Good research should tell a story. At the Institute for Feed Education and Research, we have a new story to tell. Our newly released Animal Feed Consumption and COVID-19 Impact Analysis tells the story of a vibrant animal food manufacturing industry that allows domestic livestock and pets to consume nearly 284 million tons of safe, high quality and nutritious food annually. It also tells a story of the dedication of over 944,000 people who make the industry tick.
On July 1, the Trade Promotion Authority (TPA) granted by Congress, giving the president authority to “fast-track” trade negotiations, is set to expire. TPA has been utilized during presidential administrations since 1974 and has only been authorized four times. Congress sets trade negotiating objectives and the president can use those objectives to negotiate trade deals. In addition, Congress cannot offer amendments to the negotiated deals and can only vote them up or down.
I started my career in 1984 after graduating college by going to work for Southern States Cooperative. Following a short stint in the retail division and as a store manager, I made the move to the feed division as a plant superintendent in a Southern States feed mill. Part of my “feed education” included attending the Kansas State University two-week short course on feed manufacturing in 1988. That’s when I was formally introduced to the larger feed industry.
There are so many aspects to consider when it comes to a company’s product safety strategy, equipment safety labeling and workplace signage. Without a doubt, designing effective safety labels and signs that address specific company or equipment needs can be a complex task. For example, once you create a system of safety labels for a piece of machinery, they need to periodically be reevaluated considering changes to the standards, new symbols and latest available safety and accident information related to equipment and the feed and grain industries.
Ever since I was a child, I have loved science. I loved learning about how things grew, how chemicals worked together, you name it -- if it was at all science, I was interested. As I grew older, I saw how science can help solve problems, big and small. How with science, we can create apples that do not brown (and therefore my kids will eat them) or treat diseases with antibiotics and now, develop a vaccine that can help us all go “back to normal.”
Recently, we read an article about an organization in the United Kingdom that launched a program, “Organuary,” to promote consumer awareness and the human consumption of organ meats, citing their nutritional and environmental benefits. It’s an interesting concept.
The International Production & Processing Expo (IPPE) Marketplace Week may be over, but the learning opportunities are far from done! IPPE’s TECHTalks, which are short educational presentations that discuss what the latest and greatest is out of the poultry, egg, meat and feed industries, are still available to watch on the IPPE Marketplace until Sunday, Feb. 28.
“Buckle up, it may be a wild ride,” said Gary Huddleston, the American Feed Industry Association’s director of feed manufacturing and regulatory affairs, at the 2021 Feed Education Program.
The United Nations is known for holding large meetings and frequently, we don’t feel the impact of what they do – but its latest Food Systems Summit is not one of those times.
One of my favorite things about attending the International Production & Processing Expo (IPPE) is slowly walking the halls to see what exhibitors are showing. I am in awe at all the new technologies and the creativity behind creating them. Well, even though we can’t walk through the halls this year, we can still browse through really cool and innovative products and technologies through short company videos in the Innovation Station/New Product Showcase.