Techno revolution which will shape poultry industry future

The industry must be ready to adapt to this change, to continue improving domestic business performance and to maintain its standing on the world stage.

However, it is evident that the industry still needs to determine how it might set out its priorities for a future dominated by increased availability of data and information, and how it should shape the skills of its leaders, managers and other employees to contribute fully to the technological revolution.

The 25th Temperton Report, which I authored and presented to an industry audience in London last week, addressed these issues and looked at a range of new and emerging technologies.

These included a variety of new sensors, methods to improve the management of housing environments and ways to monitor and manage animal welfare. More challenging, perhaps, is the development in the USA of meat produced from animal cells, with the announcement in March of the first chicken products. While the public’s view of these products is not yet known, it is imperative that poultry producers can compete with new forms of meat by using technology to make ‘traditional’ production more efficient and acceptable to consumers.

The previous Temperton Reports have told us about industry priorities and preoccupations over the past 25 years. By reviewing those reports and conducting a series of interviews with industry and academic representatives, I was able to provide further insights on how technology might impact upon the industry and how poultry business leaders need to ensure that they can adapt.

The report also pointed to the likelihood of an increasing industry labour shortage, at least in the next five to eight years, driven by domestic demographic changes and increased competition for labour from countries such as Canada and New Zealand. When coupled with other issues facing poultry production, this should be a cause for concern, and action to recruit future industry leaders.

Chief among the recommendations within the report was the need to also secure the next generation of poultry scientists who can guide the industry through a period of considerable change in areas such as poultry business management, food product development/food safety and poultry technologies.

These experts would supplement existing national academic resources and enable the fostering of cross-disciplinary, systems-based, education and research. We will be aiming for further discussions with industry to see what can be achieved by closer collaboration on these topics.

Visit http://harper.ac.uk/temperton17 for more information.

David Llewellyn is Vice Chancellor of Harper Adams University