Newsletter March 2010

President’s Report

Attendance at meetings

President, Bob Pym

Australian Poultry Science Symposium: Since last reporting to you in December, it was my pleasure to attend the 2010 Australian Poultry Science Symposium in Sydney from 1-3 February 2010. The theme of the Symposium was “Poultry production at a time of global uncertainty”. The WPSA Board was well represented at the Symposium with invited presentations from Professor Rob Gous (Senior Vice president) (“An effective alternative to the ME system”), Professor Colin Whitehead (Vice president) (“Update on current European broiler bone problems”), and myself, (“The role of WPSA in support of poultry production in developing countries”). The latter presentation was in a session on “Global goals to promote poultry production in developing countries”. Mr. Alan Gibbins (President, Asian Pacific Federation of WPSA) also attended the meeting, as a speaker in the workshop following the Symposium on 4-5 February. Attendance there by the four of us presented the opportunity for a meeting to discuss the current WPSA Constitution revision process (see below), among other issues.

WPSA workshop: Improving Poultry Production in Developing Countries in the SE Asia-Pacific Region: The above workshop was organized in recognition of the importance of a proper understanding by farmers of the nutritional, health and management requirements of the birds, to efficient and profitable poultry meat and egg production in developing countries. The workshop followed the Symposium at Sydney University on 4-5 February. Funding was obtained from AusAID to support the attendance of 10 key players in poultry development projects in their respective countries from the Asia-Pacific region. The selected participants play a critical role in the education of small-scale poultry farmers.
On the first day, speakers chosen from the attendees at APSS with expertise in the component areas of poultry production provided relevant technical information to the participants. The second day provided an opportunity for discussion of specific constraints to poultry production, and the inputs required to facilitate development of the industry and of poultry research capability in the region. A focus was on developing linkages between the participants to facilitate later information sharing between the groups in these small countries with limited resources. The Australian branch of WPSA made a major contribution to the conduct of the workshop, and further sponsorship was obtained from a number of companies. Alan Gibbins gave a presentation on “Productivity improvement in small-scale poultry farming: New perspectives", and in an introduction to the discussion session on the second day, I spoke on “Sustainability and social equity issues for the global poultry industry: Impact on developing countries”. Feedback from participants about the workshop was very positive.

Revision of the WPSA Constitution: As mentioned in my September Newsletter report, we are in the process of revising the WPSA Constitution and By-Laws. The process has involved a complete restructuring of the Constitution, with separation of a significant proportion of the old Constitution into the new By-Laws. As a result it has been rather more complex and slower process than originally envisaged, but we now have an advanced draft that has gone out to the Board members for comment, and anticipate having the agreed revised Constitution and By-Laws ready to send out to Council for approval by May 2010.
Related to this, the next meeting of the WPSA Board will be held at the European Poultry Conference (EPC) in Tours, France on Monday 23 August 2010.

Poultry Think Tank: As a follow-up to the Poultry Think Tank meeting in Freising, Germany in June 2009, reported in the December 2009 Newsletter, a joint FAO/WPSA/EPC one-day session entitled “Guidance for the Poultry sector: Issues and options”, will be held at the EPC on Tuesday 24 August 2010. Six speakers representing different interest groups covering different political and technical aspects of poultry production, have been invited. This will be an open session and will build on the outcomes of the Freising meeting, to further debate sustainability and social equity issues relating to global poultry production.
A smaller planning meeting of participants from the Freising meeting (including Dr John Hodges), and others, will be held at VIV Europe in Utrecht, The Netherlands, on 21 April 2010. A report will be prepared for the organizers of the above “Guidance …” session at EPC.

Membership on the International Poultry Council: Some time ago WPSA received an invitation from the International Poultry Council (IPC) to become a member of the Council. The focus of the Council appears to be principally related to the international regulatory framework associated with trade in poultry meat and associated products.
For some time now, there has been discussion within WPSA about the desirability of a closer association with IPC and its sister organization, the International Egg Commission. IPC will be holding their 2010 meeting in Paris from 14-16 April 2010. I plan to attend the meeting as an observer and to have discussions with key people there to determine the benefits that would come to WPSA from being a member of the Council, and will report back to the WPSA Board. I will be in Europe at that time attending the UK branch meeting in Belfast and VIV Europe at Utrecht for the PTT meeting. The IPC meeting fits nicely in between these two.
My very best wishes to you all; I look forward to catching up with some of you during my forthcoming visit to Europe in April and during EPC in August.

Report from the Office of the General Secretary

General Secretary, Roel Mulder

New Branches: A new Branch was formed in Januari 2010 in Fiji. We hope to form a new Branch in Papua New Guinea and Azerbaijan in the next months. The inaugural meeting for the Azerbaijan branch will take place during mid-May 2010. As of January 1, 2010, the total WPSA membership was 7503.

World’s Poultry Science Journal: The on-line version of the Journal is now available cover-to-cover. From the end of March 2010 the on-line submission for papers will be available (see message from the editor). This system will help us avoid delays in publication.

A mailing was sent to all members at the end of 2009 asking them whether they would prefer to have online access to the Journal instead of receiving a printed copy. Also attention was given to getting more members to subscribe to the on-line newsletter. The response was good. 280 new on-line subscriptions, which now brings us to a total 800 members who are receiving the online Journal. During the coming year we will continue to attempt to increase the readership of the newsletter.

