The Chicken or the Egg?

We may call ourselves the Peach State, but when it comes to raw numbers, poultry is unquestionably the king of Georgia agriculture.

And the chicken business is booming.

On an average day, Georgia farmers produce 30 million pounds of chicken, 7.8 million table eggs, and 6.5 million hatching eggs, contributing more than $25 billion to the state economy every year.

For decades, researchers in the University of Georgia’s Department of Poultry Science have worked at the forefront of the discipline, and their innovations in genetics, nutrition, and disease prevention have transformed the industry both at home and abroad.

Now, scientists working in this critical field will reach even greater heights thanks to the addition of a new state-of-the-art Poultry Science Building on UGA’s main campus. The $54.1 million, five-story structure comes equipped with more than 70,000 square feet of research and instruction space that will allow students, faculty, and staff to conduct the innovative research needed to contribute to this thriving industry.

Opening New Doors

The original Poultry Science Building opened during the Eisenhower administration on East Campus Road. It hosted one of the state’s most important departments for more than half a century, but the facility was not keeping pace with the work being done inside.

“Issues facing the poultry sector have grown inordinately complex. Faculty in our prior space were mostly within their own labs,” says Todd Applegate, chair of the Department of Poultry Science. “In our new building, we have clustered faculty into six thematic areas to face these current and future issues. Additionally, this environment allows our students a more robust experience garnering different research perspectives.”

Every classroom, student innovation space, and research lab in the new Poultry Science Building has been planned down to the individual chair. It includes massive, modular classrooms that give students comfortable spaces to learn, plus a basement facility where chicks and hens of all ages and sizes can be cared for. The walls are adorned with local, chic farm art, and the frosted doors feature environmental patterns that reflect the industry. That’s largely thanks to the support of donors and alumni, who had valuable experiences of their own in poultry science.

We wouldn’t be able to have a Chick-fil-A sandwich for under $9.50 if we didn’t make the progress that we do in our departments.” — Andrew Benson, associate professor in poultry science

Hands-on, innovative education is a cornerstone of the new building and the program it houses. For example, associate professor Andrew Benson BSA ’02, PhD ’06 incorporates lessons in anatomy and surgical demonstrations into his courses, lessons that would be difficult to teach in regular laboratories.

Benson aims to show students the real-world implications of their studies. His own work, which centers on fertility improvements, has allowed farmers to significantly increase the number of healthy chickens hatched and raised for the poultry industry.

“Every one of our labs is engaged with research that is addressing a need or opening up future endeavors for the poultry industry,” Benson says. “We wouldn’t be able to have a Chick-fil-A sandwich for under $9.50 if we didn’t make the progress that we do in our departments.”

Benson utilizes two different 1,500 square-foot learning labs lined with microscopes, incubators, and other scientific tools to help students participate in the research process. That’s just a few floors beneath two new, specialized research labs at the ready for students and faculty.

“I get to teach the course that I fell in love with, and that’s really why I like the new building the most,” he says. “Everything that I fell in love with about this department is still intact. Now, it just has a prettier face.”

A New Generation of Poultry Scientists

It’s not just the prestige of the new building that keeps poultry science alumni involved with the department.

Sarah Beth Kersey BSA ’24 was in eighth grade when she and her class toured UGA’s old poultry science building on a field trip.

“I fell in love with the department,” Kersey says. “After the open house, I was completely set on coming to UGA and studying poultry science. We are bringing that strong community forward, and the new building is the icing on top of the cake.”

After earning her bachelor’s degree in poultry science, Kersey wanted to give back by reaching out to the next generation. She’s doing just that as a communications and outreach specialist for the department while also pursuing a master’s degree in agricultural education in the College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences.

“Education is the common goal for my job. Being able to apply what I learned in the classroom about poultry and then show how it works in daily life is really big. I think it adds a unique aspect of poultry science—learning, then helping people expand their knowledge,” she says.

Associate professor Brian Kiepper MS ’03, PhD ’07 knows something about building up future poultry scientists. As the teacher behind a very popular introductory course in the field, he instructs 350 students every semester.

“My whole focus is for our students to understand how agriculture changed it all,” says Kiepper. “When they leave the University of Georgia as a doctor, lawyer, teacher, engineer, or whatever, they can be that because of agriculture. They couldn’t if somebody else didn’t take on the responsibility of creating those calories you need to survive.”

Kiepper can be creative in his teaching. For instance, in his First-Year Odyssey Seminar, “Chicken Que: Science Behind the Grill,” students prepare, flavor, and cook their own meals from scratch to truly understand the farm-to-table perspective.

It’s a creative way to learn about such an important industry beyond just numbers and slides. With the minds of the poultry science department and the capabilities of the new building, Georgia’s poultry leadership is well positioned to grow.

“When you see our new building, it really is a place to show people what we do,” Kiepper says. “With the old building, we had to entice people into poultry science. Now, with the new building, it’s almost like it makes that stamp itself.”