Recent Poultry Health Studies by the PRF Team



Karen Gao’s project is the first analytical epidemiological study of Spotty Liver Disease, which is a major disease problem in free range egg layers. Christine Clark’s project looked at the novel strain of Salmonella enterica serovar Enteritidis that caused major disruption to the layer industry in NSW in 2018-2020 and also spread to Victoria and Queensland.

Melinda Hashimoto Interview



Melinda is a farmer’s daughter from a small beef property (Brahman cross) in Queensland. Having attended university in Rockhampton with a Bachelor of Education she remained in the area and then travelled to Japan spending 5 years teaching there. Upon return to Australia, she completed an MBA at the University of Southern Queensland in Toowoomba. Former career roles include Adviser to Ministers for Agriculture at Federal and State Levels and QLD Department of Trade and Investment.

Supporting Longevity in Egg Laying Hens



As the global population continues to increase so does the need for food. To assist in meeting this demand egg producers are exploring opportunities to lengthen the egg laying phase of commercial flocks by 20 or more weeks. The aim is for each hen to produce 500 eggs by 100 weeks of age.

Dr Sheridan Alfirevich Interview



Sheridan completed her veterinary degree at Murdoch University and is a member of Avian Health Chapter of the Australian and New Zealand College of Veterinary Scientists. Sheridan is completing her Masters in International Animal Welfare, Ethics and Law at University of Edinburgh. She is currently employed by Inghams as General Manager of Farming.

Dr Mary Wu

Dr Mary Wu Interview



Food security remains on top of the national agenda, but the public is becoming more discerning about the food they consume, thus the challenges for chicken meat production will only become more complex. We recently sent our postgraduate student, Carria Xie, to interview the new CEO of ACMF, Dr Mary Wu for her thoughts.

Italy to Sydney



Visiting PhD student Claudia Ciarelli By Claudia Ciarelli Hello, I’m Claudia Ciarelli and I am a visiting PhD Student at the Poultry Research Foundation and School of Life and Environmental Sciences within The University of Sydney. After completing my masters at the University of Perugia, Italy in 2020 (Msc Animal Science), I started my PhD …