UA System Division of Agriculture breaks ground for poultry health lab in Fayetteville

University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture officials led the groundbreaking Thursday (April 19) for a poultry health laboratory in Fayetteville.

The 4,200-square foot facility will conduct research focused on antibiotic alternatives for poultry. It will be built on the UA System Division of Agriculture farm north of the Fayetteville campus just off Arkansas Highway 112 (Garland Avenue). It’s called the Cargill Poultry Research Center, thanks to a $150,000 donation from Cargill.

“At a time when consumers are more interested in the source of their food, it’s increasingly important for the poultry industry to find ways to keep birds healthy in sustainable ways,” said Mark Cochran, vice president-agriculture for the UA System Division of Agriculture. “We are most appreciative of this generous donation from Cargill to enable our world-class poultry scientists to further advance the science for the healthiest poultry.”

The facility will be used by poultry health researchers, flock management specialists and nutritionists within the UA System Division of Agriculture, including graduate students and post-doctoral employees. They will be evaluating products currently available, according to a news release, as well as developing novel and promising probiotics and other products for commercialization.

According to the National Agricultural Statistics Service, the value of poultry production in the U.S. in 2016, including broilers, turkeys, chickens and eggs, was $36.688 billion. In 2016, Arkansas was ranked No. 2 nationally in broilers, producing 6.56 billion pounds and valued at more than $3.14 billion. Eggs were valued at $485 million and turkeys at $434 million. Arkansas was ranked No. 5 in turkeys and No. 10 in chicken eggs.

“Cargill is pleased to support the work being done by the Division of Agriculture,” said Dr. Brian Wooming, Cargill turkey veterinarian based in Springdale. “Our goal is to continuously work toward reducing the use of antibiotics in animal agriculture and the work that will be done at this new facility is essential to helping achieve that objective. We are proud to be part of this effort.”

Matching dollars provided by Tyson Foods for the project are part of a $1.3 million gift to fund various improvements to the UA System Division of Agriculture’s farm.

Work at the facility will be led by Billy Hargis, veterinarian, PhD and director of the Poultry Health Lab for the Center of Excellence for Poultry Science at the UA System Division of Agriculture. Hargis joined the Center of Excellence for Poultry Science in 2000, and he was named a Poultry Science Association fellow in 2015 and distinguished professor in 2017.