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Page 4 %u2013 National Poultry Newspaper, December 2024 www.poultrynews.com.auChris with his grandfather Peter, and parents Trish Verran and Trevor Verran.EFA CEO Melinda Hashimoto, Peter, Chris and EFA%u2019s outgoing chair Bede Burke.Winners of the 2024 Egg Farmers of Australia industry recognition awards were Chris Verran, Peter Bell and Mick Keogh.THREE Australians who have made a significant contribution to national egg production were honoured for their work at the 2024 Egg Farmers of Australia industry recognition awards in Melbourne recently.The prestigious awards program recognises the work of people connected to Australia%u2019s commercial egg sector %u2013 which has one of the lowest carbon footprints of any food protein.A grandfather and grandson from Western Australia took out two of the awards. The winners are:%u2022 Western Australia%u2019s AAA Egg Company farm manager Chris Verran was named the Egg Farmers of Australia Young Egg Industry Achiever of the Year%u2022 Western Australiabased egg industry stalwart Peter Bell received the Egg Farmers of Australia Egg Industry Leader Excellence Award for extensive service to the nation%u2019s egg industry%u2022 Australian Competition and Consumer Commission deputy chair Mick Keogh was presented with the Egg Farmers of Australia Collaborative Recognition Award, which is presented to a government official in appreciation of their assistance to the nation%u2019s egg industry.Egg Farmers of Australia chief executive officer Melinda Hashimoto said eggs were among the most affordable sources of protein for Aussie families and that the industry awards recognised the efforts of those who help to supply them.%u201cAussie egg farmers and the people they employ all work very hard to maintain a consistent and clean supply of fresh eggs for Australian families and the awards show that we value their efforts,%u201d Ms Hashimoto said.Commercial egg farmers produce 17.9 million eggs daily, totalling 6.3 billion eggs a year.The awards are sponsored by Specialised Breeders Australia, which supplies chicks to egg farms across Australia.About the winnersEFA Young Egg Industry Achiever of the Year award recipient Chris VerranChris Verran is an egg farm manager overseeing three sites operated by the AAA Egg Company in Western Australia.Since making the decision to focus on the poultry industry as a career choice, Chris moved quickly through various roles within the sector. First, by assisting with shed conversions and farm-hand work before becoming a shed construction team leader.He became an egg farm manager at 19 years of age and is currently dedicated to his role of managing three farm sites with a total flock of 600,000 layer hens.The sites he manages include cage, barn and free-range production systems.Aside from his daily work, Chris is notably a proactive participant in the nation%u2019s wider egg sector, including being a member of Gen Egg, EFA%u2019s working group for young egg generations.He organised speakers for the annual Gen Egg on-line virtual forum, which has grown from strength to strength.More recently, he completed his LiaisonLivestock Industry training for animal disease outbreaks and is now an LLI representative for WA.EFA Egg Industry Leader Excellence Award recipient Peter BellPeter has over 65 year%u2019s experience in the Australian egg sector.He has served on the board of AAA Egg Company %u2013 the largest egg producer in Western Australia %u2013 since 1998 and was managing director from 2002 to early 2021.Peter has been a highprofile advocate for the Australian egg industry and has served on numerous company boards and committees including:%u2022 Hy-Line Australia%u2022 Pure Foods Eggs%u2022 Days Eggs%u2022 Farm Pride%u2022 Novo Food%u2022 Altona Hatchery%u2022 Commercial Egg Producers Association of WA%u2022 Standards and Guidelines Committee%u2022 Australian Eggs Sustainability Industry Consultative Committee.He also mentors younger generations of egg leaders.Peter has come full circle in his career, from raising free-range eggs in the 1950s to the development of modern cage systems, then again to free-range production in the twentyfirst century.He freely imparts his knowledge and experience for the development of egg production across Australia.This input has been used by the layer industry to design and develop better farming processes and infrastructure.EFA Collaborative Recognition Award recipient Mick KeoghThe Egg Farmers of Australia Collaborative Recognition Award is presented to an individual outside of EFA members who has assisted the egg industry to progress forward with important issues.The 2024 recipient Mick Keogh is the deputy chair of the ACCC.Between 2020 and 2024, Mick assisted our industry to provide a sensible response pertaining to housing orders required for commercial layer hens during outbreaks of avian influenza.Mick has a diverse history of involvement with small business and agriculture.He has chaired a number of Commonwealth Government inquiries and ministerial advisory boards and is currently a member of the Emission Reduction Assurance Council.Mick is also a board member of the Food Agility Cooperative Research Centre and a former executive director of the Australian Farm Institute %u2013 an independent policy research institute that conducts research into strategic policy issues of importance to Australian agriculture %u2013 including eggs.In accepting the award, Mick also acknowledges the tremendous work of his staff and team at the ACCC. Egg Farmers of AustraliaAustralian egg industry awards held in MelbourneAward recipients Chris Verran and Peter Bell.