Pas Reform Academy and PTC+ provided a unique, tailor-made training program, translating the latest concepts of incubation and hatchery management for hatchery professionals.

The format proved highly effective. According to participants, the combination of theory and practice was exemplary, with teachings being trialed immediately in a series of practical exercises, and reviewed within the course framework so that participants could immediately see the results of their new-found knowledge.

Practical sessions allowed participants to try out every aspect of their training program on a small scale in the PTC+ School training rooms and Pas Reform’s brand new Inspiration Center, with ‘life-size’ sessions then held at the Probroed hatchery in Lievelde, the Netherlands, where approximately 3,7 million chicks are hatched per week.

The course introduced the latest findings in all areas of hatching in great detail, from collecting eggs for incubation, through embryo development, egg disinfection and storage, to state-of-the-art incubation techniques.

To facilitate the practical sessions, Lohmann Brown and LSL eggs were set three weeks prior to the training program. This allowed for detailed work in the areas of hatching egg management, egg quality, embryology, egg break out analysis and the quality scoring of day old chicks.

Thanks to the inspiration of Dr. Marleen Boerjan, Pas Reform Academy's embryologist, the hatchery managers were able to see the embryos at every stage of their development, following the embryos' development every day, and seeing at first-hand how mistakes in transportation, storage and incubation can influence the development and quality of the hatched chicks.

One participant commented: ‘This kind of training is truly helpful for my work back home. It perfectly illustrates why I have to do certain things, and when. I think we have all come away with a much greater appreciation of the importance of creating ideal conditions: it is possible and it produces outstanding results in terms of quality and uniformity.

"This superb work by PTC+ and Pas Reform has provided me with a starting point. Now it's up to me to out it into practice!”

Gerd de Lange, Pas Reform Academy’s Senior Poultry Specialist and one of the organizers of the hatchery management training program says: "At Pas Reform, we recognize that hatchery success can never be fully dependent on technology. Today’s commercial poultry industry is fast-moving and dynamic, driven by rapid progress in poultry genetics. Training through the Pas Reform Academy means that hatchery managers have access to the most up-to-the-minute thinking, delivered in a practical, working environment for the benefit of their own hatchery operations’.