The team members watch a demonstration about embryology and chick quality.
USSEC organized a China Poultry Study Team to do hands-on training at the Prestage Department of Poultry Science at North Carolina State University from September 1- 8.  The 24 team members are technical directors and general managers selected from China poultry farms and integration feed mills.
USSEC Animal Utilization (AU) Technical Director Dr. Richard Han and AU Program Manager Sunny Zhang of USSEC’s China office escorted the team.
Team members were provided with hands-on demonstrations about embryology and chick quality at the university lab and cross-breeding different varieties soybeans at NC State’s soybean research farm.  Additionally, professors provided an overview of the U.S. poultry industry; incubation on parameters and embryo nutrition; the impact of incubation on nutrition; performance and health; an overview of layer production in the U.S.; layer nutrition; broiler production issues; broiler breeder nutrition and feeding; the influence of feed manufacturing on poultry performance; feed ingredient particle size on broiler performance and digestibility; and enhancing meat yield by nutrition.  The group visited the university’s research feed mill, commercial feed mill and turkey processing plant.

China’s feed production is increasing about 10 percent every year.  The demand for soybeans continues to rise even though China is already the largest soybean importer because the demand for chicken meat and eggs is still growing for Chinese consumers.  The inclusion rate for soybean meal in poultry’s average diet is more than 20 percent.
Most of the team members expressed that the hands-on training course is very helpful for their future poultry production.  They look forward to applying the knowledge they learned to the real production at their farms and feed mills in China.