ATLANTA - The 2012 International Poultry Expo and International Feed Expo drew over 20,500 poultry and feed industry leaders from all over the world. In addition, the show had 895 exhibitors as compared to 900 last year. Sponsored by U.S. Poultry & Egg Association and the American Feed Industry Association, the annual Expo is the world's largest poultry and feed industry event of its kind.
"We very pleased with the number of exhibitors and attendees on the exhibit floor for IPE/IFE Week," said 2012 USPOULTRY chairman Mark Waller, Ingram Farms, Cullman, AL. "We have had a great turn-out this year, and the energy and excitement on the floor has been evident."
The central attraction was the large exhibit floor. Exhibitors presented the latest innovations in equipment, supplies, and services utilized by industry firms in the production and processing of poultry, eggs, and feed products. Many companies use the annual event to highlight their new products. All phases of the poultry and feed industry were represented, from live production and processing to further processing and packaging.
A variety of education sessions complemented the exhibits by keeping industry management informed on current issues. This year's educational line-up featured five new programs. The Executive Conference on the Future of the American Poultry and Egg Industry drew an extremely large crowd and featured presentations from Jeff Simmons, president of Elanco Animal Health; Jim Paulsen, Chief Investment Strategist for Wells Capital Management; and Dr. Elisabeth Hagen, Under Secretary for Food Safety, FSIS.
Also new, the Pre-Harvest Food Safety Conference was very well attended. The conference reviewed the known and unknown issues associated with the control of food-borne pathogens in pre-harvest operations. Dr. Elisabeth Hagen, Under Secretary for Food Safety, helped provide the opening comments for the conference.
The Hatchery-Breeder Clinic provided information on incubation needs for modern breeds and a disease update for breeders, along with a variety of other time-sensitive topics. Another popular program, the Animal Agriculture Sustainability Summit reviewed the challenges and solutions of animal agriculture stewardship. A distinguished panel participated in a discussion on sustainability implications for the poultry industry, including Jim Perdue, Chairman of Perdue Farms, and Mike Helgeson, CEO of GNP Company.
The College Student Career Program attracted 325 students from 25 universities throughout the United States. The graduating students interview for jobs and internships with 23 industry and allied firms. They were also able to visit the exhibit floor to see the most current technology used in today's poultry industry.
New product and service launches, exhibitor-sponsored programs, organization meetings, the International Poultry Scientific Forum, Featherfest® activities, publisher-sponsored programs, the Pet Food Conference, educational sessions on a variety of industry-specific topics, and oncea-year networking opportunities made the 2012 International Poultry Expo and International Feed Expo an exciting place to be.