PSA Foundation announces Merck Animal Health Gift

The Poultry Science Association Foundation (PSA Foundation) has announced a grant from Merck Animal Health that was presented during the recent Arkansas Nutrition Conference. Merck Animal Health’s generous gift will establish the Merck Animal Health Poultry Research Fellowships (Merck Animal Health Fellowships).
The Merck Animal Health Fellowships will support the research of three doctoral students in poultry sciences for three years, with one fellowship beginning in 2016, 2017 and 2018.
Students interested in innovative applied and basic poultry science research related to intestinal health, immunology, poultry pathology and disease, molecular biology or vaccine technology and development will be considered for the Merck Animal Health Fellowships.
Merck Animal Health’s grant for the education of talented graduate students pursuing a career in poultry science was made through the PSA Foundation Charting Our Course – Securing Future Leadership for Poultry Campaign (Capital Campaign).
“We, at Merck Animal Health, recognize that poultry scientists are critical to our future,” said Shannon Kellner, Poultry Business Unit Head, Merck Animal Health. “We are committed to investing in their futures through fellowships such as this, and believe this opportunity will help prepare students for their vital roles within the poultry industry and contribute to advancements in poultry health and performance.”
Nationwide student recruitment for the Merck Animal Health Fellowships is anticipated to begin in early September and the application process will be completed in the fall of 2015. Merck Animal Health and the PSA Foundation will announce the 2016 recipient during Merck Animal Health Luncheon at the U.S. Poultry and Egg Association International Production & Processing Expo (IPPE). IPPE will be held in Atlanta, GA, Jan. 26-28.

Poultry Science Association honors veterinarian

The Poultry Science Association (PSA) has recognized Dr. Ross E. Wolfenden, vice president of research and development for Pacific Vet Group-USA (PVG), with the organization's Early Achievement Award. The award is given to recognize achievements of PSA members in the early stages of their poultry industry careers.
Wolfenden, 32, was raised in northwest Arkansas. He completed his undergraduate degree in poultry science at the University of Arkansas, Fayetteville, and began his poultry industry career as an assistant pedigree complex manager for Cobb-Vantress Inc., where he managed nearly every aspect of live production.
In 2007, he was awarded a distinguished doctoral fellowship at the University of Arkansas and accepted a position as a graduate student at the John Kirkpatrick Skeeles Poultry Health Laboratory with Dr. Billy Hargis and co-workers.
After earning his doctoral degree in 2009, Wolfenden joined Pacific Vet Group, a rapidly growing biotechnology company focused on science-based health and nutrition products for the poultry industry. In his position as director of product development, he continued work with technologies PVG has licensed from the University of Arkansas. He also acted as primary technical representative for the company, coordinating field trials and providing expertise on product applications worldwide.
Wolfenden was promoted to his current position in 2012. He is responsible for overall guidance of PVG's research and development, quality systems and process development. He also is involved in research projects at five major universities and in collaborations with two partner organizations in the animal health industry.
Wolfenden says his research interest is the "development of innovative, first-in-class products that will enhance animal performance, improve animal welfare, increase the sustainability of food animal production and improve the safety of our food supply." His company will introduce two of these products later in 2013.
"We have recognized and benefited from Ross's talents and expertise at Pacific Vet Group," says William Davies, president of Pacific Vet Group-USA. "We are pleased that his colleagues in the Poultry Science Association have granted him this honor."

