It has been 37 years since WATT Poultry established the Latin American Hall of Fame award to recognize those who have dedicated their lives to the advancement of the poultry industry in Latin America. Every two years, a maximum of five new members are selected to the Latin American Poultry Hall of Fame based on their outstanding contribution to the development of the poultry industry in their countries and the region. Those selected are honored during a ceremony at OVUM (the Latin American Poultry Congress).
Ever since 2010, I have been in charge of launching the call for nominees, establishing the panel of judges, organizing the vote, letting the award winners know, ordering the trophies and presenting them at the OVUM.
It has been a rewarding experience. When setting up the panel of judges that have enough experience in poultry in Latin America to be able to evaluate the nominees and vote, I try to choose people from different countries and different poultry areas (production, feed manufacturing, incubation, research or breeding, for instance), as well as both men and women.
Over the years, I have had the honor of presenting 14 inductees from Argentina, Brazil, Cuba, Ecuador, Guatemala, Mexico, Paraguay and Uruguay. Last time at the OVUM in Honduras, it was exciting to present the award to two women, from Guatemala and Paraguay, with long standing careers in the poultry industry as heads and high-ranking executives of companies. We have had only three women in total, so we expect to have more and more.
The Latin American Poultry Hall of Fame is actually done in collaboration with the Latin American Poultry Association (ALA). If anyone is interested in submitting a nominee, please take a look at the call for nominees (presented only in Spanish). Deadline is August 29, 2024, and the awards will be given at the OVUM (the 28th Latin American Poultry Congress) in Punta del Este, Uruguay, November 12-15, 2024.
Please, feel free to send your nominees!
What do you think?
