ADSA, in cooperation with USDA, corporate and institutional supporters, was pleased to present the Third DISCOVER Conference on Food Animal Agriculture, "Preserving Animal Germplasm Diversity - A Call To Action." This unique DISCOVER Conference was a call to those in the animal agriculture industry concerned about the future of animal diversity to provide input toward the development of a framework for a national program for preserving animal germplasm. Animal agriculture in the United States is lagging in its efforts to make preservation of genetic resources a priority. The intent of this program was to assess the current situation both domestically and globally, discuss the various views on the issue, and arrive at some basic steps for implementing a national program for each of the major species (beef, dairy, swine, poultry, and sheep and small ruminants.)
Seventy-four participants registered for the conference representing an exciting array of expertise and interests: Academic, 44%; Government agencies, 26%; Companies, 12%; Other (trade and commodity organizations, producers), 18%. Both the public and private sectors were well represented. Additionally, researchers and users of the information both were well represented. Registrants came from more than 25 states in the US and from 6 other countries, including Canada, Mexico, Italy, Ireland, and The Netherlands.