Poultry Science Association names new Fellows, other award winners

The Poultry Science Association has chosen the winners of more than two dozen awards in poultry science and related disciplines. The winners, which included researchers, teachers, students and others who work in poultry-related fields, were announced at the Poultry Science Association's 102^nd annual meeting in San Diego.
"We are delighted to be able to recognize this year's award winners, who are all outstanding. Once again, the selections were made extremely difficult in many of the award categories due to the very high quality of work currently being conducted across our membership, in both the academy and the poultry industry. We salute the hard work and consistently high level of achievement of this year's awardees, and we sincerely hope that they and their work will serve as an inspiration to others over the coming year and beyond," said Dr. Mike Kidd, president of the Poultry Science Association.
The winners were formally recognized at an awards celebration on July 25.
Drs. James W. Kessler, Kemin Industries; Michael S. Lilburn, Ohio State University; and Carl M. Parsons, University of Illinois, were named Poultry Science Association Fellows. The title is awarded "for professional distinction and contributions to the field of poultry science without regard to longevity," and is the highest recognition that the organization can bestow on a member.
Other awards presented include:
· American Egg Board Research Award: Dr. Frederick G. Silversides, Ph.D., Agriculture and AgriFood Canada
·  The  American Feed Industry Association Poultry Nutrition Research Award: Alejandro Corzo, Ph.D., Elanco Animal Health
·  Evonik Degussa Award for Achievement in Poultry Science: Todd J. Applegate, Ph.D., Purdue University
·  Hy-Line International Research Award: Byung-Whi Kong, Ph.D., University of Arkansas
·  Maple Leaf Farms Duck Research Award: Michael S. Lilburn, Ph.D., Ohio State University
·  Merial Distinguished Poultry Industry Career Award: Paul Marini, Ph.D., Nicholas Turkey
·  National Chicken Council Broiler Research Award: William A. Dozier, III, Ph.D., Auburn University
·  Novus International Teaching Award: Shelly R. McKee, Ph.D., Auburn University
·  Phibro Extension Award: Michael Czarick, III, University of Georgia
· Poultry Welfare Research Award:  Kenneth E. Anderson, Ph.D., North Carolina State University
·  Early Achievement Award for Extension: Brian H. Kiepper, Ph.D., University of Georgia
·  Early Achievement Award for Industry: Ross Wolfenden, Ph.D., Pacific Vet Group USA
·  Student Recruitment Award: Gary D. Davis, University of Arkansas
·  Tyson  Foods Support Personnel Award: Howard Lester, University of Arkansas
·  Zoetis Fundamental Science Award: Young Min Kwon, Ph.D., University of Arkansas
Student awards presented include:
· Alltech Student Research Manuscript Award: Emma L. Wils-Plotz, University of California-Davis
·  Maurice Stein Fellowship Award:  Ganapathi Raj Murugesan, Iowa State University
·  Jones-Hamilton Graduate Student Travel Grant Award:  Adekunle Adebiyi, Scottish Rural University College; Shira Cheled-Shoval, Hebrew University; Chasity M. Cox, Virginia Tech;  Aman Deep, University of Saskatchewan;  Jianan Liu, University of British Columbia; Samuel J. Rochell, University of Illinois; Ana Cristina Stradiotti, Sao Paulo State University;   Indu Upadyaya, University of Connecticut; and  Kimberly M. Wilson, University of Georgia.

Poultry Science Association supports USDA inspection system updates

The Poultry Science Association has announced its support of a U.S. Department of Agriculture proposal to update federal inspection procedures in poultry processing facilities in the U.S. The proposed changes will modernize the USDA’s Food Safety and Inspection Service’s approach to young chicken and turkey slaughter inspection by focusing inspection resources on the areas of the poultry production system that pose the greatest risk to food safety, according to the USDA. The proposed changes have been designed, says the USDA, to ensure that “all [Food Safety and Inspection Service] inspection activities will focus on critical food safety tasks to ensure that agency resources are tied directly to protecting public health and reducing foodborne illnesses.”  In addition, the plan will replace a number of outdated regulatory requirements with “more flexible and effective testing and process control requirements” and mandate that all poultry processing facilities ensure that their operating procedures prevent contamination in the production process and provide supporting data to Food Safety and Inspection Service personnel. “We applaud the USDA dedicating more resources to food safety," said Dr. S. F. Bilgili, a professor in Auburn University’s Department of Poultry Science and a past president of the Poultry Science Association. "Technology has changed. The organoleptic inspection system introduced in the 1950s was relevant then, but not today. While the details will of course need to be worked out, the global changes that the USDA has proposed — making the entire approach to poultry processing inspections more efficient, science-based and consumer-safety oriented — are heading in the right direction.” 

Poultry Science Association supports 'judicious use' of antibiotics in food animals

The Poultry Science Association, in conjunction with the Federation of Animal Science Societies, has released a statement supporting the judicious use of antibiotics in food animals.
“The Federation of Animal Science Societies strongly supports the judicious use of antibiotics in food animal care consistent with the health and welfare of the animals, with preserving the value of antibiotics in protecting human and animal health and with efficient use of the earth’s resources in food production,” said the statement.
Antibiotic concerns stem largely from the possible effects of overuse, which may lead to immunity. “This use of these drugs must be balanced against the potential for engendering drug-resistance bacteria that cause harm to humans," said PSA President Dr. Mike Lilburn. "We are confident that this is a balance that can be struck through the careful development of regulatory systems for supporting antibiotics for disease treatment and a science-based approach to the continued use of antibiotics in food animal populations where it is demonstrably efficacious in treating disease, promoting health and increasing global food security.”

