Evonik Award for Achievement in Poultry Science

The Evonik Corporation award is an annual award given as an achievement award, i.e., for distinctive contributions to poultry science advancement, covering a period of not more than seven years preceding the annual award.

Kenneth E. Anderson, Professor and Extension Specialist, Prestage Department of Poultry Science, North Carolina State University has been on faculty since 1990. Ken Anderson was raised on a poultry layer farm near Morris, IL. He attended Southern Illinois University- Carbondale and worked at the SIU-C Poultry Research Unit throughout his undergraduate years. He graduated with his BS in Animal and Agricultural Industries in December 1979. Following graduation he accepted the position of General Manager of State Line Egg Producers Cooperative, Inc., Beatrice, NE a Poultry Cooperative headquartered in Kansas from 1980 to 1983. He then accepted the position of Superintendent at the T.B. Avery Poultry Research Unit and Instructor in the Department of Animal Science at Kansas State University. He completed his master’s in 1987 and Doctoral degree in 1990 in Poultry Management under the supervision of Dr. Albert Adams. While at Kansas State University, he had the privilege and opportunity to work with Dr. James V. Craig on a number of animal behavior research projects and co-authored several papers with Dr. Craig.

Part of Dr. Anderson’s responsibilities include Extension programs in laying hen husbandry, research serving as the Director of the North Carolina Layer Performance and Management Test, and teaching 2 classes in Live Poultry and Poultry Product Evaluation, Grading, and Inspection and Commercial Egg Production. He has guided the development of NCLP&MT research programs at the Piedmont Research Station to include free range, cage-free, enriched colony cage, enrichable colony cage and conventional cage production and maintained the test as one of only three in the world and the only one of its size and scope. Dr. Anderson’s research has focused on the influence of management on commercial layer strains in a wide range of production systems. He has also worked on the development of layer behavior profiles in cages when subjected to differing molt programs and investigated shell egg processing methods. He continues to assess production densities that now include various cage systems, floor, and range paddocks. During the past 28 years, Dr. Anderson has authored or co-authored over 115 peer reviewed journal publications, 181 abstracts, 83 Extension articles and NC Layer Management Test Reports, and several other miscellaneous publications. He has also co-authored 9 book chapters and has been invited nationally and internationally to approximately 181 conference presentations with proceedings, and over 125 extension-type presentations at industry meetings.

Dr. Anderson received in 2019 the he received the NCACES Outstanding Subject Matter Program Team Award: Egg Industry training program on “Ventilation Shutdown Plus (VSD+) Training” and the USPOULTRY: Dr. Charles Beard Research Excellence Award, In recognition of outstanding Research for the Poultry Industry. In 2018, the CAST Educational Materials Award, Certificate of Excellence for all of the authors efforts in creation of “Impact of Free-range Poultry Production Systems on Animal Health, Human Health, Productivity, Environment, Food Safety, and Animal Welfare Issues” . In 2017 the NC Egg Assn. recognized him as “A Good Egg”. Dr Anderson was awarded the Poultry Science Poultry Welfare Research Award (2012) and Association Phibro Extension Award (2003) for his professional accomplishments. He has been elected to Sigma Xi, The Scientific Research Society, Phi Tau Sigma, The Honor Society for Food Science, and Epsilon Sigma Phi, National Honorary Extension Fraternity. Dr. Anderson has served NC State University as an IACUC member for 20 years and chaired the committee for four years. In addition, he has served on the Animal Care Committee of the Poultry Science Association and as a representative on the AAALAC Board of Trustees and now House of Delegates for 18 years. Currently, Dr. Anderson is currently serving on the AAALAC Board of Directors as Secretary. He is a founding association representative for PSA on the Board of the Professional Animal Auditor Certification Organization, Inc., (PAACO) where he serves as Secretary of the BOD. Dr. Anderson has also served on the boards of the National Egg Products School and National Egg Quality School. He is also a member of the Animal Welfare Scientific Advisory Committee for Humane Farm Animal Care.