Aviagen establishes new turkey commercial poult and egg supplier

Aviagen has established a new enterprise to supply commercial poults and eggs to the turkey industry.

The new company will be called Valley of the Moon Commercial Poults, which is a continuation of the history that George Nicholas started in Sonoma, California, over 70 years ago. This new company will be a distinct business unit and will operate under the direction of David Kenyon as president.

According to Jihad Douglas, president of Aviagen Turkeys, Inc., “After years of discussions, debate, industry analysis and observations, and recent industry events, we believe that it is in our best interest and in the best interest of the turkey industry that we have the ability to directly supply the end users with our quality genetics.

As you know the breeder/hatchery business is not a new venture for us, but actually our core business. We believe that Valley of the Moon CP will provide a platform that will add value to the customer due to the highly consolidated nature of the multiplication business.”

As president of Valley of the Moon CP, David Kenyon brings over 20 years of experience in the turkey industry. Jihad Douglas noted, “David is known for his hands-on experience working with primary breeders, integrations, and multipliers. His background, combined with his open and honest management style and knowledge of the industry, makes him uniquely qualified for this position.”

“The focus of Valley of the Moon Commercial Poults will be on providing the best quality poults and genetics to the industry by utilising the best hatching technology and delivery trucks, by implementing the highest selection pressure and by having access to Aviagen Turkeys’ R&D program,” said Kenyon.

Construction of a new single-stage hatchery with capacity to set up to 50 million eggs is currently underway in Southern Iowa. This central location will allow Valley of the Moon CP to provide poults to many regions of the US. Completion of the hatchery is expected in early November 2011 with poults available to customers in January 2012.

Source: Aviagen