APPLICATIONS for the 2020 Gary Sansom Scholarship are now open.
The $35,000 scholarship identifies high quality students and, with the support of a generous bursary, allows one successful candidate to foster a career pathway in the chicken meat industry and support their industry-relevant research.
The scholarship is named in honour of the late Gary Sansom. Mr Sansom was a former AgriFutures Chicken Meat Advisory Panel chair and was the Australian Chicken Meat Federation president.
AgriFutures Australia research manager Georgie Townsend said the scholarship supported Mr Sansom's vision for the industry - to ensure it is valued and respected by all sectors of the Australian community.
Mr Sansom was also particularly well known as the president of the Queensland Farmers Federation.
"It's important that the scholarship is awarded to someone who is passionate about the chicken meat industry and wants the industry to thrive into the future," Ms Townsend said.
University of Adelaide PhD student Joshua Angove was the recipient of the 2019 scholarship.
His research project aims to understand whether optimising breeder hen rearing environments can improve growth and carcase characteristics in the progeny they produce, while trying to understand the contributing physiology behind offspring performance variation.
The Gary Sansom Scholarship is open to Australian citizens and permanent residents undertaking a PhD, Masters, Honours degree or equivalent in an appropriate discipline.
The successful scholar will receive up to $35,000 for living expenses and undertake a research project that contributes applied outcomes to the production of chicken meat in Australia. As part of the scholarship, the student will have access to an industry supervisor to support their study and career pathway.
Applications close on March 31. The winner will be announced at PIX/AMC 2020, the Poultry Industry Exchange Conference.