Continued Professional Development is not always easy to find time or resource for when setting up business on your own. For consultants, it is however essential, to ensure that we keep up to date with industry needs, legislation and innovation.
Of particular interest to me, at the seminar yesterday, was the Nex. Far too often I find chicken breeder farmers struggling to find a mechanical cervical dislocation method which they feel comfortable with. It has been hard for many to adjust to the fact that manual dislocation is no longer legal, particularly for the older generations who have been working in the industry for years. Many try to use the correct method when being observed, but their lack of confidence and often competency, indicates that this is perhaps not the method they use every day! I am confident that Nex can provide a sustainable, effective and consistent alternative at relatively low cost. It also looks and feels like manual dislocation so requires little re-training and should be easier to adopt.
I have also been reminded of how important it is to check dislocation on every bird, to ensure the procedure has been completed effectively. This is something which is rarely done, but something I will be encouraging all my clients to implement in the future!