Once again, the professionals at House of Raeford Farms spoke to young people interested in the chicken industry. This time the invitation came from the University of Mount Olive (UMO) to share with eastern North Carolina high school students and agricultural teachers attending the college’s Poultry Primer Day Camp, June 13-14.
Greg Lanier, Broiler Manager for our North Carolina operations, and Dave Witter, Manager of Corporate Communications and Sustainability, spent the morning providing an overview of the industry and House of Raeford’s locations across the southeast U. S. Lanier focused on the various aspects of live production including breeding, hatchery, feed mill, growout farms, and processing. His presentation outlined the responsibilities of each operation, and the importance of teamwork in producing a safe, quality, and good tasting product.
Greg Lanier
Witter emphasized the history, growth, and current industry position of House of Raeford while providing an overview of the company’s sustainable best practices involving the well-being of our employees, the protection of our natural resources, the quality and safety of our products, the humane treatment of our animals, and the enrichment of our communities. He also highlighted the wide variety of occupations available to those interested in a poultry career. Many students are aware of the obvious jobs, but fail to recognize the positions in areas like food safety, human resources, veterinary services and animal nutrition, maintenance, sales and marketing, research and development, and so much more.
Dave Witter
The UMO Animal Science program offers students multiple opportunities to engage in hands-on learning. Students are involved in a number of major projects including poultry production and related research projects; artificial insemination schools for both small ruminants and cattle; and forage and grazing production and research. Students visit a variety of local livestock, poultry and equine facilities as well as handle the animals at the UMO Student Farm.
House of Raeford is committed to investing in youth development, especially when it overlaps with agriculture. Another example of this initiative is our partnership with local elementary schools in Duplin County, NC. We are bringing ground level financial and educational support, encouraging young people to connect agriculture with future career opportunities. We hope these collaborations will yield individuals dedicated to feeding future generations.
