Spring 2002 Newsletter : Message from the WPSA President, Dr Peter Hunton

(an extract from the WPSA newsletter No 13 - Fall 2001)

Since my last report, affairs of the WPSA have occupied an increasing amount of my time. At the end of June, I retired from my job as Poultry Specialist with Ontario Egg Producers, after 21 years. While I continue to undertake some work for that organization on a consulting basis, I have more time to devote to WPSA affairs.

I attended the Annual Meeting of the Poultry Science Association in Indianapolis, Indiana at the end of July. For the first time, this meeting was held jointly with the American Dairy Science, Meat Science and Animal Science Associations, which are all administered by the same organization. Opinions vary as to the value of such a merger of meetings; suffice it to say that finding 400 poultry scientists among about 5,000 delegates was not easy! Some joint Symposia were held which involved all species, such as one on germ plasm conservation, and these were useful. I attended a meeting with officers of PSA and the US Branch of WPSA to explore ways in which the two associations, which have many members, and virtually all their objectives, in common. We discussed ways in which our respective associations can work together to better achieve our goals. This process will continue over the next few months.

The WPSA held its annual Executive Committee meeting prior to the Symposia on Quality of Eggs and Egg Products and on Poultry Meat in Turkey. I congratulate your officers and Vice-Presidents on a full attendance. On this occasion, the new constitution, having received unanimous support in a postal vote of WPSA councillors, was implemented, and the former Executive Committee now becomes the Board of Directors. The new Executive Committee now consists of the President, Secretary and Treasurer, and this group is empowered to operate the Association’s affairs in the long intervals between Board meetings.

A highlight of the meeting was the appointment of David Martin as the new Journal Editor. David brings to this position a long experience in publishing (being former Editor of Poultry International) and we are confident that the Journal will prosper under his leadership. An informal meeting of the Journal’s Associate Editors and Editorial Board was held following the Board meeting.

One disappointing report at our meeting was a slight decline in membership. While there are easy explanations for this, our Association can only continue to provide existing services as long as our membership continues to grow. Advertisers and Sponsors expect us to maintain or increase membership levels. Our best advertisement is our existing membership; if even one in ten of our members recruit a new member this year, we can expect an overall increase! So please, when you are meeting with other poultry scientists or producers, tell them about the benefits of WPSA membership and persuade them to join. The Journal alone is worth the membership fee. Your Branch Secretary, or our Secretary, Piet Simons, can provide all the necessary details, and application forms.

The President has a new email address: phunton@sympatico.ca