*Gast, Richard K
Supervisory Microbiologist
South Atlantic Area
950 College Station Road
Athens GA 30604
(706) 546-3445
FAX (706) 546-3035

Mission:
The mission of the Egg Safety and Quality Research Unit is to protect both the health of consumers and the marketability of eggs by conducting research to develop improved technologies for egg production and processing that reduce or eliminate microorganisms that can transmit disease to humans or cause spoilage. Among the specific objectives of this research are determining how microbial pathogens infect poultry and cause egg contamination, understanding how poultry production practices can influence such infections, developing effective methods for preventing infection of egg-laying poultry by pathogens and for testing to detect infected flocks and contaminated eggs, and improving egg processing practices to reduce microbial contamination while enhancing egg quality.