Wrapping Up a Great Year!

The Holiday Season has arrived, I’ve seen snow at least once, and we’re well into planning for 2024 events, so that means the year is almost over. Looking back at 2023, I’m excited and impressed with the work our Association has accomplished this year!

Some key achievements worth celebrating:

• A post-COVID return to membership growth, with more than 1,700 members joining.
• Double-digit growth in Annual Meeting attendance year-over-year, with nearly 1,200 members and guests coming to Philadelphia.
• Our largest Scientific Program ever, with 13 Symposia and hundreds of abstracts and posters presented at our signature event in July.
• Double-digit growth in articles submitted to and accepted for publication in our scientific journals Poultry Science and The Journal of Applied Poultry Research.
• Successfully hosted two “Think Tank” collaborative discussions, one on Layer Welfare, and a second on Salmonella in poultry production and processing.
• Fully endowed the annual Student Travel Award program at the PSA Foundation.

Additionally, we welcomed a sixth member of the PSA Staff in Sydney Huston, our Accounting and HR Manager. Adding this position represents the last major business function of PSA that we have traditionally outsourced, and is a vital piece of infrastructure that positions us for growth during our next Strategic Plan.

Our Association is in sound financial position, with significant revenue growth year-over-year, and a strong underpinning of solid financial investments that returned to positive performance in 2023 after weathering the very challenging markets of 2022. The wisdom of previous Boards and their stewardship of PSA’s fiscal resources allowed PSA to weather one of the roughest three-year stretches in financial memory, and come out stronger on the other side.

I am especially proud of our staff for what they have accomplished this year, and grateful to our volunteer leaders. Our Board of Directors, our committee leadership, and the many leaders who have stepped up in a big way to help achieve the Think Tank vision are worth their weight in gold. My hat’s off to each of you for your contributions to PSA this year.

Take a moment to savor the sweet flavor of success and look forward with great excitement to what promises to be a fantastic 2024.

Cheers!

Andy Vance

Executive Director, PSA

Consumers & Food Integrity

Now more than ever, consumers have questions and want to establish trust with food providers. Join PSA and Amy te Plate-Church (Center for Food Integrity) as we discuss questions consumers have regarding welfare, sustainability, and other hot topics for the poultry industry. Learn how producers are working to bring transparency to the consumer.

Click here or the image below to watch the episode.

Want to Participate?

Do you want to squawk with us? Complete the Let's Squawk About It Episode Idea Submission Form to send us your topic for consideration on the show!

December 19^th & 20^th

F.A.S.T. Hour

The Association is pleased to present two webinars this month. On December 19th at 8 AM CST, students are encouraged to participate in the F.A.S.T. Hour. This is the best opportunity you have to expand your professional network with PSA’s most prestigious members, the Fellows! These individuals will be available to answer your biggest questions regarding professional growth, working in the industry or academia, starting your career, and more!

Influence of management on carcass quality of broiler chickens

On December 20th at 1:00 PM CST, we invite everyone to join us in welcoming Professor Liris Kindlein (Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil) for her presentation “Influence of management on carcass quality of broiler chickens”. This is an exciting perspective you will not want to miss! Additionally, all attendees who register and log in for the webinar with Liris Kindlein on Wednesday, December 20th will receive a certificate of attendance.

Broiler Breeders - Postmolt Vaccination for IBD & REO

The majority of today’s broiler breeders are highly concentrated. With this comes increased risk of disease outbreaks and corresponding responses (such as depopulating flocks) to combat disease. This study from The Journal of Applied Poultry Research shows that postmolt vaccination can improve disease resistance in broiler breeders and their chicks.

Wooden breast myopathy may affect chicken meat quality after frozen storage

Researchers in Brazil conducted a study to determine whether there is an interaction between myopathy severity and long storage periods. The results showed that the fatty acid profile and nutritional properties of the meat may be affected.

Nominate Your Colleagues

The 2024 Awards Cycle has opened! Nominations will be accepted through the PSA Awards Site until March 1, 2024. The system allows nominators to begin a nomination, save it and continue later. Additional details, eligibility and required nomination materials are available on the PSA Website here as well as on the PSA Awards Site.

Awards unique to 2024 include:

• American Poultry Historical Society Award
• National Turkey Federation Research Award
• Poultry Welfare Research Award
• PSA Early Achievement Award for Research
• PSA Early Achievement Award for Teaching
• The NEW James H. Denton Distinguished Service Award of the Poultry Science Association.

Methods of Beak Measurement in Laying Hens

This research note from The Journal of Applied Poultry Research compares three different beak measurement methods to give a recommendation for which method is best suited for particular types of examinations. Because many poultry farms face issues with birds using their beaks for harmful acts such as cannibalism and feather pecking, beak measurement is important to track when introducing methods to keep beaks short and smooth. If a producer wants to determine that a rough material introduced for blunting results is effective, then beak measure is an important factor in determining success.

Are you interested in being featured through a Member Spotlight? Or maybe you would like to nominate someone? Complete the Member Spotlight submission form here!

