A poultry egg research laboratory at the University of New England was the workplace for 17-year-old Morgan Murtagh of Armidale last week. The O’Connor Catholic College student is about to commence year 12. He and 19 others across northern inland NSW have been given first-hand insights into primary industry careers, through a pro-active programme aimed at addressing the critical decline in interest among young people in rewarding agricultural pursuits, including practical research which can benefit farmers and consumers.
The UNE’s Primary Industry Centre for Science Education (PICSE) program has connected senior high school students with scientists and careers that support primary industries, locally and nationally.
PICSE is a national program with 7 activity centers across Australia. In 2007-08, a NSW activity centre was established at the University of New England (UNE) and is managed by Susanna Greig and Prof Brian Sindel.
This is achieved through the offering of the PICSE Industry Placement Scholarship. The 20 local participants won a Scholarship through a competitive selection process, which included an application letter and interview. They attended a Science to Industry Student Camp from 12-16 December, 2011. The camp showcased a broad range of exciting science related career opportunities and the latest research and developments supporting primary industries. The next step for the students, a week-long Industry Placement, is currently underway with internationally recognised research scientists and leading industry operations.
Morgan is undertaking his week-long work placement with internationally recognised poultry researcher, Associate Professor Julie Roberts and Sami Samiullah from Pakistan, who is doing his Masters Research Degree in Poultry under her supervision. “Morgan is working alongside Sami on a Poultry CRC funded research project, where we’re looking at the importance of the quality of an egg in relation to its safety as a food product,” Dr Roberts said.
“We’ve been conducting various experiments to measure eggshell quality. One of these has examined the outer-most layer of the shell, called the cuticle. This extremely thin layer plays an important role in sealing the egg and keeping it a safe food product. We use a hand-held spectrophotometer to measure the colour of the eggs before we stain the cuticle layer with dye. The amount of the green colour indicates the strength of the cuticle, and the egg’s protection against bacteria.”
Morgan has been treated as a functional member of a research team and said he has learnt a great deal, doing many different activities within the multi-faceted Poultry CRC project.
“The big eye-opener for me was the extent that new technologies, like GPS and automated systems, are being integrated into our primary industries,” he said. “It was amazing to experience first-hand the practical research being done by local scientists to help our farmers and consumers.”
In addition to various research areas at UNE, workplaces for the PICSE participants included the likes of the Australian Cotton Research Station, producer operations such as the Walcha Dairy, Glendon Poultry (near Tamworth), “Bald Blair Pastoral Co”, and Cargill, on the processing side.
Science Education Officer with the UNE PICSE programme, Stephanie Brokenshire said it will conclude with a ‘Student Reporting Back Session’ at the University’s flagship building, Booloominbah. “It will take place on Monday, February 6, between 2-4pm. The students will give a brief presentation, outlining what they have done and gained through their scholarship opportunity,” she said. “National Director of PICSE, Associate Professor David Russell from the University of Tasmania is expected to attend the function, along with academic and local dignitaries,” she said.
The University of New England, Sheep Innovation CRC, Poultry CRC & the NSW Grasslands Society are among the proud sponsors of the PICSE programme locally.
Story: Gary Fry
