The inaugural Latin American Poultry Summit drew a large crowd with nearly 300 industry leaders from 17 Latin American countries in attendance. The Latin American Poultry Summit, held in conjunction with the 2019 International Production & Processing Expo (IPPE), was sponsored by the International Poultry Expo – part of the IPPE, WATT Global Media and the Asociación Latinoamericana de Avicultura (ALA).
“We are really pleased with the attendance for our first Latin American Poultry Summit, and the feedback from attendees has been extremely positive. We look forward to building on the success of this initial event to provide the best experience for next year’s Latin American Poultry Summit,” said John Starkey, president of USPOULTRY. “It provided us with an excellent opportunity to interact with our Latin American counterparts, such as Apolonio Suarez, president, ALA, and Dr. Juana Galvan, executive director, ALA. This interaction is one we believe will be mutually beneficial.”
On the opening day of the Summit, keynote speaker Andrick Payen Diaz de la Vega, Rabobank, addressed world poultry market trends. Dr. Paul Aho, Poultry Perspective, the keynote speaker for the second day, discussed the world grain situation. The Summit education program sessions, translated to Spanish and Portuguese, covered a variety of broiler and layer topics, including Trends in Poultry Welfare; Gut Microbiome Management in Broilers and Layers; Vaccine and Health Improvements for Common Poultry Diseases; Biosecurity for Latin America: How to Coexist with Non-Commercial Neighbors; Use of Antimicrobials for Pathogen Control; Managing Necrotic Enteritis without Antibiotics; Experiences in Alternative Egg Production Systems; Decision Making in Poultry Marketing with Data; The Use of Robotics in Poultry Production; and more.
As part of the Summit’s networking events, the USPOULTRY Foundation sponsored 21 students and their advisors from 11 Latin American universities, who were recognized during the Summit lunch. The students attended the 2019 IPPE as part of the International Student Program, which enabled the students to discuss job opportunities with companies that have Latin American operations.
Three Latin American industry professionals were also inducted into the Latin American Poultry Hall of Fame, sponsored by WATT Global Media and Industria Avícola magazine. They were recognized during the Summit dinner and included Hebert Trenchi, Uruguay; Hector Cervantes, EUA/México; and Pedro Villegas, Colombia.
The dates for the 2020 Latin American Poultry Summit, to be held in conjunction with the International Productions & Processing Expo, will be announced soon.
