which include France's Societe LDC or Sweden's Scandi Standard, have been identified as possible bidders interested in the purchase of Perutnina Ptuj.
Perutnina Ptuj might expect an enterprise value of about 120 million to 140 million euros, one of the anonymous sources said, based on a multiple of six or seven times its operating earnings.

Bábolna Tetra expands with new hatchery in in Hungary

Bábolna Tetra Kft., one of the world’s leading layer-hybrid breeding companies, has developed and opened one of Europe’s most advanced hybrid hatcheries at Uraiújfalu, in Hungary’s Vas County. With an annual capacity of 35 million eggs, Bábolna Tetra’s new hatchery has been developed with all the very latest innovations in single stage incubation, hatchery automation and environmental control from Pas Reform.
Opened in March 2014, the new site includes 12 SmartSetPro 6 setters, 12 SmartSetPro 2 setters, 22 SmartHatchPro hatchers and an onsite Watter disinfection production system.
For all egg and chick handling, Pas Reform’s latest automation systems are being employed to deliver pointsetting, egg grading, sexing and vaccination, chick counting, waste vacuuming, washing, stacking and de-stacking.
The hatchery uses various renewable energy sources to deliver environmental and energy-efficient benefits in its operation, including Pas Reform’s innovative heat transfer system, which uses the heat produced by the developing embryos during incubation to preheat fresh air intake within the hatchery’s ventilation and climate control systems.
Bábolna Tetra Kft. is market leader in Hungary and distributes its Tetra grandparent breeders and parent breeders to chick hatcheries producing commercial egg layers for egg producers in more than 40 countries around the world. Committed to the highest levels of efficiency and environmental awareness, the company’s hatchery expansion in Uraiiújfalu is the result of increased sales worldwide, following the successful genetic development of three new hybrids, the Tetra HB Color, Tetra Blanka and Tetra SL Long Life.
Zoltán Budai, director of Bábolna Tetra Kft., says of the project: “Our company is delivering significant growth for sales of our breeder layer lines and with Pas Reform’s innovative hatchery technologies to support that growth, we have created a strong, stable platform for achieving ambitious targets both now and in the future.”

International Production & Processing Expo expands for 2015

The 2015 International Production & Processing Expo (IPPE) is expected to exceed 450,000 net square feet with more than 28,000 attendees and 1,200 exhibitors. To accommodate this increase, IPPE has expanded into C-Hall of the Georgia World Congress Center. This expansion will allow the show to accommodate demand for additional space needed by new and existing exhibitors.
"Close to 80 percent of the show floor has already been booked, with 10 months remaining until the IPPE show in January. The need for additional space to accommodate the growth we are seeing was paramount in our decision to expand into C-Hall," said Charlie Olentine, IPPE show manager.
IPPE is the world's largest annual poultry, feed and meat industry event of its kind. The event is sponsored by the U.S. Poultry & Egg Association (USPOULTRY), the American Feed Industry Association (AFIA) and the American Meat Institute (AMI).
IPPE will be held Tuesday through Thursday, January 27-29, 2015, at the Georgia World Congress Center in Atlanta. The expo will highlight the latest technology, equipment and services used in the production and processing of poultry, meat and feed products. IPPE also will feature education programs addressing current industry issues.

Where is the poultry industry going to be in seven years?

