The main task of the Poultry department of the Knowledge Centre is to provide nationwide, impartial advice for all poultry producers and other players in the industry – for example through visits, examinations at the poultry clinic or by telephone or e-mail.

We offer advice within all areas of the profession: Slaughter poultry, laying hens, turkeys, wildlife birds, environment, buildings, equipment, health, hygiene and treatment of diseases. We co-operate with local advisers on financial advisory services.

At the poultry clinic on the farm Koldkærgård, the veterinaries provide veterinary consultation with a natural connection to the other advisory services of the department.

The Poultry department develops and communicates professional knowledge about poultry. The knowledge development takes place through tests and trials that are carried out in the department’s own test facility or at selected producers in co-operation with AgroTech or the Faculty of Agricultural Sciences at Aarhus University. We co-operate closely with research workers, nationally and internationally. The knowledge dissemination takes place through newsletters, experience groups, theme days and courses.

We carry out development and project assignments in co-operation with companies and trade associations. Our professional tasks are co-ordinated and established in co-operation with the Danish Poultry Council, which includes the Danish Poultry Meat Association and Danish Eggs.

Facts & Focus

• The quality of chickens and laying hens for production of table eggs should be increased. Through the breeding project, we are to carry out three visits with data collection to all breeding flocks and one visit to all table egg flocks in Denmark.  The gathered knowledge is disseminated to the producers, making it possible for them to optimize their production methods. Furthermore, the possibilities of sale of other services will be identified, such as start-up of e-control, experience group membership or participation in testing.
• The broiler advisers will visit the producers and help them benefit fully from two new initiatives, i.e. the KIK database, which gathers all information from earth to table about the individual chicken holding, and the vision classification system, which can evaluate the breast meat content and the slaughtering quality of each chicken being slaughtered.
• Production of organic broilers with good foot pads and correct weight. Gathering of knowledge about organic production of eggs for hatching.
• The building and environment advisory service will be expanded with a strategy advisory service, and we will offer financial advisory service in co-operation with experts from other departments of the Knowledge Centre all over Denmark.
• Tailored health advice agreements from the poultry clinic must be adapted to the individual producer/client. Continuous information about the IB situation to table egg and broiler producers.
• FjerkræNyt, which is the newsletter of the Poultry department, is published four times a year and contains new knowledge and current updates that strengthen the producers.