Visits made and /congresses attended: I participated in the International Poultry Scientific Forum and the International Poultry Exhibition in Atlanta, Georgia during late January 2010. Unfortunately, I missed the induction of Dr. Paul Siegel in to the U.S. Poultry Hall of Fame. I was able to attend a meeting of the USA Branches Board of Directors.
Contacts with sponsors/advertisers were also further established during the Victam 2010 in Bangkok, March 2010. Victam, a new sponsor, organises every year exhibitions, related to the feed industry, in Europe and Asia. At the same time in Bangkok there was a 3-day meeting, Poultry Focus 2010, with almost 700 participants from industry and the scientific world.
During the year major Conferences (European Poultry Conference, Tours) and exhibitions (VIV Europe, Utrecht, The Netherlands, VIV China, Beijing, China, Eurotier, Hanover, Germany) will be attended.

Report from the Office of the Treasurer

Treasurer,
Francine Bradley

As I sit looking at the latest financial statements for WPSA, I am pleased with the figures in front of me. The Association’s main portfolio is held with Edward Jones. The total of all assets at Edward Jones is up 27.6% over the figure of one year ago. While there certainly were unsettling moments in the stock markets over the last year, I think the aforementioned figure speaks to our policy of making quality investments and riding out the financial storms.

Moving into 2010, I have been working with Dr. Mulder and Mrs. Kleverwal to prepare for invoicing the 2010 Journal sponsors and advertisers. I am currently assembling the end-of-the year statements arriving from the various financial institutions used by WPSA. These statements are included with the other financial reports I produce and supply to the Association’s Certified Public Accountant.

I know WPSA members in many Branches are dealing with severe climatic conditions. My wish for you is calmer weather and safety.

World's Poultry Science Journal

Online submission of papers for the World's Poultry Science Journal

As Editor of the WPSJ, I am proud to announce that, from March 2010 onwards, all submissions to the journal will be through ScholarOne Manuscripts at http://mc.manuscriptcentral.com/wpsj or via the WPSA website. Authors must log in and follow the instructions on screen in order to ensure their paper will be processed quickly and efficiently. This system is advantageous in many respects, as it allows quicker processing, easy access to check the progress of each paper, regular automatic reminders for reviewers (to which we are always most grateful for their efforts) and rapid communications with authors. I’m sure some authors will miss the current ‘personal touch’ involved in submitting papers to me, however with ever increasing numbers of papers coming in, and very limited staff capacity, the only way to facilitate processing so many papers is via such a system.
Although most authors are familiar with this kind of submission system, for those who aren’t, please make sure your manuscript strictly adheres to the guidelines given in the instructions. The WPSJ does not charge for publishing papers (except if colour pictures are required), and continues to make every effort to keep the costs of publication to a minimum. However, please be aware that papers which are not reviews or are incorrectly formatted may incur costs that will be charged back to the submitting author (approximately US$20).
Although we are currently beta-testing the system in-house, we may encounter some unexpected problems. Please bear with us if this is the case – we will be doing everything to ensure the change-over takes place as smoothly as possible.
I would like to take this opportunity to thank Julia Hochbach of Cambridge University Press for her assistance in getting this system organised and running.

Dr Lucy Tucker (nee Waldron), Editor WPSJ

24-hour online access to World's Poultry Science Journal

This online subscription means you get access to World's Poultry Science Journal from the current day right back to Volume 1, Issue 1!
At Cambridge Journals Online you can also:

search the contents of the current issue or across the journal's back content
save searches
export citations
view the top-10 most read articles
view the top-10 most cited articles

If you wish to have an online subscription instead of receiving the printed Journal please go to www.wpsa.com and click on the button “online journal” or go directly to www.wpsa.com/journal/online_members.html. You will need your membership number which was printed at the top of a letter that was recently sent to all members on this topic.

European Federation of WPSA

The European Federation has planned a number of conferences between now and the end of 2010. The conferences are listed at the end of this Newsletter and contact information is available on the WPSA website (www.wpsa.com). News from a number of the Federation’s working groups are provided below.

WPSA European Working Group News

WG1: The European Federation’s Working Group 1 on Poultry Economics and Marketing held its second round table meeting in Antwerp, Belgium on 1st and 2nd of October, 2009. Following this successful meeting, a 3rd round table meeting has been proposed for October, 2011.
For information contact the chairman of WG1 Peter van Horne at peter.vanhorne@wur.nl.

WG2: The European Federation's Working Group 2 will co-host the 18th European Symposium on Poultry Nutrition with the Turkish Branch in Cesme, Turkey in 2011. See the Turkey Branch report for further details.

WG3: The European Federation’s Working Group 3 on Breeding and Genetics hosted the VI European Poultry Genetics Symposium on 30th September – 2nd October, 2009, in Bedlewo near Poznan, Poland. The next symposium will be held in 2011 in Edinburgh, Scotland.

WG5: The European Federation’s Working Group 5 on Poultry Meat has prepared a working paper on a recommendation of methods to be used for determining poultry meat quality characteristics. The draft version of the paper has been accessible on the homepage of WPSA (www.wpsa.com) since the summer of 2009. People interested in adding their knowledge and expertise to this paper are welcomed and are requested to send their comments and amendments to the chairman of the working group (Michael Grashorn; Grashorn@uni-hohenheim.de). Discussion will still be open till March 2010. Thereafter, the paper will be published in an esteemed journal.

As poultry meat production and consumption is increasing all over the World, the working group decided during the XIX European Symposium on the Quality of Poultry Meat in Turku, Finland, during the summer of 2009 to open the group for all WPSA members dealing with poultry meat quality irrespective of their home country. Interested people are requested to contact the chairman of the working group (Michael Grashorn; grashorn@uni-hohenheim.de) for further information.