With the slogan "What if…," Dr. Pearse Lyons, CEO of Alltech, urged the audience, both in-person at the International Production & Processing Expo 2014 and the 1,600 virtual attendants, to challenge themselves to imagine where the poultry industry could be by 2020. "What if an egg could provide all the DHA we need a day? What if we could really have antibiotic-free production? Or, what if there could be no leg problems in chickens?"
The challenge continued with a presentation from Philip J. Wilkinson, executive director, 2 Sisters Food Group, based in the UK. To point out the importance of the poultry industry, he said that 49 percent of animal protein consumption in the UK comes from poultry. Wilkinson went on to ask the audience: Could we produce 550 eggs in 100 weeks with a 1:1 feed conversion rate, or 2 kg of chicken in 19 days with a 1:1 feed conversion rate?
Nutrition and nutrigenomics are a fundamental part of this. The industry in the UK - and globally - is focusing on lowering feed costs and feed risks such as mycotoxins, but also increasing performance, profitability, nutrient utilization and bird health.
DHA has been recognized as a very important omega-3 fatty acid, and Wilkinson asked: Can we replicate in chickens what we can in eggs with DHA? The good news is that research currently is being carried out to achieve this.
The industry must strive to keep foods safe and traceable and needs to continue working on this. At the present time, 2 Sisters can trace a chicken thigh all the way back to the parent stock in just two hours. But the industry needs to communicate these values. "Food is a hot topic," Wilkinson said. Consumers alter their mindset or change their shopping behaviors with scares such as the horse meat scandal in the UK.
Wilkinson also discussed what the future might bring for agriculture: Robotics, transparency in the food chain, the end of cheap food, precision farming, the high cost of land and the fact that each farm will become a mini energy station.

Changes in the sales organization of Haarslev Industries

Henning Haugaard, left, and Tony Johnson are assuming new roles within the sales organization of Haarslev Industries.
At the end of January 2014, Tissa Fernando will end his long career with Flo-Dry and Haarslev Industries. Fernando started his career at the New Zealand Meat Research Institute "MIRINZ," where he was responsible for leading major projects in the rendering area. This led to the invention of the Low Temperature Rendering Process (MLTR) and the development of the process within the processing industry. In 1983, he founded Flo-Dry, where he developed the Flo-Dry Rotary Dryer.
Fernando has also led the development of Flo-Dry's involvement into the sludge drying area being involved in the process design and trial work. He has formed a number of alliances throughout the world to promote the company's entry into the worldwide sludge drying market before merging the company into Haarslev Industries in 2011.
Fernando is a well-known worldwide icon within the by-product industry, and his involvement has produced some significant developments within the meat industry in Australia and New Zealand as well as in India.
Henning Haugaard new general manager for Haarslev Industries, New Zealand
In January 2014, Henning Haugaard will relocate to New Zealand to succeed Tissa Fernando as General Manager for Haarslev Industries in New Zealand. Haugaard graduated as a mechanical engineer and started his career in Haarslev in 1988. Haugaard has worked in the rendering industry throughout his entire career including a period with the Danish rendering company Daka before he returned to Haarslev Industries in 2000, first as sales manager and from 2006 as sales director. Haugaard has played a crucial role in Haarslev Industries' success and will use his experience and great interpersonal skills to strengthen Haarslev Industries' position on the markets in Australia, New Zealand and Oceania.
"I look forward to help developing the company's market presence in Australia and New Zealand" said Haugaard. "In particular, we will focus on developing a local service and spare part distribution center".
Tony Johnson new sales manager for Haarslev Industries, Denmark
In December 2013, Tony Johnson will join the Haarslev Industries sales and management team. Johnson will take up the position as sales director in Denmark succeeding Henning Haugaard, who has held the position since 2006. Tony Johnson comes from a position as general manager of business development and marketing with Milmeq in Brisbane, Australia. Milmeq custom designs, engineers and manufactures systems for primary food processing, materials handling and chilling and freezing within the protein industry. Systems are developed, designed and delivered for primary food industries, including red meat, poultry, dairy, seafood and horticulture.
Before joining Milmeq in 2002, Johnson spent 16 years with different companies in the food and protein industry in New Zealand, Australia and China.