Poultry Foundation to put 88 years of 'Poultry Science' online

The Poultry Science Association Foundation has begun work on its Legacy Project, which aims to make 88 years of Poultry Science articles available to poultry researchers online for the first time.
The last 14 years of the journal are already available online, as Poultry Science went digital in 1996, but issues prior to that can be difficult to come by. "Because of space issues, many libraries only keep a few years of their traditional bound journals readily available in-house," said Foundation President Dr. William Saylor. "The rest they move to off-site storage facilities, making access to thousands of Poultry Science articles representing decades of research, including many groundbreaking papers, much more difficult."
The Legacy Project will scan, index, and make available online more than 600 back issues of the journal from 1921 through 1996, as well as issues of its predecessors International Association of Instructors and Investigators in Poultry Husbandry Proceedings (1908 through 1912) and the Journal of the American Association of Instructors and Investigators in Poultry Husbandry (1914 through 1921). The project is slated to be completed by July 2011.

Recovered poultry fat studied as alternative fuel

The Poultry Science Association and Dr. Brian Kiepper, a poultry scientist at the University of Georgia, are working to convert recovered fat from poultry wastewater streams into an economically viable alternative fuel source for processors.
Waste fat, oil and grease are major components of many food-processing wastewater streams, including poultry production. According to Kiepper, recaptured fat can be purified and then burned to heat water in a processing plant's boilers. It can also be used to make biodiesel.
Such uses can be attractive economically for the processor, particularly when compared to the traditional means of disposing of offal by selling it to rendering facilities, at a rate that values the fat at $0.22/gal. By comparison, once purified, fat recaptured from food processing wastewater can be used instead of fuel oil, which is currently priced at around $2/gal, to fire a plant's boilers.
Kiepper estimates that recovering only 10% (a conservative number) of the 44.6 million gallons of fat produced in Georgia each year would result in an estimated annual savings of nearly $9 million on fuel-oil purchases.

PSA education funding applications available

Applications for the Poultry Science Association Education Fund of the U.S. Poultry & Egg Association Harold E. Ford Foundation are now available. The fund supports student recruitment at colleges and universities with poultry science programs that do not have full departments with poultry science degrees. Any institution of higher education in the United States that offers an identifiable poultry science program is eligible for a recruitment grant of up to $7,000.
A committee of poultry science department professionals will evaluate funding requests and make recommendations to the board of directors of the Ford Foundation. Institutions may apply for a grant by completing the form and submitting nine copies to the U.S. Poultry & Egg Harold E. Ford Foundation by August 1, 2009. The form can be found here.

Research links temperature, broiler breeder performance

Researchers at the University of Alberta have developed an equation specifying how a broiler breeder's maintenance energy requirement fluctuates as a function of four variables: body weight, weight gain, external temperature and age, according to a Poultry Science Association report.
The goal of the research, which has been underwritten by poultry breeding company Aviagen, seeks to optimize reproductive performance of broiler breeders by controlling their growth curves through feed allocations, based on weather forecasts.
According to lead researcher Dr. Martin Zuidhof, the team has made progress in quantifying the relationship between feed, body temperature and external temperature, thereby understanding better the energy required by the breeder for growth at various temperatures.
Dr. Zuidhof will present the results at the 2009 PSA Annual Meeting, to be held on July 20-23.

Study finds Georgia producers most efficient

A recent study of farm incomes in southern Georgia found that on average, total net farm income is almost three times that of comparable but non-poultry-producing counties, according to the Poultry Science Association.
Poultry counties also are more economically efficient, with a net income per acre more than double that of non-poultry counties, according to the study.
The study, A Comparison of Farm Incomes for Poultry and Non-Poultry Producing Counties in South Georgia, was issued by The University of Georgia Cooperative Extension.
“I believe that a parallel study on the relative economic contributions of poultry vs. non-poultry counties in other areas of the country would find that the general conclusions of our work hold true,” said author of the study, Dan L. Cunningham, PhD. “They would likely demonstrate that poultry production has a strikingly powerful effect in terms of economic impact on these typically smaller and more rural economies.”