LAHORE: Pakistan Poultry Association (PPA) Chairman Abdul Basit has urged the government to address challenges related to genetically modified organism (GMO) regulations and to promote soybean production in the country.
He also encouraged students to develop entrepreneurial skills and consider launching their own businesses after completing their education.
He made these remarks while addressing a day-long Poultry Science Conference, organised by the University of Veterinary and Animal Sciences (UVAS), Lahore, in collaboration with the PPA, as part of the ‘International Poultry Expo (PSC-IPEX) 2024’ at Expo Centre, Lahore.
The conference aimed to promote development of Pakistan’s poultry sector and provided a platform for knowledge exchange between academia, industry, and researchers.
UVAS Vice-Chancellor, Meritorious Prof Dr Muhammad Younus (DLA.I, T.I), presided over the inaugural and technical sessions of the conference.
Former PPA chairman Khalique Arshad, IPEX Chief Organizer Abdul Haye Mehta, Convener PSC Dr Hanif Nazir Ch, Dean Faculty of Veterinary Science Prof Dr Aneela Zameer Durrani, Dean Faculty of Animal Production and Technology Prof Dr Saima, Director Institute of Microbiology Prof Dr Aftab Ahmad Anjum, alongside numerous academicians, researchers, veterinarians, and poultry industry professionals attended the conference. -PR
A highlight of the event was the UVAS students’ performance in the Poultry Science Conference presentation awards. Ms Aleena Kokab (Microbiology) secured first place and was awarded Rs200,000 for her presentation on “Physiological Profiling of Lytic Bacteriophages and their Efficiency Against Salmonella enteritidis on Chicken Breast Cuts.”
Runner-up Ms Hira Khan (Microbiology) received Rs100,000 for her presentation on “Preparation and Evaluation of a Trivalent Culture-Based Vaccine for Avian Adenoviral Infection in Poultry.”
A special “Hall of Fame” award was conferred upon distinguished Pakistani scientist Prof Dr Khalid Naeem Khawaja, in recognition of his significant contributions to the field.
In his address, Prof Dr Muhammad Younus highlighted the importance of the poultry sector, saying it is the second-largest industry in Pakistan after textile, employing over 1.5 million people.
He stressed the need for innovative research in key areas such as climate change, disease outbreaks, pollution, GMOs, soybean production, and vaccine quality to tackle the industry’s challenges, urging MPhil and PhD researchers to focus on research that solves real-world problems within these areas.
Earlier, Abdul Haye Mehta outlined the objectives of the conference, which aimed to bring together academia, researchers, poultry farmers, and industrialists to share knowledge for the development of the poultry sector.
Convener Dr Hanif Nazir Ch expressed his gratitude to UVAS leadership, faculty, and students for their dedication and efforts in making the event a success.
Throughout the conference, experts delivered lectures on a range of topics, including controlling Salmonella in poultry, innovative food traceability solutions, vaccines against avian influenza, machine vision systems for early detection of sick birds, genome editing in poultry production, and strategies for managing poultry infections.
The event concluded with Prof Dr Muhammad Younus and other dignitaries presenting awards to the winning students, commending their innovative research.