Poultry industry growth highlighted at finance seminar

"

There are those that fight the war, and there are those that report the war. In my view, in a chicken business the finance and accounting team report the war, and everyone else is fighting it," said Paul Fox, CEO of O.K. Industries Inc. at the United States Poultry & Egg Association 2013 Financial Management Seminar held in Orlando, Fla. This year's seminar brought together financial managers from the poultry and egg industry to discuss current issues impacting the industry.
"The role that finance and accounting plays is unique — reporting the war. It is critical for any competitive company charged with measuring the performance of a very complex vertically-integrated business. In order to be effective in reporting the war, you have to be able to go beyond rote analysis of revenue drivers and cost drivers," Fox said during as his "Top Management Perspective of Poultry Financial Management" presentation. Fox also provided a unique perspective of the acquisition of O.K. Industries Inc. by Bachocho and his role in transitioning and streamlining the financial direction of O.K. Foods in both the domestic and international market.
Dr. Paul Aho, economist for Poultry Perspective, gave an "Economic Forecast" and noted that although the U.S. and other countries had several challenging years due to the drought, he was very optimistic about the future and believed that the U.S. was "finding its second gear."
"We're headed in a good direction after two bad years of low production. Supplies of corn and soybeans are increasing. There will be a reacceleration for the next couple of years," said Aho.
Aho remarked that it was possible that poultry meat consumption will grow, especially in the developing world due to growing population and a growing middle class, specifically in China. "The big news is that poultry surpasses red meat consumption in the U.S. This is as good as it gets," observed Aho.
He also projected that, "Commodity, grain and energy prices will come down, as the world economy improves. That is the opposite of what occurred a few years ago during the recession, which is a sweet spot."
Deborah Perkins, managing director at Rabobank International, provided an overview of global consumer eating trends. She discussed how the growing population in Indonesia, China and India accounts for over 40 percent of the world population growth. She stated that essentially this would provide more of a need for poultry trade. Although food safety has been a concern, specifically in China, Perkins said, "It won't last forever, and there will be growth going forward."
Regarding domestic market consumption, Perkins commented that one of the advantages the poultry industry has over the meat industry is affordability, convenience and the health advantage. Perkins stressed that although poultry companies "have done a good job of educating the public, they still have to find ways to excite the consumers to keep buying these products." She also highlighted the increasing influence of the millennial generation and how a different type of marketing will need to be tailored to entice them to continue purchasing poultry products, such as social media.
U.S. Poultry & Egg Association is an all-feather organization representing the complete spectrum of the modern poultry industry, with a focus on progressively serving member companies through research, education, communication and technical assistance. Founded in 1947, U.S. Poultry & Egg Association is based in Tucker, Ga.

Global poultry industry dependent on supply, demand, feed costs

In its recent second quarter report, Rabobank's Food & Agribusiness Research and Advisory group says that the positive outlook for the global poultry industry is highly dependent on the continuation of a balance in local supply and demand, falling feed costs, and ongoing high prices for competitive meats like pork and beef.
Key wildcards for the rest of the year will be global trade developments, which were very weak in the first quarter of 2013, and the impact of avian influenza virus H7N9 on the Chinese poultry industry.
Rabobank poultry analyst Nan-Dirk Mulder commented, "Conditions for the global poultry industry have improved thanks to a further slowdown in feed price growth, which is helping to boost margins. While we expect this trend to continue, a positive outlook will depend very much on how well the industry can balance its markets and whether the bird flu outbreak in parts of China can be contained. If it were to spread further across the Asian region, we can expect an impact on poultry markets globally."
The Chinese poultry industry has been suffering ever since the official announcement of H7N9 in March 2013, which has so far resulted in 130 human cases and claimed the lives of 36 people as of May 20. As a consequence of falling demand, prices collapsed and farmers have commenced a large scale slaughtering of birds with no replenishment to broods as they adopted a wait-and-see attitude. Local governments in affected areas have extended help to the sector in order to limit the impact on the industry; this assistance comes in the form of purchasing programs or compensation offered to poultry merchants in return for slaughtering their stocks.
While consumers remain wary, the initial panic appears to be waning as the pace of growth of new infections has slowed. Still, in the six weeks after the first case was confirmed, China's poultry industry has suffered losses amounting to $6.5 billion.
The Chinese government has reacted to concerns about the negative industry impact of the outbreak - namely future supply concerns - by implementing a new $96.9 million breeding program aimed at preventing shortages when markets recover. This support program has lead to some price recovery recently, but prices remain low.
The U.S. and Brazil are performing better than in the first quarter, with a relatively healthy supply and demand situation limiting the impact of a weak international trade situation. The EU remains the weakest performing industry, as it is still challenged by relatively high feed prices combined with abundant supply. In Asia, the Thai industry has greatly improved a consequence of large oversupply and is benefiting from strong demand for poultry products in the EU and Japan.

