Tour Report Lisbon, Portugal
Feed industry professionals, including representatives of the Federação Portuguesa Indústria Avícolas attended the Portuguese stop. The Kidzone stand attracted a lot of attention. Attendees asked about inorganic minerals such as copper and the connection with phythase activity.
They were also interested in finding out how the Nutrigenomics technology could be applied to their own businesses.
Tour Report Bern, Switzerland
The tour stopped at the Hotel Bellevue Palace in Bern, Switzerland on Thursday.
Attendees were particular impressed by the displays and presentations on ‘Colostrum quality in cows and sows’ and ‘Survival rate in piglets’.
Professor Caspar Wenk of the Institut für Nutztierwissenschaften, ETH Zürich joined the Alltech speakers to give a thought provoking presentation entitled ‘Foodstuffs of animal origin will be increasingly questioned worldwide’.
Tour Report Nitra, Slovakia
The Slovakian stop at the hotel Zlaty Klucik brought together 95 attendees, including a group of Danish farmers.
The topic of Nutrigenomics prompted much discussion. The day ended with a celebration of Alltech’s 30th anniversary.
Tour Report Brno, Czech Republic
Over 140 feed industry professionals attended the stop in the Czech Republic.
Attendees were particularly interested in Alltech’s Bioplexes and the issue of traceability as well as the presentation on genetic potential.
Tour Report Modena, Italy
The tour stopped at the Hotel Real Fini Baia del Re in Modena, Italy on Wednesday 10 February.
Here a group of leading feed industry professionals and journalists met the Alltech team to discuss topics including organic selenium, the Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games 2010 and ways in which businesses can ‘Bounce Back’ in 2010.
The day ended with the presentation of the prestigious Mordenti Alltech ACE Award to Stefania Marono of Napoli University.
Tour Report Banja Luka, Bosnia
The stop in Bosnia and Herzegovina was extremely well rated by all in attendance. Local industry leaders and university professors met the Alltech presenters at Hotel Kaldera. The event was also attended by the media, resulting in an interview with Marc Larousse by a national television station.
Tour Report Budapest, Hungary
Over 80 feed industry professionals attended the Hungarian ELT stop in Budapest.
Dr. Peter Horn, president of the University of Kaposvar and member of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences, joined Alltech speakers to give a very interesting presentation on current issues in animal husbandry.
Tour Report Belgrade, Serbia
On Tuesday the tour visited Serbia where the Alltech team met local industry professionals in the Hyatt Hotel in Belgrade.
Attendees included three winners of the IFAJ-Alltech Young Leaders in Agricultural Journalism Award, one of whom conducted a television interview with Patrick Charlton.
Guests were particularly interested in the Kidzone initiative and the Selenium challenge.
Tour Report Stara Zagora, Bulgaria
The tour stopped at the Mеrian Palace Hotel in Bulgaria on Monday where they met a group of farm owners and managers, veterinarians, veterinary technicians and nutritionists.
The ‘Bounce Back’ presentations were preceded by a special Dairy Seminar entitled “For more efficient dairy production”. Presentations focussed on silage making and on achieving more profitable production with Yea-Sacc®, Optigen®, Sel-Plex® and Bioplex®.
Tour Report Izmir, Turkey
Over 100 industry professionals travelled to the Turkish stop in Izmir. Patrick Charlton’s presentation on the importance of branding inspired further discussion among attendees.
Following the presentations, a photograph was taken of all attendees as a souvenir of the event.
Tour Report Bucharest, Romania
Despite the wintry conditions, delegates travelled as far as 500 km to attend the Romanian stop at the Ramada North hotel in Bucharest.
Attendees, who included industry professionals, politicians and journalists, were particularly interested in the Selenium-enriched products on display as well as the Kidzone project.
The event culminated in a celebration of Alltech’s 30th anniversary.
Tour Report Minsk, Belarus
Almost 100 feed industry representatives met at the Crowne Plaza hotel in Minsk for the Belarusian leg of the tour.
In addition to the core lecture tour presentations, a special session was also held on the topics of Mycotoxins and the postnatal development of animals and poultry.