The next symposium of working group 5 will probably take place in parallel with the symposium of WG 4 ‘Quality of Eggs and Egg Products’ on September 4 to 7, 2011 in Leipzig, Germany. It is planned to have scientific sessions on the first three days and excursions on the last day. More details will be shown on the homepage of the conference (www.eggmeat2011.de) which will be accessible from spring 2010 on.

Michael Grashorn, Chairman Working Group 5

WG10: The European Federation’s Working Group 10 on Turkey Production will host the 6th International Symposium on Turkey Production will in Berlin, Germany, in June 2011. We hope to see you in Berlin.

Prof. H.M. Hafez, Chairman of the European Federation’s Working Group 10, Turkey Production, Institute of Poultry Diseases, Free University Berlin

Asian Pacific Federation

Next Asian Pacific Poultry Conference: The Taiwan branch of WPSA will host the 9th APPC during 2011. A website for the APPC 2011 will be posted next month.

WPSA Programmes

Providing travel assistance for young WPSA members and students to participate in regional and global WPSA conferences

It is generally agreed that enhancing the educational, research and experience opportunities of young poultry science professional and technical people is critical to the development of more efficient poultry production, whether it is in an intensive technological industry or in smallscale, family production systems. WPSA offers a Travel Scholarship scheme of open competition to facilitate this. It should be stressed that any travel assistance WPSA provides under the scheme is independent of and in addition to that currently provided by the World Poultry Congresses, by Regional Conferences and/or by individual Branches. Its aim is to target and benefit students and young members, including young poultry producers from developing countries and students from developed countries. Applicants must be a member of WPSA for at least six months before they can apply for a Travel Grant. Applications must be accompanied by a short CV.
Deadline: Applicants must submit their applications at least 3 months prior to the meeting.
Application form: Full details and the application forms can be obtained from the WPSA General Secretary’s Office or you can download the application form from the WPSA website (www.wpsa.com).

Send the application form (preferably by e-mail) to the General Secretary of WPSA, Dr Roel Mulder, PO Box 31, 7360 AA Beekbergen, The Netherlands, e-mail: roel.mulder@wpsa.com or wpsa@xs4all.nl, fax: +31 207508941.

Speakers' Bureau: Fostering local and regional conferences in the poultry sciences

During the 34th meeting of the Board of WPSA on August 20, 2000 in Montreal, Canada it was recognised that expertise in several areas of poultry science and production in low income countries is often very limited, and WPSA branches in these countries often do not have sufficient financial resources to fund overseas speakers.
To address this problem, the Board created a Speakers’ Bureau to assist branches in low income countries to cover the travel costs of expert international speakers. This measure is consistent with the key objective of WPSA to encourage and facilitate liaison among research scientists and educators, and between those in research and education and those working in the many diverse sectors of the poultry industry. Under the Speakers’ Bureau scheme, WPSA will pay only the cost of air travel (lowest economy class). All other expenses such as local travel and accommodation are to be paid by the organizing Branch(es). WPSA will not pay any honorarium to speakers.
Given the high cost of international air travel it is important that optimum value be obtained from this expenditure by WPSA. This can be achieved by insisting that the visiting speaker provides more than just one paper at a conference. The visiting speaker could contribute in a variety of ways, e.g., present a second paper on a related topic, conduct a workshop for graduate students, have small group or one-on-one interaction, especially with students, visit industry groups, visit university groups, etc.
Unless the Branch (or group of Branches) can pay all the speakers’ costs itself, a speaker should NOT be invited until approval of Speakers’ Bureau funds is made by the WPSA Executive Committee. The Branch(es) should not assume that approval will be given until so advised by the WPSA Secretary.
Where a Branch or a group of Branches wish to apply for Speakers Bureau assistance, there are certain conditions which must be met.

Full details and the application forms can be obtained from the WPSA General Secretary’s Office or you can download the application forms from the WPSA website (www.wpsa.com).

Congresses / Symposia

Update on the planning for the 24th World's Poultry Congress to be held on 5-8 August 2012, Salvador, Bahia, Brazil

The planning of the 24th World’s Poultry Congress and EXPO continues. This year, WPSA-Brazilian Branch has booked the venue, defined scientific subcommittees and has negotiated more than 60% of the first EXPO pavilion. At the 21st Latin American Congress on Poultry Farming held in Cuba in October, 2009 – more than 400 promotional folders were distributed and more than 600m2 of booth space were booked.

Early in 2010, the core structure of scientific programme and general framework of the event will be finalized. Members of the WPC 2012 Organizing Committee will be attending the International Poultry Exposition in Atlanta in late January for a concerted effort on the WPC 2012 promotion and booth sales.

For more information visit the website at http://www.wpc2012.com or http://www.wpc2012.com.br.

XIIIth European Poultry Conference

The next European Poultry Conference will take place in France!!

The XIIIth European Poultry Conference will be held in Tours, France from the 23rd to the 27th of August 2010. This event is organized by the French branch of the World’s Poultry Science Association (WPSA) with support from INRA, AFSSA and ITAVI.

The European Congress is held every 4 years, and it addresses all facets of poultry production and attracts around 1000 attendees from more than 70 countries. This is a not to be missed meeting, and it offers a great opportunity to meet experts from all over the world. It allows exchanges of new information on the different aspects of poultry production such as biology and physiology of birds, breeding and rearing systems, nutrition, health, hygiene and food security, pathology, environmental impact, animal welfare, product quality, and industrial processes. Technico-economic domains and poultry education will be also presented. Each theme will have specific sessions organized around an overview, as well as oral communications, posters and plenary discussions.

In addition to the scientific programme, the WPSA will organize technical tours. A special programme for accompanying persons is also scheduled to allow them to discover Tours and its surroundings.
Full information relative to the European Poultry Congress 2010 is online at www.epc2010.org.