Lin Walker

Current Employer:

North Carolina State University

Education:

• Bachelor's Degree - China Agricultural University
• Master's Degree - China Agricultural University
• PhD - University of Nebraska-Lincoln

Area of Expertise:

My research and extension focus is improving microbial food safety of poultry and egg products in preharvest and postharvest. I also study Cochlosoma anatis, one of the major protozoan parasites in turkeys. My goal is to assist the poultry industry in mitigating the microbial safety risk and to ensure compliance with federal and state food safety regulations.

Research interests include:

• intervention technologies to control food-borne pathogens;
• predictive microbiology to estimate the growth and survival of the pathogens;
• thermal and non-thermal processing to improve the quality and safety of poultry products;
• rapid detection of food-borne pathogens;
• Cochlosoma disease in turkeys.

Where did you grow up and did you have poultry in your youth?

I grew up in the urban city Xi'an, China. However, I did have my backyard chickens when I was a child. The experience helped me to make the transition from food science to poultry science as I do run many live trials for research nowadays.

What was your first job out of school and what were your responsibilities?

I was a research scientist in the R&D department at Neogen Corporation, developing rapid diagnostic kits to detect foodborne pathogens. I was there for 5.5 years and my last position with Neogen was the team lead of the Pathogen Detection team.

If you had a motto that applied to your daily professional career, what would it be?

“The future depends on what you do today.”

Mahatma Gandhi

What value does your PSA membership offer you?

I'm relatively new to the poultry world, as my background is in food science. PSA definitely provides me with a great professional community to collaborate and learn from.

What is your favorite poultry breed?

All the breeds that are safe to eat.

Topics of Interest to Poultry Scientists

Below you will find several news articles and resources of interest in the field of Poultry Science.

Avian flu strikes California egg layers and duck breeders

Read More >>

Poultry businesses will benefit from a 2-year extension to the Climate Change Agreement

Read More >>

Transparency in Poultry Grower Contracting and Tournaments

Read More >>

2024 Borlaug CAST Communication Award (BCCA) Nominations Open

Read More >>

The Public Health Impact of NARMS

Read More >>

New Members of the Poultry Science Association

The Association is pleased to welcome the following individuals who started or reinstated their PSA membership in November 2023. Please note that some individuals may not have listed their organizational affiliation.

Professional Members

Sachi Katsumata

Okayama University

Prafulla Kumar

Feng Wen

Foshan University

Postdoc Members

Md Salahuddin

Prairie View A&M University

Jaroslav Valenta

Auburn University

Graduate Student Members

Brindhalakshmi Balasubramanian

University of Connecticut

Muhammad Hassan

University of Veterinary and Animal Sciences, Lahore

Waqar Iqbal

Chinese Academy of Agriculture Sciences (CAAS)

Graduate Student Members

(continued)

Kamil Kustra

Agricultural University of Kraków

Lea Nicklas

University of Guelph

Undergraduate Student Members

Ches Grisham 

Mississippi State University

Ehtisham Akmal

University of Veterinary & Animal Sciences, Lahore-Pakistan

Madison Penney

University of Guelph

Corbin Preusse

Texas A&M University Poultry Science Department

Graham Spires

University of Georgia

January 30, 2024 at 8:00 AM EST

The U.S. Poultry & Egg Harold E. Ford Foundation (USPOULTRY Foundation) and the Poultry Science Association Foundation (PSA Foundation) are pleased to announce the jointly sponsored PhD and Vet Student Career Fair which will be held during the International Production & Processing Expo (IPPE), scheduled for January 30 – February 1, 2024, at the Georgia World Congress Center in Atlanta, GA. The Career Fair will be held in Room B309, 8:00 - 11:30 a.m., Tuesday, January 30 in conjunction with the International Poultry Scientific Forum (IPSF). This unique program is designed to better serve U.S. Poultry & Egg Association (USPOULTRY) member companies and allied suppliers, particularly involving, but not limited to, technology driven companies such as those in genetics, health, pharmaceutical and nutrition. The target participants are Post-Doctoral, early PhD, and vet students.

This is a great service our two organizations can provide to the poultry and allied industry, particularly those with needs in genetics, health, pharmaceutical and nutrition fields. Further, this opportunity is provided in one place at one time in conjunction with the IPSF, conveniently benefiting these exceptional students and industry companies seeking talented employees to provide for their next generation of scientific leadership.

Each company will receive a table and 2 chairs. We encourage you to bring literature, pop up banners, and/or other information about your company to give to prospective candidates.

The deadline for students to sign-up is Jan. 5, 2024

There is no cost for companies to sign up and have access to this talent pool and no cost for students to participate!

For more information on the program and to sign up click here.

For further information or inquiries, contact Jerrica Russaw or Barbara Jenkins.

Open Now!

Registration and hotel reservations for those attending PEAK 2024 – formerly called the Midwest Poultry Federation Convention – is now open at www.midwestpoultry.com.

Show dates are April 17-19, 2024, at the Minneapolis Convention Center in Minneapolis, Minnesota. PEAK is the nation’s largest trade show and convention in North America focused exclusively on the business and food production of poultry.

PEAK is the ideal place to connect with professionals, researchers, and industry experts to exchange ideas with others in the poultry industry,” said Ross Thoreson, President of MPF.