2004 National 4-H Poultry & Egg Conference

The 2004 National 4-H Poultry and Egg Conference was held on November 17-18 at the Kentucky Fair and Exposition Center in Louisville, KY. The annual conference allowed 4-H'ers from all over the country to compete in educational events that help them learn to make and defend decisions, speak publicly, and gain skills in poultry-related subject matter.

The 2004 conference included five separate events. In the poultry and egg judging contest, 4-H'ers judged ready-to-cook poultry, live production hens, and market eggs. In the chicken and turkey barbecuing contests, the 4-H'ers prepared barbecued chicken or turkey and gave oral presentations on the broiler or turkey industries. The egg preparation demonstrations involved preparing an egg dish and giving an oral presentation on the nutritional value of eggs. In addition to these events, an avian bowl was conducted. The avian bowl is a round robin tournament in which the contestants are required to answer questions regarding poultry science, poultry production, meat duck, gamebird, and waterfowl production, and information about the poultry industries.

A Poultry Careers Workshop was also held during the Conference. 4-Hers were exposed to hands-on information from poultry food industry personnel and the participants were given pertinent information about the career and educational opportunities in the poultry food sciences and industries. The Conference Committee greatly appreciates the time, dedication, and efforts of the industry representatives. The Workshop was sponsored by Maple Leaf Farms, The State Executive Poultry Association, the Southeastern Game Breeders and Hunting Preserve Association, and the North American Gamebird Association.

The 147 senior 4-H'ers, representing 26 states, participated as teams or individuals. Team competition was held in the poultry and egg judging contest and the avian bowl. Individuals competed in the egg preparation and the turkey and chicken barbecuing contests. Sixteen teams judged poultry and eggs, and fourteen teams competed in the avian bowl. Fourteen individuals participated in the turkey barbecuing contest, thirteen in chicken barbecue, and sixteen in the egg preparation demonstration. Mr. Larry Brown of the U. S. Poultry & Egg Association attended the Conference and participated at the awards banquet. Along with the 4-H'ers, about 320 people, including county extension agents, 4-H leaders, chaperons, coaches, and poultry specialists, helped make the conference a success.

The conference was funded through contributions of goods, finances, and services from many individuals, companies, and commodity organizations. A total of 43 organizations provided financial support for awards. The U.S. Poultry & Egg Association sponsored the awards banquet and provided funding for awards for the judging contest. The chicken barbecue awards were sponsored by Tyson Foods. The turkey barbecuing contest awards were sponsored by the Minnesota Turkey Council, Goldsboro Milling Co., Pilgrim's Pride, the Texas Turkey Federation, and the Wisconsin Turkey Federation. Awards for the egg cookery demonstrations were sponsored by funding from the American Egg Board, Georgia Egg Commission, Louisiana Egg Commission, Missouri Egg Council, North Carolina Egg Association, Texas Egg Council, and the Pacific Egg and Poultry Association, and the United Egg Board. Contributions from Hy-Line International Co., Cryovac-Sealed Air Corp., California Poultry Industry Federation, and Southern States Cooperative sponsored the awards for the avian bowl. Additional thanks are extended to The Poultry Association (AR, MO, & OK), USA Branch of WPSA, the Indiana State Poultry Assoc., Virginia Poultry Federation, the PENNAG Poultry Council, the Texas Poultry Federation, the Ohio Poultry Federation, Tennessee Poultry Federation, South Carolina Poultry Federation, Kentucky Poultry Federation, American Poultry Historical Society, Wisconsin Poultry Improvement Assoc., Dr. Francine Bradley, and the Midwest Poultry Federation for their donations this year to the National Conference. It is difficult to mention all the sponsors in this format, however, special appreciation goes out to all of the supporting organizations and individuals. The National 4-H Poultry and Egg Conference could not exist without their contributions.

The Minnesota team won the avian bowl contest. Each team member won a plaque, gold pin, and a $200 savings bond. The winning team members were Aaron Dittbenner, Andrew Krieg, Joe Piehl, and Savanna Schwartz. Other top ranking teams were, Wisconsin (2nd), California (3rd), Georgia (4th), New York (5th), Kentucky (6th), Alabama (7th), Pennsylvania (8th), Indiana (9th), and Louisiana (10th).

In the cooking contests, Tyler Templeton from Tennessee took first place in the chicken barbecue demonstration. Suzanne Smith from Arkansas took first place in the turkey barbecue competition. Charlie Ann Earl from Louisiana won the egg preparation demonstration contest. Each contestant won a plaque, $500 savings bond, and gold pin.

In poultry judging, the individual winning the Production Hen division was Ben Lyons from Indiana and the Louisiana team won the team competition for that division. In the Market Poultry division, Kyle Avey from Arkansas, and the Arkansas team won the team competition. The individual winning the Market Egg division was Dustin Snyder from Indiana, and the team competition for Market Eggs was won by Louisiana. Each contestant was awarded a trophy and gold pin.

The overall individual champion in the poultry and egg judging contest, winning a plaque, gold pin, and $500 savings bond, was Kyle Avey from Arkansas. Louisiana was the overall team champion in poultry and egg judging. The Louisiana team consisted of Katie Authement, Sandi Cortez, Jenna Martin, and Angelle Martin. Each team member won a trophy and gold pin. Other top ranking teams were Arkansas, 2nd; Georgia, 3rd; Ohio, 4th; Indiana, 5th; Tennessee, 6th; Virginia, 7th; Maryland, 8th; Mississippi, 9th; and Kansas, 10th.

Dr. Gary S. Davis, Extension Poultry Specialist, Box, 7608, NCSU, Raleigh, NC 27695-7608; (919) 515-5403, Email: Gary_Davis@ncsu.edu