Pierre-André Geraert,
President WPSA France

Yves Nys,
President Organizing Committee EPC 2010

American Poultry Hall of Fame inductees announced

The American Poultry Historical Society honoured five outstanding individuals by inducting them into the American Poultry Industry Hall of Fame. Donald Dalton, Lonnie “Bo” Pilgrim, Paul B. Siegel, Robert D. Sparboe, and J. Paul Thaxton, Jr. were inducted into the American Poultry Hall of Fame on Thursday January 28, 2010 at the International Poultry Exposition in Atlanta, GA. The announcement was made by Dr. Nick Zimmermann, Chair of the APHS Committee of Thirty and an Associate Professor of Animal and Avian Science at the University of Maryland, College Park, MD.
The American Poultry Historical Society was formed at the 1952 Boston Poultry Show. It has remained dedicated to the purpose of preserving historical records and honouring distinctive personal achievement. Preserved records are maintained in the National Agricultural Library in Beltsville, Maryland.
The American Poultry Historical Society bestows this honour on a maximum of five individuals at three-year intervals. A bronze plaque bearing the image of each inductee will be on permanent display in the National Agricultural Library in Beltsville, MD. The Poultry Industry Hall of Fame display is being revitalized and a Dictation Ceremony will be announced in the near future.

Dr Paul Siegel Paul B. Siegel was raised on a poultry-tobacco farm in Connecticut, and has had a life-long interest in poultry. Active in 4-H and FFA, he earned a 1948 plaque from the Chicken-of-Tomorrow Committee stating “for outstanding achievement in breeding and development of superior meat-type chickens”. He attended the 4-H Club Congress, was named Poultry Boy of the Year in Connecticut, and as an Eagle Scout was a representative to the National Scout Jamboree.
While studying for his B.S. degree at the University of Connecticut he was a student labourer at the Storr’s Egg Laying Test, President of the Poultry Club, conducted research on turkey incubation, and placed 4th in the Intercollegiate Poultry Judging Contest. At Kansas State University he was a teaching and research assistant, and was senior or co-author of his first six research papers.
Upon completion of the Ph.D. he joined the poultry faculty at Virginia Tech where he remains today as a University Distinguished Professor. The focus of his teaching and research involves changes that occur with selection, a lifelong theme.
Dr. Siegel's research is basic and applied with a long-term focus on how traits change with genetic selection. He has published more than 400 journal articles, books, book chapters, and reviews involving nutrition, disease, immunology, physiology, and behaviour. Dr. Siegel's primary legacy is the more than 2000 undergraduate students he taught, and the scores of graduate students that passed through his lab who now enjoy poultry careers in industry and academia.

Dr J. Paul Thaxton J. Paul Thaxton, Jr., a native Mississippian received his bachelor’s degree in Entomology in 1964 and in 1966 his MS in Animal Physiology from Mississippi State University. He then accepted a position as Instructor of Biology at Northeast Louisiana State College and taught there for one year prior to entering the University of Georgia where he earned a PhD in Poultry Science in 1971.
In January, 1970, he joined the faculty at North Carolina State University. His research included studies on the influence of environmental factors on development and expression of immune competence in poultry which led to his recognition in understanding the role of stress in poultry. While at NC State, he trained over 25 graduate students and served for five years as head of the Graduate Physiology Program and taught Avian Physiology to both undergraduate and graduate students.
In 1985, Dr. Thaxton and H.V. Smith founded Embrex, Inc., the world’s first biotechnology company dedicated to poultry. He served as Vice President of Research and Development until his role had been completed. He accepted a position as Professor of Poultry Science at Mississippi State University in 1990 where he continued to teach, conduct research, and train graduate students until his death in 2007.
Dr. Thaxton has authored over 300 publications, 11 patents and trained 32 graduate students. He is a member of Poultry Science Association, Southern Poultry Science Society, World Poultry Science Association, Society of Experimental Biology and Medicine, American Association for the Advancement of Science, Society of Sigma Xi, and Gamma Sigma Delta. His honours include the Poultry Science Association Research Award in 1974, the Research Award from the NCSU Chapter of Sigma Xi in 1976, Award for Entrepreneurial Excellence from the Governor of North Carolina in 1987 and the Faculty Research Award from the Mississippi State University Alumni Association in 2001 and was elected as a Fellow in the Poultry Science Association in 2004.

WPSA Branch News

Algeria

The Algerian branch, recently created in 2009, announces the first national symposium on poultry science in collaboration with the University of Batna (poultry science service). This event will be held from 9 to 11 November 2010 at the University of Batna.
This symposium regroups scientists, researchers, adepts and practitioners in field of poultry science and development in Algeria. Our first symposium focuses on these axes:

Environment and farming practice
Feeding and nutrition
Reproduction, genetics and selection
Hygiene, quality and product traceability.
Pathology and prevention
Anatomy and physiology
Economy

For more details, please visit the following web site:
http://archive.univ-batna.dz/symposium/index.html

ALLOUI Nadir, Branch President
BENNOUNE Omar, Branch General Secretary

Argentina

9th Update Seminar in Poultry Production – AMEVEA (Argentina)

The Argentinean Branch of the World´s Poultry Science Association (WPSA) collaborates in the organization of the 9th Update Seminar in Poultry Production. This scientific meeting will take place in Colon, Entre Rios, Argentina, during September 15th and 16th, 2010. This seminar is organized by the Entre Rios Veterinary Poultry Association (AMEVEA). In general, the participants for this event are Spanish and Portuguese speaking from Latin America. It expects to have more than 300 participants (producers, students and professionals), representing one of the most important events of the Argentinean poultry community. The entire seminar will be given in Spanish, with all English presentations translated into Spanish by a Veterinarian specialist in simultaneous translation. The WPSA will provide one expert speaker, supported by the “WPSA Bureau Speakers” programme. This event is organized every two years and also this year AMEVEA will celebrates its 20th anniversary.

