Hammers Joins IDEAL Animal Nutrition with Focus on Research
Helping pig farmers solve everyday challenges with practical research-backed solutions is a priority for IDEAL Animal Nutrition as it grows its team serving operations across the Midwest.
Kelsey Hammers joins the company as swine nutritionist and research coordinator, adding nutrition expertise alongside Jeff Knott and Simon Kern, while helping lead fast-expanding activity at the IDEAL Research Barn, the company said in a release.
“We’re excited to have Kelsey join our team,” Knott, swine nutritionist and founder/owner of IDEAL, said in a release. “She brings fresh knowledge and experience that will benefit our customers and strengthen our research activities. Her work will support our main focus on delivering solutions at the slat-level. It will also grow our supporting focus on generating research-backed data to guide decisions – helping our customers get better results and higher returns.”
Hammers grew up on her family’s cattle and crops farm in Missouri. She has was actively involved in swine projects through the National FFA Organization and grew up showing pigs. She also gained experience in college working with commercial hog facilities in production and sales roles as part of internships and summer jobs. She earned her PhD in swine nutrition at the University of Minnesota, building on a master’s degree from Kansas State University and bachelor’s degree from the University of Missouri.
“I have enjoyed my time completing my formal education and I am excited to start my new role at IDEAL Animal Nutrition,” Hammers said in a release. “I feel equally at home on farms with customers and in the research barn. I am looking forward to working with and learning from the IDEAL team and customers.”
Hammers’ master’s research included several nursery studies examining alternatives to feeding high levels of zinc oxide. Her PhD dissertation took a different perspective on this subject, involving studies to examine the implications of high zinc feeding to gestating sows.
“I’m excited to transition from my academic training to working in the industry with the people that are doing the hard work of raising pigs. I will relate what I've learned and all my experiences to assist these producers with their operations,” she said in a release.
IDEAL said developing a team of people in different career stages with a diversity of experiences and perspectives is important.
“Bringing Kelsey on board provides a nice complement to our team and adds synergy that will benefit everyone,” says Kern who joined in 2018 after Knott started the company in 2014. “It also shows our commitment both to serving our customers and providing additional value through the activities at our research barn.
Learn more at www.idealanimalnutrition.com.
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