The Evolution of Product Development in the Poultry Industry: Insights from Dr. Alex Gilley

The poultry industry has experienced dramatic transformations over recent decades. With evolving consumer preferences, the rapid expansion of quick-serve restaurants, and a significant increase in production volume, meeting global demands has never been more critical. Dr. Alex Gilley of Cobb recently provided insights into the intricate product development process, showcasing the extensive efforts that go into creating and testing poultry products.

Understanding Product Development at Cobb

At Cobb, product development begins with a strong customer-centric approach. The first step involves identifying both current and future market needs. The research teams select pure lines that inherently exhibit traits aligned with customer requirements. Upon selection, test crosses are created and rigorously evaluated to assess breeder and broiler performance. These results are then benchmarked against existing Cobb products and competitors.

To obtain a comprehensive performance overview, preliminary tests are conducted on a smaller scale across Cobb’s trial facilities situated in North America, South America, and Europe. This multi-region testing enables performance comparison across differing environmental conditions and nutritional programs, validating both performance and consistency. If a test cross consistently outperforms benchmark products during these early trials, it advances to the “Proving Grounds.”

The Proving Grounds: Commercial Scale Testing

The Proving Grounds stage is where products are tested at a commercial scale. In this phase, Cobb evaluates performance across up to 20,000 breeders from both the test cross and benchmark products in various environmental conditions, both in domestic and international settings. Each breeder produces about 80,000 broiler chicks weekly, which undergo evaluation in customer field trials and additional internal assessments. This phase not only provides performance insights but also allows the technical team to observe real-world conditions impacting optimal performance.

For a product to proceed toward commercial release, it must show consistent outperformance against benchmark candidates at Proving Grounds and during customer trials. Each product undergoes a minimum of one year of thorough internal testing followed by at least an additional year of large-scale field testing with customers, ensuring reliability and performance when introduced to the market.

Challenges in Product Development

A primary challenge in product development lies in identifying the ideal combinations of pure lines capable of surpassing existing commercial products. The existing lines have undergone years of refinement, consistently delivering the quality and balance customers expect. Replacing a commercial product necessitates either a shift in market preferences or the discovery of a new line combination that offers clear, meaningful enhancements.

Fortunately, Cobb has a diverse array of non-commercialized lines that the genetics team continually assesses. This exploration allows them to identify potential candidates for future product offerings.

Global Performance Testing Strategies

To ensure products meet global performance standards, Cobb adopts a multi-stage testing approach spanning various geographic locations. Utilizing international trial facilities in Spain, the UK, the Netherlands, and Brazil enables tailored evaluations that account for each region’s unique environmental conditions and management practices. Adjustments in feed formulations can also be made to match local nutritional standards, enhancing predictive accuracy for real-world performance.

A distinctive feature of Cobb’s Proving Grounds is the dual design of housing. Half replicate U.S. commercial environments, while the other half emulate non-U.S. settings. This dual approach facilitates a comprehensive understanding of a product’s performance across differing global conditions.

Furthermore, customer-based field trials are conducted internationally, allowing Cobb to place limited test birds directly into commercial operations. This interaction yields invaluable insights into how products perform in environments where they will ultimately be utilized.

Impact of Market Evolution on Product Strategies

The shifts within the global chicken market have profoundly influenced product development and breeding strategies at Cobb. Notably, the U.S. market’s focus has increasingly leaned toward higher white-meat yields, especially breast meat. This trend directly influenced the creation and launch of the Cobb C800, tailored to fulfill the needs of customers operating in high-yield markets.

Several global markets are witnessing an increase in harvest weights, with consumer preferences oscillating between white and dark meat—trends often dictated by cultural changes. Addressing these regional variations calls for a flexible portfolio and sustained innovation to provide the right products when needed.

Overall, chicken production has shown relentless growth, escalating from 15.1 million tons in 1970 to 137 million tons in 2020, with projections indicating poultry will remain the fastest-growing meat category through 2030, driven by factors such as affordability and efficiency.

The Role of Customer Feedback

Customer insights play a pivotal role in Cobb’s product development. Feedback from field trials illustrates how current products stack up against competitors and enables the identification of opportunities for improvement. Such insights inform breeding priorities, ensuring that product development aligns with market needs and client expectations.

This external feedback also validates internal trial results, spotlighting any discrepancies that might warrant further investigation to guarantee consistency across both internal evaluations and real-world performance.

About Dr. Alex Gilley

Dr. Alex Gilley joined Cobb in 2019 as the Head of Global Product Validation. He holds a Ph.D. in Quantitative Genetics and an MBA from the University of Arkansas, bringing a wealth of knowledge and expertise to the product development team.

Through these extensive development processes and continuous customer engagement, Cobb remains committed to delivering high-quality poultry products that meet both current and future market demands.

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