Brazil

The year has barely started and WPSA-Brazil is already working hard on the promotion of the 24th World's Poultry Congress that will be held in 2012 in Brazil and will celebrate 100 years of WPSA. We have already been to the Atlanta International Poultry and Feed Expo and we are getting ready to attend VIV Europe in April. In the meantime, the core structure of the scientific programme (with rooms and time allocation) is being defined and should be available shortly.

We have been also quite busy with the organization of the 2010 WPSA-Brazil/FACTA Conference on Poultry Science and Technology, which will take place May 25-27, 2010. Our conference is the largest and most important scientific event in the field of Poultry Science in South America, and it has been very successful for 28 years. More information - including the scientific programme - is available at http://www.facta.org.br/conferencia2010/ (Portuguese only - please write to wpsa.br@facta.org.br for the programme and other information in English).

Two other technical events are currently being planned by WPSA-Brazil for the second semester of 2010: the Latin American Seminar on Poultry Slaughter and Processing, and the National Seminar on Artificial Egg Incubation. More information, including dates and venues, will be provided in the next WPSA Newsletter and on our website - http://www.facta.org.br.

Mariana Castrillon, Communications Assistant, FACTA/ WPSA Brazilian Branch

Germany

The 2010 annual meeting is scheduled for 16th – 17th March in Düsseldorf, where we will intensify our contacts with fancy breeders and visit the research unit in Sinsteden, where students from the Medical Faculty use poultry as experimental animals for brain research.
Several of our members are actively involved in preparing the programme for the upcoming European Poultry Conference in Tours 2010, and the German branch will again support the EPC2010 by offering travel grants for young scientists with accepted contributions.

Anke Forster and Dietmar Flock

India

The IV World Waterfowl Conference was conducted at Lulu International Convention Centre, Thrissur, Kerala, India from 11-13 November 2009. The conference was jointly organized by Centre for Advanced Studies in Poultry Science, Kerala Agricultural University and World’s Poultry Science Association, India Branch under the auspices of Asia Pacific Federation of WPSA. The Conference was inaugurated by The Governor of Kerala and Chancellor of KAU Mr. R. S. Gavai. The welcome address was given by Mr. K. R. Viswambharan, the Vice-chancellor of KAU. Dr. Roel Mulder (General Secretary, WPSA) has addressed the gathering on role of WPSA. Felicitations were given by Dr. A. L. Bhagwat (President, WPSA-IB). The function was presided over by Prof. K. V. Thomas (Union Minister of State for Agriculture, consumer affairs, food and public distribution). Vote of Thanks was given by Prof. A. Jalaludeen, Organizing Secretary.
A total of 189 scientists participated in the conference. This included 19 foreign delegates from countries including Poland, Lithuania, Nigeria, Egypt, New Zealand, France, Hong Kong, Taiwan, The Netherlands and Indonesia. Ninety-seven scientists participated from Kerala State and 73 scientists from other states of India.
Scientific sessions were conducted on 11-12th November 2009. The programme included oral presentation and poster presentation under the following sessions, (1) Genetic Resources and Breeding, (2) Housing and Management, (3) Nutrition, Physiology and Reproduction, (4) Biosecurity, Diseases and Welfare, (5) Production Systems and (6) Product Processing, Quality and Food Safety. The theme paper was delivered by Dr. Heinz Pingel (Germany). Lead papers were presented by Dr. Deepak Sharma (India), Dr. Gerard Guy (France), Dr. Kennedy Shortridge (New Zealand), Dr. Ewa Łukaszewicz (Poland), Dr. K. S. Prajapati (India), Dr. Roel Mulder (The Netherlands), Dr. Narahari (India) and Dr. Prasada Rao (India). After concluding the regular sessions, a special discussion on high pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) was conducted considering the importance of waterfowl in the transmission cycle of avian influenza. The discussion coordinated by Prof. Alan Gibbins (New Zealand).
The full-text articles collected from delegates were published in Conference Proceedings. In addition, a Souvenir containing general articles on waterfowl production was also published. The Best Poster award was received by Dr. Vidya (Kerala Agricultural University).
On 13th November 2009, delegates were taken to Kuttanad, Alappuzha district of Kerala, as part of field visit. Delegates visited a flock of 20,000 Kuttanadan ducks (native duck breed of Kerala) in the field. After visiting duck flocks in Kuttanad, delegates visited local waterbodies in a houseboat.
In connection with the IV World Waterfowl Conference, a one-day Farmers’ Seminar was organized at Rice Research Station, Moncompu, Alappuzha district. About 200 farmers and 30 veterinary officers participated in the Seminar.

The Recommendations of the Conference are:

New waterfowl breeding systems conforming to economic, environmental and social sustainability need to be evolved.
More support must be given for waterfowl production in family farms in hot and humid regions of the world to improve food security. Area-specific duck production models must be developed.
Veterinary surveillance and diagnostic facilities must be improved to prevent a global pandemic of HPAI.
Changes in infectivity and zoonotic potential by genetic reassortment in low pathogenic avian influenza virus need to be monitored.
Muscovy duck farming may be popularized in Africa and Latin American Countries.
Duck meat consumption must be popularized by following scrupulous quality control and effective marketing strategy.
Additional fortified concentrate ration can be provided to ducks reared under scavenging system to improve the productivity.
Broiler ducks must be reared under intensive system preferably on slats with no access to swimming and fed with high efficiency pelleted feeds free from mycotoxins.
To give an impetus to commercial goose production, gosling number must be improved through crossbreeding and genetic manipulation.
As weather-related disasters are becoming common due to climate change, weather insurance packages must be provided to save the livelihood of farmers.

