USSEC recently took part in the XIXth International Conference of the Russian Branch of the World Poultry Science Association (WPSA), "World and Russian Poultry Development Trends: Realities and Challenges of the Future." The event was hosted by the Russian Poultry Research Institute (VNITIP) in the community of Sergiev Posad, Moscovskaya oblast, northwest of Moscow, from May 15 to 17. WPSA is a unique organization whose main activity is the dissemination of knowledge in all areas of poultry. Its conference in Russia is organized every three years, attracting both local and foreign visitors.
About 400 delegates from 23 countries attended the conference in Sergiev Posad. Representatives hailed from Russia, Belarus, the Netherlands, Germany, Scotland, Bulgaria, the United States, Spain, Poland, Ukraine, Tajikistan, Armenia, Lithuania, Hungary, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Czech Republic, Belgium, Slovakia, Iran, Turkmenistan, Slovenia, and Serbia. Attendees were predominantly representatives of the poultry and feed industry, poultry nutritionists and scientists, feed additives suppliers, veterinaries, post-grade students, and local agribusiness managers.
Vladimir Fisinin, the President of the Russian branch of the WPSA, the President of Russian Poultry Union, the academician of the Russian Academy of Sciences and one of the world’s best known Russian poultry experts, opened the conference with his presentation, "Strategic Trends in the Development of World and Domestic Poultry: Status, Challenges, Prospects." Despite official statistics stating a certain saturation of the Russian poultry market, Mr. Fisinin emphasized the high demand of Russian customers for poultry products and demonstrated perspectives of further development of the Russian poultry industry via growth of local consumption, export opportunities, and development of technologies of deep processing of poultry meat and eggs. It means that the Russian demand in high protein feeds and in soybean meal will continue to grow.
Thijs Hendrix, President of ISA Hendrix Genetics, attracted attention to two key basic concepts of modernity, efficiency and biosecurity, in his presentation, “Selection of Animals: What’s New in the World?” In his speech he said, “Europe and Russia are two lungs with one body.”
At the special invitation of the organizing committee, USSEC consultant Dr. Gonzalo Mateos from Universidad Politecnica de Madrid, gave the keynote presentation, “Macro Mineral Nutrition of Poultry: Phosphorus, Calcium, Electrolytes, and Enzymes” at the conference’s plenary session. Macro mineral feeding of poultry is an area of growing interest today. Lively discussions began immediately after the end of Dr. Mateos’ presentation.
The poultry industry is one of the most rapid developing sectors of the Russian agro-industrial complex. Russia's poultry production has been rising significantly for the past few years. Today Russia occupies the fourth position in global poultry meat production and ranks fifth in egg production.
USSEC’s presence at the International Poultry Conference allowed networking and opportunities to meet with a number of local feed and livestock companies, providing a better understanding of the current Russian livestock production reality and the challenges or opportunities that exist for U.S. Soy.