46th Annual Poultry Service Industry Workshop
October 4 – 6, 2023
A little history….
The Poultry Services Industry Workshop has a long history of advancing the poultry industry through the transfer of cutting edge technology and other information essential to the proficiency of the poultry service community.
The first workshop, then called The Alberta Poultry Servicemen’s Workshop, was held in the fall of 1976 at the Banff School of Fine Arts (now the Banff Centre). It was the brainchild of Rod Chernos, Poultry Specialist with Alberta Agriculture, Food and Rural Development.
The workshop, from its inception, has recognized the importance of bringing together stakeholders from various disciplines across the poultry industry.
- This diversity of participation ensures industry issues are solved as a cooperative effort through science, experience, continuing education and networking.
- Attendees include service personnel from every segment of the poultry industry, as well as government and academia: nutritionists, feed and equipment sales representatives, engineers, economists, veterinarians, researchers, and hatchery and processing plant managers, to name a few.
- We continue to promote the value of enduring relationships, a fixed reference body of scientific information, and a means of recognition for outstanding service to the industry.
- Building strategies for industry progress and the resolution of conflicts remains an important aspect of the workshop.
Initially, the workshop was attended by only service personnel from Alberta, but soon began to attract those from neighbouring provinces, in time becoming more regional than provincial. Today’s attendees come from across Canada with a sprinkling from the United States. Starting with a modest group of 26 in 1976, attendance peaked at 174 in 2004 – growth that demonstrates the value of this event.
In the early years, Alberta Agriculture, Food and Rural Development was the principal sponsor of PSIW. Beginning in the mid-80s, a dynamic partnership was developed between the PSIW and industry, which has since evolved where today nearly all sponsored support comes from industry.
The technical quality of presentations has improved over the years, keeping pace with overall industry evolution. The experts invited to speak have become increasingly more international, as attendees seek to learn more about issues and trends in the rest of the developed world. An indicator of the growing quality of this event, educational credits are awarded by professional organizations for attendance.
PSIW continues to evolve to meet the changing demands of the poultry industry, the needs of the service constituency, and globalization. It continues to seek the commitment of its members, and support and guidance from its sponsors, to continue its stellar undertaking in technology transfer to the service industry.