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THURSDAY. JANUARY 14. 2021 PICKENS COUNTY PROGRESS PAGE 3A
UGA researcher looks at wild birds and food safety risks
Olivia Smith, a postdoctoral researcher in the University
of Georgia’s College of Agricultural and Environmental
Sciences, began to focus her research on identifying the
food safety risks posed by wild birds.
By Sean Montgomery
CAES News
Following the onset of
several major outbreaks of
foodbome pathogens traced
back to wildlife, buyers of
farm-fresh produce began en
couraging the removal of nat
ural habitats and nesting
areas on farms to discourage
wildlife intrusion.
As this tactic became a
preventative measure tar
geted at limiting farmland
contamination due to wildlife
presence, Olivia Smith, a
postdoctoral researcher in the
University of Georgia’s Col
lege of Agricultural and En
vironmental Sciences, began
to focus her research on iden
tifying the food safety risks
posed by wild birds due to
agricultural intensification —
examining the various rela
tionships between farming
practices, land-use practices
around farms and crop con
tamination by birds.
With populations of birds
already rapidly declining due
to repercussions from agri
cultural intensification, this
solution is particularly prob
lematic because farmland re
mains an important habitat
for many species of birds.
“Birds provide important
insect pest control services to
sustainable farmers, so re
moving birds makes it harder
for these farmers to farm
without pesticides,” said
Smith. “Therefore, it is ex
tremely important to under
stand how much of a problem
birds are likely to be for food
safety and how we might re
duce that risk.”
With foodbome illness re
maining a major concern in
the U.S. and abroad, this in-
depth research is important
for harmonizing food pro
duction and wildlife conser
vation, while preserving the
general health of consumers
around the globe. Despite
widespread fear that birds are
a major cause of foodbome
illness, Smith’s studies
showed only one conclusive
study linking foodbome ill
ness back to birds.
“One of the greatest chal
lenges of our time is to figure
out how to feed 8 billion peo
ple while supporting a
healthy environment for fu
ture generations,” said Smith.
“Bird populations have
been rapidly declining, with
an estimated 3 billion birds
lost over the last several
decades. Meanwhile, a grow
ing body of research has
shown that biodiversity pro
vides important pest control
services to farmers. Thus, it
is timely and imperative to
understand how to best co
manage conservation, food
production and food safety.”
Smith’s findings, which
were published in the Journal
of Applied Ecology, suggest
that these natural habitats
around farms should be pre
served, as they may be bene
ficial for both food safety and
wildlife conservation efforts,
despite current recommenda
tions for promoting food
safety within the industry.
“We began the research to
understand how much of a
problem birds are likely to be
for food safety for small-
scale, organic farmers and
how farm management and
land use surrounding a farm
impact that risk,” said Smith,
who works with Department
of Entomology Professor Bill
Snyder. “It is extremely im
portant to understand the risk
wild birds pose to food safety
for several reasons.”
Beginning in April 2016,
Smith began accumulating
hundreds of hours of data
collection and collaborating
with researchers across the
country to prepare a manu
script for publication. Her
leadership and dedication to
the project garnered praise
from Snyder, who served as
co-senior author to the paper.
“Olivia entirely led the
field research that the paper
reports, and also all stages of
data analysis and manuscript
preparation,” said Snyder.
“Her project was challenging
because it included an inter
disciplinary team of re
searchers spread all across
the country, yet she enthusi
astically took on the chal
lenge to herd this big group
of cats. Her remarkable suc
cess in publishing her work is
proof of just how effective
she was as a team leader.”
Snyder echoed the impor
tance of Smith’s study and
the impact it will have on the
food production industry and
wildlife worldwide.
“Wildlife is thought to be
a key threat to food safety,
which has led to pressure for
growers to remove natural
habitats from their farms,”
said Snyder. “Olivia has
made a major contribution by
showing the natural habitats
on farms are the solution to,
rather than the cause of, food
safety threats posed by wild
birds. This is because diver
sified farms attract the native
bird species least likely to
spread human pathogens. So,
Olivia has shown that there is
no conflict between food
safety and bird conservation
— quite the opposite, as the
two actually go hand in
hand.”
Through her work, Smith
hopes to inspire a younger
generation of researchers and
students to keep moving for
ward even when times get
tough.
“Carrying out a research
project from start to finish
comes with many challenges,
but dedication and commit
ment will get you through to
the end,” said Smith. “It is
important to have confidence
and push forth with your
ideas.”
A native of southeastern
Michigan, Smith earned her
bachelor of science in biol
ogy from Siena Heights Uni
versity in 2013, a master of
science in fisheries and
wildlife from The Ohio State
University in 2015, and a
doctorate in biology from
Washington State University
in December 2019.
To learn more about the
UGA Department of Ento
mology, visit ent.uga.edu.
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