Tour Report Kiev, Ukraine
Attendees at the Ukrainian stop took part in a Poultry Seminar prior to the main ‘Bounce Back’ session. Here, topics addressed included ‘Current problems in poultry farming in Europe compared to in Ukraine’, ‘How to obtain safe and traceable poultry products’ and ‘Ways of improving poultry health’.
Following this, leading Ukrainian animal producers, representatives of the feed industry, academics and journalists joined the poultry professionals for the ‘Bounce Back’ presentations. During the event, boomerangs were used to highlight the ‘Bounce Back theme’. The day ended with a 30 year anniversary cake and songs by the Alltech team.
Tour Report Warsaw, Poland
The Courtyard by Marriott hotel in Warsaw was the location of the Polish stop on Friday where the topics of nutrigenomics and quality control tests were of most interest to attendees.
Influencers, consultants and feed industry representatives all joined Alltech for the company’s celebration of 30 years in business, with cake, champagne and a group photo.
Tour Report Vilnius, Lithuania
Industry specialists, including farmers and representatives of Lithuanian feed production companies, met at Le Meridien Villon for the Lithuanian leg of the tour.
Attendees were particularly interested in presentations on nutrigenomics, Alltech’s research and our latest solutions for the industry. The Sel-Plex challenge display attracted much attention as well as the unveiling of a campaign for farmers called “Selenium challenge”.
The event ended with a cake to celebrate Alltech’s 30 year anniversary.
Tour Report Doorwerth, Netherlands
The tour stopped in the Golden Tulip in Doorwerth in the Netherlands on Thursday.
The Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games stand displaying the Wii ‘My Horse and Me’ game attracted a lot of attention. The Sel-Plex challenge, traceability issues and the Total Mineral Replacement Concept were also of particular interest to delegates.
Dr. Geert Rutten of genetics company, Hypor joined the Alltech speakers to give a presentation on “Trends and Selection Criteria for the animal of 2020”.
Tour Report Munster, Germany
The German stop in Münster was well attended by animal feed company representatives, government officials, vets and journalists.
Alltech speakers were joined by Prof. Johanna Fink-Gremmels of the University of Utrecht who gave a very interesting presentation on ’Mycotoxins in Dairy Cattle’.
Attendees were particularly interested in Alltech’s Bioplex trace minerals and their application across different species.
Tour Report Riga, Latvia
The Latvian stop attracted poultry, pig and dairy specialists to the Maritim Park hotel in Riga.
The Selenium Challenge campaign was launched during the event and Selenium-enriched eggs were given to all attendees.
Alltech’s products Actigen and Optigen were of particular interest to delegates.
Tour Report Tartu, Estonia
The tour travelled to the Atlantis conference centre in Estonia on Wednesday where they met with over 80 industry professionals, including representatives of the majority of the Estonian feed producing companies.
The subjects of Optigen (Alltech's non-protein nitrogen source for ruminants), milk branding and selenium milk were of particular interest to attendees.
Tour Report Helsinki, Finland
On Wednesday 3 February the tour travelled to the Sokos Hotel Presidentti in Helsinki, Finland.
The audience was a broad mix of industry representatives, journalists and farmers as well as a group of animal science students from Helsinki University.
The issues of the registration of additives together with analytical methods prompted questions from the audience.
Tour Report Kortrijk, Belgium
Representatives of the pig and animal feed sector, researchers and journalists were among attendees at the stop in Kortrijk, Belgium which took place at the Kortrijk Xpo Meeting Center.
Alltech’s research, traceability issues and the Total Mineral Replacement Concept were of particular interest to delegates.
Dr. Geert Rutten of genetics company, Hypor joined the Alltech speakers to give a presentation on “Trends and Selection Criteria for the animal of 2020”.
A special medal of recognition was also presented to Professor Vanbelle for his contribution in the early days of Alltech.
Tour Report Bergen, Norway
Even the worst snow in 100 years in Bergen did not deter attendees at the Norway stop. Key industry professionals and influencers engaged in a highly interactive meeting which saw presentations on the latest research breakthroughs on nutritional and management strategies in response to the challenges currently facing the industry. The meeting had a strong aqua focus and presentations included an overview of latest research developments and evidence based practice for aqua feeding strategies to combat the threat of Mycotoxins as well as latest research including the enhancing of natural defences and barrier protection in aquaculture species focusing on Aquate SPMP Norge and sea lice control and selenium nutrition. The same day the timely publication of an exciting new peer reviewed research paper in aquaculture nutrition on improved feed utilisation, mucus production and immune parameters in sea bass strongly underlined this message.