The photos of the conference and PDF file of Conference Proceedings can be found at: http://www.waterfowl2009.vetcos.com/.

Prof. A. Jalaludeen & Dr. D. Anish
Centre for Advanced Studies in Poultry Science, Thrissur, India

Waterfowl Conference 2009

Italy

The 47th Congress of Italian Branch of WPSA will be held on April 29th in Forlì (Italy) at the Fiera di Forlì (Via Punta di Ferro) with a programme that will include lectures on: broiler breeders, incubation, thermotolerance, and on the use of in ovo feeding to enhance the quality of the chick. Speakers and their topics will include:

J.T. Brake -Department of Poultry Science, North Carolina State University, Raleigh North Carolina, USA
Broiler breeder nutrition and feed management and its effect on broiler progeny performance.
E. Decuypere -Department of Biosystems, Research Unit Physiology, University of Leuven, Belgium.
Incubation as a hinge between broiler breeder and broiler production
S. Yahav - Institute of Animal Science. ARO. The Volcani Center, Bet-Dagan, Israel.
Thermal manipulations during embryogenesis - its effect on the broiler's thermotolerance acquisition
and quality
Z. Uni - Department of Animal Sciences. The National Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Rehovot, Israel.
In ovo feeding: Impact on intestinal development, energetic status and growth.

Malaysia

The Malaysian Branch of WPSA will be co-hosting a Satellite Seminar session in conjunction with Annual Veterinary Association Congress that will be held on August 1, 2010 from 8.30.am -1.00 pm at Seri Pacific Hotel, Kuala Lumpur. The theme for the seminar is 'Sustaining the Poultry Industry for Tomorrow,' and WPSA will provide the speaker who will talk on the topic of ‘Disease Treatment of Pandemic H1N1 by the Poultry Industry'.

Dr. Teo Kim Lai, Secretary, WPSA Malaysia Branch

New Zealand

The New Zealand branch will be celebrating its 50th anniversary in 2010, and it is planning a special celebration at the New Zealand Poultry Conference that will take place on 12 & 13 October in Christchurch on the South Island of New Zealand.

Alan Gibbins

Russia

VNITIP is 80 years old: The All-Russian Scientific Research and Technology Poultry Industry Institute (VNITIP) will have its 80 year Jubilee celebration in October 2010. The Institute has become Russia’s scientific thought centre for poultry breeding during these years. The Institute carries out scientific research studies on poultry genetics and selection, incubation and feeding, maintenance and progressive technologies creation in a large scale. It also coordinates the poultry breeding work of institutes, universities, and zone experiment stations all across Russia, and it maintains scientific connection with the scientists of many other countries throughout the world.
The Institute’s scientists, together with experts at the selection centres and experimental farms, have created some home high productive chicken crosses including meat mini-chicken crosses, guinea-fowls and duck and goose breeds. They have worked out selection and reproduction methods for all poultry species, intensive resource saving technologies for eggs and poultry meat production, and incubation. They have also worked out standard feeding programmes, feed rations, and biological and pathologic-anatomic control systems for incubation. All of these efforts have received wide spread use by the poultry industry. VNITIP scientists are also carrying out research in the areas of biotechnology, physiology, biochemistry, mycotoxicology, poultry industry economics and marketing. The Institute also trains young scientists through post-graduate studentships, and these studentships have produced a large number of outstanding scientists in poultry breeding. During the last 35 years the Academic of Russian Agricultural Sciences Academy, the Russian WNAP branch President V.I. Fisinin has served as the Institute director.
The Institute is known as a great selection and technologic centre, and the experimental breeding farm of VNITIP and “Genofond” includes more than 70 chicken breeds, six guinea-fowl breeds and seven quail breeds that make valuable contributions to the Institute’s scientific research development. VNITIP also successfully carries out courses for improving the professional skill for managers and experts in poultry feeding, incubation, for breeders, laboratory directors, technologists and economists. Over the years, more than 1000 poultry industry experts from feed production enterprises and different firms have taken such courses, not only from Russia but from Kazachstan, Uzbekistan, Ukraine, Belorussia, Lithuanian, Azerbaidzhan, Bulgaria et al.

ALLTECH principle shares knowledge: The “Alltech” company is one of the world leaders in the field of products for animal health. The company produces a variety of feed additions and preparations for animal husbandry and poultry industry, and it is also a silver WPSA sponsor that carries out a lot of educational work in Russia. The Russian branch of the company regularly organizes seminars and conferences that attract poultry industry scientists and experts.
“We believe that it is very important to invest in education and scientific research development”, said Russian Alltech branch president, T. Papasyan, when he opened an event in Jachroma town near Moscow. Many veterinarians, zooengineers and poultry and hog farm directors from different Russia regions came to the seminar. The First RASHN vice-president, “Rosptitsesojuz” presideте and Russia WPSA president academician V. Fisinin, poultry “Alltech” branch director Dr. A. Sarcany, the known scientists in poultry feeding academician I. Yegorov and Prof. T. Okolelova, the director of All-Russian Scientific Research Veterinary Institute for Poultry Prof. Djavadov spoke at the seminar. Doctor Piet Simons former Secretary General of the WPSA has been at the seminar as a Guest of Honor.
It is important to say that the current economic crisis, and also many other difficulties don’t deter “Alltech” from its main principle of sharing its knowledge with partners again and again. That fact continues to be demonstrated by the wide variety of seminars and conferences that it hosts in Russia and in other countries.