Poultry market conditions improving, Rabobank reports

The global poultry industry continues to operate in a challenging market place, but conditions for 2013 are improving; a reduction in corn prices in recent months has been a welcome break for an industry that saw margins shrink in many parts of the world throughout 2012. According to Rabobank, the poultry industry’s pricing power should improve, with continuing high prices for competitor meats such as pork and beef leading consumers to choose the cheaper poultry option, and an improving supply discipline in some key producing countries.
“Despite the positive picture, this outlook is very fragile and dependent upon risks related to feed costs and supply discipline," said Rabobank analyst Nan-Dirk Mulder. “As grain and soybean stocks remain low, supply discipline will be a key tool for the industry to maintain margins. This has been demonstrated in Brazil, where production cutbacks have paid off in improved margins. Regions with inadequate market balance, such as South Africa and India, need to reconsider production levels in the next few months. This is also the case for producers in the EU where performance worsened throughout 2012, although Q4 did see some improvement.”
Global poultry industry performance has been affected by the increasing feed prices and local market supply/demand balance. Companies active in countries with a relatively good or improving local market balance have been the first to benefit from an improved market situation. Brazil, in particular, has benefitted from more disciplined supply management. The opposite is still the case in South Africa, India and Thailand, where industries are still exposed by oversupply, although signs are that in Thailand and India things are improving slightly. The best performing local industries are still in Russia and Ukraine, with ongoing high margins and a good local supply situation with growth in local demand, although prices in Russia have tended to decline recently.
The performance of poultry companies in 2013 will depend, to a large extent, on how well they are able to deal with volatility from grain and oilseed prices. Although the current outlook suggests a slowdown in feed price increases, uncertainty remains due to low stock levels and an uncertain production outlook for grains and oilseeds. The industry should therefore be prepared for any change in input prices. It has been proven that an optimal supply management system will be a key element here. In addition, further optimisation of industry structure should become a higher priority for companies in which elements such as market power, efficiency and risk mitigation are key for 2013.

IPPE luncheon highlights industry lessons learned, future

Dr. Don Jackson, retired CEO for JBS, spoke at the 2013 International Processing & Production Expo in Atlanta, Ga., highlighting his lessons learned in the poultry industry and his predictions for the industry's future.
“Make sure you know where the money’s coming from," said Jackson. "That sounds so basic in business, and yet I see it abused all the time. In looking at how a business is performing, we are attributing value in areas that are not creating value, and we are robbing value from areas that are."
Jackson reflected on his experiences in the poultry industry, with an emphasis on lessons learned throughout the years. He also provided his projections on the future of the poultry industry, remarking that he is still very optimistic. However, the industry has to maintain its global competitive edge. “The journey past is not the journey forward," he said. "If we continue to apply the same solutions to new problems, we are going to be disappointed with the results. I challenge us as an industry to really think differently about the future than we have thought about a very successful past."

