April 22, 2008

Alltech opens Nutrigenomics facility

Press Release
 

As part of its continued expansion and commitment to excellence in research, global animal health company Alltech cut the ribbon on its Centre for Animal Nutrigenomics and Applied Animal Nutrition at its corporate headquarters on April 20, 2008.

The first facility of its kind in the world, the centre is dedicated to the study of the effect of nutrition on gene expression and represents a 20,000 square foot expansion of the company's existing research facility.

The Nutrigenomics laboratory employs the latest technologies to generate databases detailing the effects of nutrition on gene expression profiles in the tissues of various species. The databases will be analysed to determine the health and performance status of livestock and the best nutritional interventions for peak production potential.

In addition to Nutrigenomics, the facility will house the company's research initiatives at its global headquarters, including the study of Functional Glycomics, Solid State Fermentation, Rumen Function and Ecology, Aquaculture, Organic Trace Minerals and Biorefining.

In coming years, the facility is expected to require 40 additional research professionals to be fully staffed. To help address this need, in 2007, Alltech formed a partnership with the University of Kentucky (UK) to advance research in the field of nutrigenomics. As part of this partnership, Alltech gave UK a US$900,000 grant that will, in part, help to place faculty and staff from the College of Agriculture at the company's Nutrigenomics facility.