UNE Experience Day – Meat Science and the Poultry Hub

This Experience Day will provide an opportunity for students to be exposed to life on campus, focusing on academic preparation, careers and hands-on experience in the UNE School of Environmental and Rural Science, with a focus on Meat Science and the Poultry Hub.

Meat Science: Dr Peter McGilchrist will introduce students as to how a butcher turns a beef carcass into food, discuss what muscles are the most tender and which ones are the toughest and why, how to ensure food is safe to eat and finally make and cook our own burgers for lunch!

Dr Peter McGilchrist grew up in the small town of Wallabadah and went to Quirindi High School. He studied a bachelor of Rural Science at UNE before working in the beef industry for a few years. After completing a PhD in meat science, Peter was appointed as a senior Lecturer in Meat Science at UNE and has a very active research portfolio working with everyone from producers, to processors, retailers and chefs using science to make meat amazing for all consumers.

The Poultry Hub: Ass. Prof.Tamsyn Crowley will give a quick overview of the poultry industry outlining the difference between the egg and chicken meat industries and birds. Explore hands on what to look or in egg quality. Students will then be given the opportunity to understand what constitutes a chicken diet and then to mill or grind the ingredients themselves to make chicken pellets.

Current Director of Poultry Hub Australia (PHA), Prof Crawley, has an extensive background in poultry research. Her research interests include gut health, biomarker discovery, epigenetics and bioinformatics. As director of PHA, Tamsyn is tasked with improving all sectors of the Australian poultry industry through applied research, education and training. Her current role enables her to liaise with all sectors of the industry from farmers to poultry research scientists.