Animal agriculture: engineer an egg catcher

Ohio is the second-largest egg producing state in the nation producing more that 7.6 billion eggs (2012) with an estimated value of more than $523 million per year. Ohio’s egg farms must follow all state and national guidelines from the FDA to ensure eggs are safe and free from salmonella and other food borne bacteria. Ohio’s egg farmers participate in the United Egg Producers Certified animal care program that places priority on the comfort, health and safety of chickens: increased cage space per hen and standards for trimming of chick beaks to avoid pecking and other injuries. Agriculture engineers are needed to design and build innovative automated poultry equipment and address systems such as waste management, the feeding/watering of animals, creating housing structures that keep the animals safe and comfortable and a variety of other important issues in animal agriculture.