Ross Africa and Pas Reform team up for hatchery management school

22 July 2019

Ross Africa and Pas Reform team up for hatchery management school

Originally published on The Poultry Site, by Aviagen, June 23, 2019

Recently Ross® 308 customers from throughout Sub-Saharan Africa came together in Lusaka, Zambia, for the Ross Africa and Pas Reform Hatchery Management School. Ross Africa is the distributor of Ross® Parent Stock for Sub-Saharan Africa. The School’s purpose was to explore the most effective techniques for getting the best incubation and hatchery results.

Organized jointly by Ross Africa and hatchery solution provider Pas Reform with support and expertise from Aviagen®, the training successfully blended classroom presentations with practical, hands-on learning at the new Ross Africa Chainda Hatchery in Lusaka. Classroom theory underscored how to achieve quality from the breeder farm to the hatchery, and to best meet the needs of the developing embryo during incubation. The practice at the hatchery allowed students to identify common challenges and work together to find solutions for optimal hatchery performance. Some topics included:

  • Egg quality, embryology and fertility
  • Measuring egg shell temperature
  • Setter and hatcher
  • Ideal moment of pulling and climate graphs
  • Chick quality and Pasgar scoring
  • Hatch residue analysis

One course highlight was a case study where students were presented with a realistic hatchery issue and were able to collaborate in a group setting to present an analysis and solution.

All sessions were led by top Ross, Pas Reform and industry experts in hatchery and incubation management.

“Customers are getting excellent performance from the Ross 308 breeder across the Turkey, Middle East and Africa region, and their dedication is boosting the popularity of Ross birds. The training in Zambia was intended to further promote their success by sharing the latest advice on hatchery topics to achieve the highest chick quality and performance,” explained Robert Haggarty, Ross TMEA senior technical manager. “Another goal was to give our customers an opportunity to learn from one another while exchanging knowledge and experiences. We also had the chance to listen to their feedback on how we can offer them the highest level of service. I look forward to future opportunities to meeting with our valued customers, as together we explore innovative techniques for improving the health, welfare and performance of Ross 308 chicks.”

Colin Lindsay, general manager, Ross Breeders Zambia Ltd., expressed his appreciation for the effort of all teams involved. “We’d like to thank the Ross MEA team and Pas Reform for their hard work and knowledge that helped make our Hatchery Management School a success. We look forward to future Schools and other forums that enable our customers to collaborate on getting optimum performance, health and welfare from their Ross 308 broilers and breeders.”

“This is the 3rd and, thus far, most successful Hatchery Managers School in which we have collaborated with Ross Africa and Aviagen”, says Adriaen Sligcher. “The popularity of the course is clear to see with 40 participants coming from 12 different countries across Africa and representing 30 different companies. The diversity of the students and the structure of the course afforded fantastic opportunities for all the participants to discuss ideas and explore techniques to improve their hatchery management practice. We would like to thank Ross Africa and Aviagen for the continued collaboration and look forward to the next Hatchery Managers School in 2021.”

Ross Africa and Pas Reform team up for hatchery management school

Ross Africa and Pas Reform team up for hatchery management school

Ross Africa and Pas Reform team up for hatchery management school

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