The audience interacted energetically to the Bounce Back theme of the meeting and are looking to an exceptionally successful year in Norway with strong salmon prices. Alltech’s commitment to education was of particular interest with the Kidzone initiative drawing strong support and promises of participation. The event ended with a ceremonial cutting of the cake to mark Alltech's 30th anniversary.
Tour Report Billund, Denmark
Despite the worst snow storm this year, the Danish stop at Hotel Propellen attracted a good mix of industry professionals, journalists and farmers who were particularly interested in the total replacement of minerals.
Svend Jørgen Jensen of Finanshuset Demetra joined the Alltech speakers to give a presentation on “Projections for milk prices, pork prices, raw material and interest rates in 2010”.
Tour Report Bristol, England
An attentive group of students and industry professionals attended the Bristol stop at the Hilton Doubletree. There was a significant equine focus and Alltech’s sponsorship of the Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games 2010 and recent launch of LIFEFORCE Formula attracted much attention.
Declan Coyle of Andec Communications Media joined the Alltech speakers to give a motivating presentation on ‘Empowering your team to bounce back’.
Tour Report Edinburgh, Scotland
Despite the heavy snow, the Scottish stop at the Norton House Hotel, Edinburgh drew a group of key industry professionals. Alltech’s new European facilities as well as the Kidzone initiative were of particular interest to attendees.
Declan Coyle of Andec Communications Media joined the Alltech speakers to give a motivating presentation on ‘Empowering your team to bounce back’.
Tour Report Poznan, Poland
The first day of the tour also saw the speakers travel to Hotel Andersia in Poznan, Poland where they met a group of dairy experts, academics, journalists and representatives of a number of leading feed companies.
High on the agenda were the topics of mineral supplementation, selenium and Vitamin E synergy, nutrigenomics and the link between science and practice.
A Dairy Forum led by Prof. Michal Sznajder, Poznan University, Ludmila Kucharska, Mlekovita and Robert St. Bokacki, Kontekst HR preceded the presentations. Here, topics discussed included: ‘Dairy production - the source of prosperity’; ‘Not to risk and survive or take the risk and succeed – success story of one the biggest Polish dairy plant’; and ‘How to motivate, manage and retain talent’.
The day ended with a celebration of Alltech’s 30 year anniversary which included a cake, champagne and a musical performance.
Tour Report Rennes, France
The first French stop of the tour took place at the Hôtel Mercure Centre Gare in Rennes.
The subject of Nutrigenomics was high on the agenda and discussions surrounded research and EconomasE, Alltech's first Nutrigenomics discovery.
Mr Stéphane Gouin, associate professor in food marketing at Agrocampus Ouest joined the Alltech speakers to give an insightful presentation on the topic of ‘functional foods’.
Tour Report Belfast, Northern Ireland
In the afternoon, the tour travelled to the Hilton Templepatrick, Hotel & Country Club in Belfast. Here, they met a diverse group of key industry professionals, including feed industry representatives, farmers and print and broadcast media.
As well as the presentations on Alltech’s latest technologies and solutions for the industry, Alltech’s education initiatives, and especially the new Kidzone website, were of particular interest to delegates.
The event ended with a ceremonial cutting of the cake to mark Alltech's 30th anniversary and a draw for a hamper of Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games merchandise, which was won by John Sloss.
Tour Report Dunboyne, Ireland
The European Lecture tour kicked off today in Dunboyne, Co. Meath, Ireland. Over 70 delegates attended the lectures in Dunboyne Castle Hotel including students, Alltech Young Scientist award winners, professors, farmers, media and other industry representatives.
The theme of the lecture was Bounce Back with a focus on new technologies and solutions to today's challenges within the livestock industry. Alltech initiatives were also displayed for customers to experience including Kidzone, the Sel-Plex Selenium Challenge and the Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games.
Following the presentations, guests enjoyed a celebratory lunch for Alltech's 30th anniversary in the European Bioscience Centre where guests toured the research and marketing centre.