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The turkeys planned for many Thanksgiving tables are eating better, thanks to Michael Lilburn '74.

A poultry scientist with the Ohio Agricultural Research and Development Center (OARDC), Lilburn studies what gobblers gobble to help improve what farmers feed them. Healthier turkeys mean better health for those who consume them, as well as a number of benefits to the farmers who raise them.

Lilburn received the 2002 Research Award from the National Turkey Federation (NTF), a Washington, D.C.-based advocacy group for the U.S. turkey industry, for his work. He joined the OARDC - the research arm of Ohio State University's College of Food, Agricultural and Environmental Sciences - in 1987 and achieved the rank of full professor in 2000. Lilburn holds a master's degree and Ph.D. in nutrition from Pennsylvania State University, and earned his St. Lawrence degree in biology.

In technical terms, Lilburn's research focuses on intestinal development during late-embryonic and early postnatal development in turkey poults, the physiological mechanisms behind lipid transfer from the egg yolk into the developing embryo, and applied studies of protein and amino-acid availability from conventional and alternative feed ingredients. His work is published regularly in journals, and he is a frequent presenter at scientific meetings, conferences and symposia. In addition, he teaches at Ohio State's Columbus campus and works extensively with commercial poultry companies.

Posted: November 13, 2003