Sustainability key topic at IPPE summit

Sustainability means a company’s responsibility to its stakeholders, and this goes beyond transactional relationships with customers and consumers, according to Joe Forsthoffer, corporate communications manager with Perdue Farms, during his industry perspective presentation on Bridging the Sustainability Gap Between Industry and Consumers at the Animal Agriculture Sustainability Summit, held during the 2013 International Production & Processing Expo. Accepting this responsibility, pledging greater transparency and accountability, often exposes a company to greater risk, including the fear that consumers will not buy your product, but it is necessary in today’s environment.
The components of Perdue’s sustainability program include helping consumers prosper with flexible, forward-thinking solutions for agriculturally based products, being responsible stewards of natural resources, being a responsible employer and member of the community, and responsibly contributing to economic stability, said Forsthoffer. The key constituencies with which the company interacts in this program are consumers, customers, employees, farm partners, communities and shareholders. The approach to each will be different, since they are unique constituencies, not one aggregated group, said Forsthoffer. He also said the industry should reach out to groups who want to work with them, and should choose wisely. “The loudest voices are not the most productive voices,” he said, explaining that some activist groups are more interested in “making noise” than in holding productive conversation. Others, though, want a genuine dialogue which means that companies have to listen to these stakeholders rather than regard communication as a one-way marketing effort.
By the year 2050, the world’s population will increase by 2 to 3 billion. Food consumption, particularly of animal protein, will rise significantly along with this population growth. However, current consumption patterns cannot be sustained long-term in the face of this population explosion, and industries, companies and individuals must figure out how to do more with less, according to Bryan Weech, director of livestock agriculture for the World Wildlife Fund.
“In the next 40 years, we will have to produce as much food as has been produced in the last 8,000 years,” said Weech, who addressed Why Sustainability Matters. He added that 33 percent of the planet is currently used to produce food, while 24 percent more will be needed given current projections of population growth. This trend is unsustainable, said Weech; “We are eating the planet.”
In the Embedding Sustainability in Business panel discussion, Dennis Treacy, Smithfield’s chief sustainability officer, discussed Smithfield’s sustainability council, formed by the company’s board of directors that reports regularly to that board. This ensures that sustainability initiatives are a highly visible priority. Treacy said that a durable sustainability program must involve all of your employees, challenging them to find ways to make the company better with ideas that will also repay the effort, for instance by saving money through a reduction in water use or electricity consumption.
Dr. Michael McCloskey, CEO of Select Milk Producers, provided information on the dairy industry’s Innovation Center for U.S. Dairy. The center created a council that drew up a series of initiatives to reduce dairy’s carbon footprint 25 percent by the year 2020. To help understand the impact of food production on the environment and on people, the innovation center launched a research program, first reviewing secondary and tertiary research and then conducting primary research. One outcome of the research effort was determining the impact, in terms of greenhouse gases, of producing a gallon of milk.
Cargill realized about five years ago that sustainability was important to maintaining its large, international business operations and has adopted a set of basic sustainability values. The challenge now is to go beyond that accomplishment and address sustainability in ways that are more specific to particular brands or customers, according to Mike Mullins, vice president of corporate affairs.
Sharing the company’s experiences and lessons learned, Mullins also suggested that his business and others in the agriculture industry should try to establish better relationships with their customers so that they can be in on discussions about subjects, such as changes in their product or menu line-up that could affect sustainability.

Poultry future looks bright, but growth slower than in last decade

The rapid growth of the world wide poultry industry slowed in 2007. The industry will continue to grow, but not at the pace it did from 2002 to 2007, according to Dr. Paul Aho. Aho, a U.S.-based economist who specializes in the poultry industry, made that prediction in a presentation titled, “The International Market: 2002–2012–2022,” during International Poultry Day in Hannover, Germany, November 12.
“We make a common mistake of thinking of growth as a straight line that goes up forever,” said Aho. “The rate of industry growth slowed in 2007. I think it’s a long-term trend fueled by less meat consumption and slower growth in per-capital income worldwide.”
While he said he foresees a drop in growth of meat consumption, poultry will fare much better than beef or pork in the next 10 years. “The growth in beef and pork will only equal population growth,” said Aho. "Only poultry will see a growth rate higher than the rate of population growth.”
As for the industry’s short-term problem of high feed prices, Aho said he thinks feed costs are at their peak and will go down over the next two years, but they are not going to go back to 2007 levels. High feed prices are going to be the new normal.
Aho forecasts China, India and parts of Latin America as leading the growth in the poultry industry in the next 10 years. He also sees poultry production growing in Africa in the next decade.
“We will hear a lot about Africa,” said Aho. "Africa’s production could increase from 4 to 6 million metric tons annually in the next 10 years to where it could be 8 percent of the world’s production.”
International Poultry Day was organized by the European Poultry Club in partnership with DLG, German Agricultural Society, and ZDG, German Poultry Association, preceding the opening of Eurotier 2012.