‘Poultry industry should support academia’
Alliances between research organisations and industry will have immense benefits for poultry innovation, according to Nottingham Trent University’s Dr Dawn Scholey.
Dr Dawn Scholey says industry support of academia, such as support of PhD students and supervisors, is critical for the industry’s future. “There’s a real shortage of emerging scientists in poultry nutrition so it is incredibly important that we firstly encourage young minds into the industry, and that we then retain them,” she says.
World Poultry Science Association (WPSA) meeting
Her comments come as research conducted by PhD students, and supported by AB Vista, is due to be presented at the upcoming World Poultry Science Association (WPSA) meeting on April 14. The Harper Adams University students will speak about the interaction of exogenous phytase and xylanase on nutrient availability for broilers, during the short orals session in Chester, UK. “It is wonderful that AB Vista is encouraging students to enter the poultry research industry, because it is helping to ensure its future,” Dr Scholey says.
“Universities gain such a lot from having a commercial viewpoint on the research they’re doing. We may do the fundamentals but we’re steered by what the industry is interested in, because everything moves very quickly in poultry science. So there’s a very strong link in what tends to guide our research and what the industry’s interests are.”
Shaping the future of the poultry industry
AB Vista Research Director Mike Bedford says: “We recognise the importance of universities in shaping the future of the industry, in terms of new research initiatives and the fostering and development of young talent. We’re proud to partner with a number of organisations to support, encourage and maximise the development of new research, applications and products.”
Enzymes for research purposes
AB Vista supports between 20 and 30 PhD students around the world by contributing to their university fees, lab consumables and costs associated with housing and feeding trial birds. The company also works closely with its university partners (a total of 44 organisations globally), by offering input and advice from its technical experts, who comment on student papers. It also provides enzymes for research purposes. AB Vista’s university links are part of a larger network of collaboration, which comprises almost 80 research sites, laboratories, manufacturers and distributors
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