Russian Branch members to attend exhibitions: The Abroad Probations Centre with assistance of the Russian Agricultural Sciences Academy (RASHN), and the Russian WPSA Branch, along with help from the Agricultural Department of the French Embassy in Russia has organized a delegation that will visit the greatest 2010 year agricultural exhibition “AGRICULTURE-2010” in Paris on the 27 February - 2 March 2010. The importance of this event is underlined by the fact that 2010 year has been declared as the Year of France in Russia and the Year of Russia in France. An additional visit is being planned to Statsburg-Baden Baden on 2 - 5 March, and that visit will involve a seminar for personnel from the poultry and animal husbandry industries on waste processing. The Seminar will be carried out with the help of the European Poultry Breeding Association.
The above visit is not the first for specialists from Russia that has been organized by RASHN, “Rosptitsesojuz,” and the Russia WPSA Branch together with the Abroad Probations Centre. At the end of 2009 a Russian delegation consisting of the highest leaders, the known agricultural scientists and practical specialists visited the International Agricultural Exhibition “SPACE”. On the first day of that exhibition, a Russia-France work conference was carried out. At that collaboration conference, experts from the two countries discussed the experiences of their respective groups. That collaborative conference had been opened by Deputy Director H. Amerchanov from the Animal Husbandry and Selection Department of the Russian Agricultural Ministry. The RASHN vice- president, the “Rosptitsesojuz,’ and the Russian WPSA Branch President, V. Fisinin, made reports on the development strategy and innovations in agriculture. Great interest was also shown in the reports of several other Russian scientists including: the North-Caucasian Experimental Poultry Station Director, V. Kanivets; the All-Russian Scientific Research Institute in Poultry Processing (VNIIPP) Director, V. Gustchin; the VNIVIP Director, E. Djavadov; the VVGNIIZ Director V. Vinogradov; Deputy Director H. Amerchanov; Prof. N. Muchina from Saint-Petersburg, and others. The representative from the “Balt Eza” company, P. Sharpentie; the head of the National Professional Association’s “France Genetigue Elevage”, Zh-N. Bone; and the National Poultry Breeders Association’s vice-president Zh.-F. Amon told about the successes and achievements of French scientists and other practical specialists.

This year, our Russian specialists plan to visit VIV Europe in Utrecht, and the Hanover EuroTier exhibitions.

Spain

The Spanish Branch of WPSA will be holding the 47th Scientific Poultry Symposium on June 9-10, 2010, in Barcelona, within the Expoaviga Fair 2010 which runs from, June 8-10.
Although the programme is not yet finalized, it will include lectures in the following areas:

Salmonella I (pathogenesis, epidemiology, vaccinations)
Salmonella II (S. gallinarum, recent impact)
Mycoplasma (M. sinoviae)
Critical study on current disease outbreaks
E. coli problems (breeders, layers, chicken)

Josep Mª Aumedes, Secretary WPSA-AECA, E-mail: secretario@wpsa-aeca.es

Taiwan

Dr. B. Yu from the National Chung Hsing University have been elected as the new president of Taiwan Branch of WPSA, and Dr. C. F. Chen was appointed as the new chief secretary for the Taiwanese Branch. The Asian Pacific Poultry Congress (APPC) has been scheduled to convene in Taipei, Taiwan on March 21-23, 2011 Taipei. A website for the APPC 2011 will be posted next month.

Chen Shuen-Ei, PhD

Tanzania

A one day Annual General Meeting and conference and was hosted by the Tanzanian Branch on 30th September 2009 at Central Veterinary Laboratory, Dar-es Salaam. The Annual General Meeting, in addition to receiving and discussing reports of routine branch activities, conducted election of branch officers, and re-elected the following in their respective positions: President, Prof. U. M. Minga; Vice President, Dr. F. Akaro; Secretary, Prof A.P. Muhairwa; and Treasurer, Dr. H Mrema.

The theme of 2nd WPSA Tanzania Branch Conference was ‘Biosecurity and Poultry Development in Tanzania’. Over 30 delegates were invited including private entrepreneurs who are dealing with hatchery and feed industry. They learned about the risk poor biosecurity is posing on poultry development in Tanzania. The delegates discussed the challenges of disease in poultry production and practical solutions which need the collaboration of industry, state and research institution personnel.
Four experienced speakers drawn from both academia and research were on hand to deliver presentation topics. The conference was chaired by Prof U.M. Minga, president of WPSA Tanzania Branch. The speakers highlighted the biosecurity challenges and other possible challenges, including:

Poultry production systems and biosecurity in East Africa- U. M. Minga
Transmission and control of poultry diseases hatchery-bone & vertically transmitted diseases - A. Benigni
Retrospective study of poultry diseases occurring at Central Veterinary Laboratory Tanzania- H. Msami
Poultry improvement programme of USDA: what are lessons to Tanzania? A.P. Muhairwa

The conferees unanimously decided on the following course of action:

The WPSA Tanzania Branch should steer formation of affiliated associations such as that of poultry producers, which will form a platform for the dissemination of the role of biosecurity on productivity and development of poultry industry in Tanzania.
Mass education on biosecurity and poultry keeping is needed in Tanzania. The WPSA Tanzania Branch is to search and assess information that is relevant to poultry production in Tanzania.
More information regarding disease control, vaccination and biosecurity is needed by the industry. The WPSA branch should play a role as an advisor for both producers and the Government on recommended biosecurity measures.

