The U of A poultry judging team placed third in the National Poultry Judging Contest hosted by Louisiana State University.

Poultry judging allows competitors to show how well they execute the USDA rules and regulations covering the grading of eggs and poultry carcasses. The team also placed second in Breed Selection and Market Products, and fourth in Production. Team members include Astrid Adrian, Hannah Feuerborn, Jakob Jones, Emily Traylor, Haley Stanton, Ethan Strobel, Crystal Velazquez and Cayla Wilson. The team is led by coaches Dennis Mason and Amanda Brumley.  

Feuerborn placed first in the overall individual category. She was also the top placing individual in Production and the fourth-place individual in Market Product. Adrian placed as the sixth overall individual and the third overall individual in Breed Selection.

"I wanted to be on the poultry judging team because I knew it would help me in my future career, whatever I do," Feuerborn said.

She explained that poultry judging is multi-faceted and has a lot of variety.

"It's evaluating birds, carcasses and eggs for the characteristics that are essential to their purpose," Feuerborn said. "I have used judging techniques to evaluate broilers and broiler breeders in classes and FFA."

Not only does poultry judging help Feuerborn prepare for her future career, but it helps her make connections with fellow teammates.

"My favorite part of being on the team was getting to know everyone, and my favorite part of the contest are hens and breed selection," Feuerborn said.

About the Dale Bumpers College of Agricultural, Food and Life Sciences: Bumpers College provides life-changing opportunities to position and prepare graduates who will be leaders in the businesses associated with foods, family, the environment, agriculture, sustainability and human quality of life; and who will be first-choice candidates of employers looking for leaders, innovators, policy makers and entrepreneurs. The college is named for Dale Bumpers, former Arkansas governor and longtime U.S. senator who made the state prominent in national and international agriculture. For more information about Bumpers College, visit our website, and follow us on Twitter at @BumpersCollege and Instagram at BumpersCollege.

About the University of Arkansas: As Arkansas' flagship institution, the U of A provides an internationally competitive education in more than 200 academic programs. Founded in 1871, the U of A contributes more than $2.2 billion to Arkansas' economy through the teaching of new knowledge and skills, entrepreneurship and job development, discovery through research and creative activity while also providing training for professional disciplines. The Carnegie Foundation classifies the U of A among the few U.S. colleges and universities with the highest level of research activity. U.S. News & World Report ranks the U of A among the top public universities in the nation. See how the U of A works to build a better world at Arkansas Research News.