Meet our Team: Hugo Paysan

Published on May 12, 2021

Meet our Team: Hugo Paysan

Hugo Paysan, Nutritionist for the Turkey Business Unit of Hendrix Genetics, is a new addition to the team. Hugo will be focused on providing nutritional support to the Europe, Middle East, and African region. Learn more about his background, areas of expertise, and responsibilities in his new role.

What is your background?

I graduated from an engineering school of agronomy, food science and environment called ISARA in Lyon, in France. I did a master’s degree in animal production and more specifically in genetics and animal nutrition in Poland at the Poznan University of Life Science. Right after I worked for animal feed additives supplementation as a ruminant nutritionist. I supported the sales teams and advised dairy and beef producers on technical and economic improvement of their livestock performances.

You are now in the newly created role of Europe, Middle East, Africa (EMEA) Nutritionist for Turkeys. What is your role all about?

Indeed, I will be the first nutritionist physically here in the EMEA region. I am fortunate to have this opportunity.

On the one hand I work for our internal farms, and I am dedicated to assuring the best quality of feed for our breeders in Europe.

This means I monitor and control our formulation to provide the best to our birds. There are many ways to express the best of their genetic potential and feed is a crucial one.

I am also in charge of the feed strategy for our genetic strains and the pedigree farm. We breed different strains for specific markets around EMEA. My role is to understand market needs and provide the right formulation in order to keep the best adapted bird for the EMEA environment.

On the other hand, I will provide technical support for the sales team and for our customers to help them achieve their goals. For instance, creating an entire feed program for a new customer entering the turkey business, or bringing technical support with the raw materials available in their country for parent stock or commercial birds.

How did you come to work for Hendrix Genetics?

I always had a passion for birds and poultry, especially for genetic selection. A part of my adolescence was linked with poultry and bird breeding and European shows. My Grandfather was a famous pigeon breeder, and I grew up seeing this world. I developed a growing interest in birds and their productivity leading to my studies in animal science. Therefore, I was drawn to the animal production domain and entering a genetic selection company such as Hendrix has always been my goal.

What are the challenges you see in the nutrition of turkeys?

The challenges I see in turkey nutrition are gut health, feed optimization and environment.

Turkeys are well known for this sensitive gut health in relation to raw materials, the environment, and the management. The good news is that we have a big advantage with our strain compared to the competition, but it is still a point of attention. I am very positive about the upcoming improvement thanks to studies on microflora, protein management and fiber composition in relation to turkey diets. We have launched many trials about this topic, and we expect economic results and better performance in return.

Environment is the biggest challenge for turkey production, in nutrition we are still dependent on the use of soya for economic and technical aspects. I have faith in the development of new input such as insect by-product, but also in the new feed calculator, which evaluates carbon footprint.

What knowledge and skills do you bring that will allow you to support Hybrid customers and ensure their success?

I come from ruminant nutrition where we have a very different way of working. I think this is a strong point for Hybrid support in that I have a fresh perspective. I used to support 100 farms in their production in different countries, and through that I developed great skills in communication and understanding of customers’ needs. It also gave me strong background in nutrition. I am still new in the area of poultry nutrition, but I am working closely with David Laurin, our specialist in nutrition who has more than 20 years in the turkey business. The handover has started early, so that I can absorb the best training possible.

Outside of work, what do you like to do?

Outside of work I like to play sports, including badminton. I also enjoy traveling once we can travel again in a safe way. Finally, I enjoy collecting rare plants, such as tropical orchids from all over the world.

Thank you, Hugo for being with us today and telling us a bit about yourself!

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