U.M. Minga, President; and A.P. Muhairwa, Secretary, Tanzania Branch

Turkey

The 18th European Symposium on Poultry Nutrition is being organised by the Turkish Branch of WPSA and is scheduled for 31 October – 4 November, 2011 at the Altın Yunus Resort Hotel in Çeşme, İzmir, Turkey. Çeşme is a charming town on the Aegean coast of Turkey with healing mineral springs, beautiful sandy beaches, crystal clear waters and sun, perfect for vacationers. It has been famous for its architecture, vineyards, and windmills for over 150 years, and now, its name is associated with the popular sports of windsurfing and kitesurfing. Çeşme is located 94 km west of Izmir, on the very tip of the peninsula that bears its name.
This Symposium will present the most recent and relevant scientific information on poultry nutrition. Invited papers will be presented by leading scientists. Oral and poster presentations will also be displayed during the symposium. We expect that this symposium will be the meeting place for all involved in poultry nutrition, making a bridge between university and industry. We would welcome your participation in this important meeting. For additional information contact: Prof. Dr. Nizamettin Şenköylü at: nsenkoylu@yahoo.com
We look forward to welcoming you to Çeşme, Turkey in October 2011.

Prof. Dr. Servet Yalçın, Secretary of the WPSA Turkish Branch

USA

The branch will again co-sponsor the annual WPSA lecture with the Canadian branch, and will hold its annual meeting during the Joint meeting of the Poultry, Animal and Dairy Science Societies that will be held in Denver, Colorado on July 11-15, 2010.

WPSA sponsored and other poultry related symposia and conferences

A number of WPSA sponsored and other poultry meetings have been planned for 2009 and 2010 (see the WPSA Website Calendar for contact and registration information), including:

2010
16-17 March 2010	Annual Meeting of the German Branch, Düsseldorf, Germany Contact: Dr A. Förster
13-14 April 2010	WPSA UK Branch Spring Meeting, Belfast, Northern Ireland Contact: BSAS
20-22 April 2010	VIV Europe 2010, Utrecht, The Netherlands
28-29 April 2010	Annual Meeting of Italian Branch with the cooperation of the Italian branch of WVPA, Forli, Italy
12-13 May 2010	Distillers Grains Symposium, Indianapolis, Indiana, USA
25-27 May 2010	28th FACTA Conference on Poultry Science and Technology, Santos, Sao Paulo State, Brazil
27-29 May 2010	8th International Symposium on turkey Diseases, Berlin, Germany Contact: Prof Dr H.M. Hafez
9-10 June 2010	47th Scientific Poultry Symposium 2010 within Expoaviga Fair 2010, Barcelona, Spain Contact: Mr J.M. Aumedes Segura
20-24 June 2010	14th International Conference on Production Diseases in Farm Animals (ICPD), Ghent, Belgium Contact: Prof Dr G. Opsomer
11-15 July 2010	Joint meeting of the US Poultry Science, Dairy Science and Animal Science societies, Denver, Colorado, USA
1 August 2010	Positioning of Poultry Industry for Sustaining Tomorrow (Poultry Satellite Seminar in conjunction with Annual Veterinary Association Malaysia Congress 2010), Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia Contact: Dr K.L. Teo
23 August 2010	Incubation and Fertility Research Group WPSA Working Group 6 (Reproduction) meeting, Tours, France Contact: Victoria Hurst
23-27 August 2010	XIII European Poultry Conference, Tours, France Contact: scientific@epc2010.org
6-8 September 2010	XXII International Poultry Symposium, Olsztyn, Poland Contact: Prof. Jan Jankowski
6-8 September 2010	VIV China 2010, Beijing, P.R. China
15-16 September 2010	9th Seminario de Actualización Avícola de AMEVEA Colon City, Argentina Contact: Dr Dante Bueno
22-24 September 2010	XVIII Baltic Poultry Conference, Vilnius, Lithuania Contact: Dr R. Cepuliene
12-13 October 2010	New Zealand Poultry Conference, Christchurch, New Zealand Contact: Mr Alan Gibbins
21-23 October 2010	FIGAP/VIV América Latina 2010, Guadalajara, Mexico
26-28 October 2010	2010 National Poultry Waste Management Symposium 2010 Animal Waste Management Symposium, Greensboro, North Carolina, USA Contact: Edgar O. Oviedo
9-10 November 2010	1st National Symposium on Poultry Science, Batna, Algeria Contact: univbatna.asa@gmail.com
16-19 November 2010	EuroTier 2010, Hanover, Germany Contact: Dr Karl Schlösser

2011
21-23 March 2011	9th Asia Pacific Poultry Conference, Taipei, Taiwan
9-11 March 2011	VIV Asia 2011, Bangkok, Thailand
17-19 May, 2011	VIV Russia 2011, Moscow, Russia
9-11 June 2011	VIV Turkey 2011, Istanbul, Turkey
16-18 June, 2011	6th International Symposium on Turkey ProductionBerlin, Germany Contact: Prof Dr H.M. Hafez
September 2011	30th Poultry Science Symposium, Glasgow, Scotland
4-7 September 2011	XX European Symposium on the Quality of Poultry Meat and XIV European Symposium on the Quality of Eggs and Egg Products, Leipzig, Germany Contact: Michael Grashorn
6-9 September 2011	Latin-American Poultry Congress, Buenos Aires, Argentina
31 October - 4 November 2011	18th European Symposium on Poultry Nutrition, Cesme, Turkey Contact: kongre@saltur.com.tr

We hope that many of you will consider participating in one or more of these poultry educational meetings. See the WPSA website Calendar for further details and registration information.

Volume 11, March 2010	Newsletter Editor: Dr G.B. Havenstein gerald_havenstein@ncsu.edu