U.S. Poultry and Egg Association (USPOULTRY) and its foundation have announced two new board research initiatives focused on enhancing Salmonella control and requests researchers submit pre-proposals by November 7, 2014. The first initiative was developed with technical input from NCC’s Technical and Regulatory Committee and is entitled “Investigating the Pathways for Introduction, Dissemination, and Detectability of Salmonella during Second Processing.”  The second initiative is entitled “Reduction of Salmonella Contamination of Commercial Eggs.”  The knowledge gained in this second initiative will be applicable to broiler breeders as well.  For more information on how to submit a proposal, visit www.uspoultry.org and click on “research” for complete instructions and deadlines.

The USPOULTRY board research initiative was created by the boards of USPOULTRY and its foundation to address current issues facing the poultry industry. The initiative operates alongside the traditional USPOULTRY research program and augments the great success of the existing program by focusing additional resources toward defined areas of research.  Each board research initiative is eligible for $125,000 in funding.

The first two initiatives, established last year were “Exploration of Systemic Salmonella Infection in Chickens and Turkeys and Determination of the Relationship with Salmonella in Finished Ground Product” and “Investigation of the Influence of Transportation Conditions on Broilers and Turkeys.”  Work on these initiative is underway at Auburn University and the University of Arkansas, respectively.

Since the inception of the research program, USPOULTRY has reinvested more than $25 million dollars into the industry in the form of research grants.  The International Poultry Expo has historically provided all the funding for the research program.  However, now, earnings from the USPOULTRY foundation capital campaign are supplementing the available research funding.  More than 50 universities and federal and state facilities have received grants over the years.