Looking back: Top articles on The Poultry Site in 2018

The Poultry Site's top articles from 2018
calendar icon 28 December 2018
clock icon 4 minute read

Why does woody breast still have the industry stumped?

Woody breast has been a stumbling block industry-wide for the past ten years, but researchers have been getting closer to the root of the problem.

Trending now: Top trends to watch for poultry innovation in 2018

Major trends such as reduced antimicrobial use, the rise of branded retailer programs, enhanced sustainable production standards and a raft of welfare-friendly innovations continue to take hold.

Robots: The new frontier in poultry production

While uptake is slow, robotics promises to improve poultry production efficiencies and ultimately boost food security.

Here’s what the egg farm of the future looks like

By placing hen welfare and the planet first, can you come up with a better business model for egg production? The innovators at Dutch farm Kipster think so.

Flocking to digital: The future of poultry technologies

Aidan Connolly, chief innovation officer at Alltech, has his finger on the latest developments in new technology which could reshape the poultry industry in the coming years.

Is your biosecurity as good as you think it is?

Chances are that the biosecurity compliance level on your farm, or the farms in your area, is not up to scratch, no matter where you are located on the planet.

Herbs and spices: a sustainable alternative to antibiotics?

The ban of antibiotic use in most European countries, the threat of emerging pathogens and an ever-increasing demand for poultry products all put pressure on the need for sustainable therapeutic aids in poultry production. Herbs and spices, in their various forms, offer multiple benefits for poultry health and production.

How to make backyard farming bullet-proof

More than 90 percent of the chicks produced in backyard farming systems are lost. Jan Grobbelaar, training director at Dumela Poultry Solutions in South Africa, offers tips to reduce the MIA count.

Sustainability: The challenge of ranking hen housing systems

To date, decisions to move to cage-free egg production have been largely consumer and activist driven, especially in Europe. But in order to make a well-informed, science-based decision all possible parameters should be assessed, including hen welfare, environmental impact, egg quality and safety, worker health and safety and economics. How then do we choose the best production system, especially when animal welfare under each system both aligns and conflicts with sustainability goals?

Could genetics counteract feather pecking?

Why a ban on beak trimming won’t stop the ‘super peckers’ going for feathers.

Is precision poultry production possible?

While detailed behaviour tracking in larger livestock has proved a valuable tool for improving efficiency, a poultry flock’s greater population and erratic habits have made chickens much harder to pin down. Until now. Meet the Swiss researchers whose innovative approach to movement technology is allowing data-led farming to zoom in on the individual bird.

Egg Farming at the North Pole

How Canadian egg farmers and innovators plan to bring fresh eggs to the furthest reaches of Canada.

Why German consumers are willing to pay more for poultry from male birds

Organic farmers and a standards label in Germany are backing an experiment that might transform the egg industry, both commercially and in raising animal-welfare prospects. Instead of macerating male chicks they’re rearing them for meat.

Advanced genetics and genomics tackle constraints on smallholder poultry production

New innovation and technologies will result in vaccines becoming even more efficient and playing a greater role in disease prevention.

The Sustainable Development Goals: Can livestock deliver?

As the world faces ever more pressing social and environmental challenges, livestock production has come under the spotlight.

Ryan Johnson

Editor at The Poultry Site

Ryan worked in conservation from 2008 to 2017, during which time he operated a rainbow trout hatchery and helped to maintain public and protected green spaces in Canada for the Toronto and Region Conservation Authority. As editor of The Poultry Site, he now writes about challenges and opportunities in agriculture across the globe.

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