St David’s Poultry Team blends deep clinical understanding with cutting-edge technology and science led innovation to provide the highest level of care for our clients and their flocks.
As part of our ongoing commitment to invest in the future of poultry veterinary medicine, we have created a new, Veterinary Clinical Board to further support our growing number of clients, veterinary surgeons and field technicians. It means we will be even better placed to support our customers achieve long-term and sustainable success.
As Managing Director Richard Turner explains, “St David’s has grown significantly over the years, both in terms of the number of birds under our care and the size of team we have in place. The creation of a Veterinary Clinical Board and additional Clinical Director roles further strengthens our clinical and technical leadership.
We have welcomed vets Matt Balfour and Ben Crisp to this team, which means there is now a Clinical Director aligned to each of the major parts of the industry we work with. There is also a role dedicated to innovation and technical support. This reaffirms our commitment to outstanding veterinary care and advancing poultry health.”
Chairing the veterinary board is Aonghus Lane, Richard Jackson is Broiler Lead, and Kenny Stokes-Nutting is Game Lead. Joining them are our new Clinical Directors. Matt Balfour is Layer Lead, and Ben Crisp the lead for Innovation and Technical.
Matt Balfour joined St David’s 10 years ago and has led the Scotland and North of England regional team for the last 5 years. He is one of just 6 UK vets with EBVS® European Specialist in Poultry Veterinary Science status.
Matt says, “I’m delighted to be leading our veterinary approach for our layer flocks. Together with my colleagues, we’ve evolved our veterinary and management approach that has improved bird health, welfare and performance. One of our biggest achievements has been to extend the productive life of the birds, which is key to a long-term, sustainable and profitable industry. I’m looking forward to continuing to drive this approach.”
Ben Crisp has been with the team for 12 years, leading the regional team in the South. He has long championed our focus on innovation, not least helping drive our approach to antibiotic reduction.
Ben says, “Innovation is a fundamental part of our approach to bird health. We are at the forefront in introducing and developing the latest technology, veterinary approaches and products, continuously running trials to find the best solutions to today’s and tomorrow’s challenges. I’m looking forward to leading this area and working with the wider team to keep us at the forefront of the industry, so our clients continue to benefit from the latest scientific developments and industry insights.”