95 years ago today (24 January 1930), José A. Castelló was born — Director of the Real Escuela de Avicultura for many years. He is currently a contented retiree who tends to his half-dozen hens and continues learning and asking questions about everything that poultry science has contributed, and can still contribute, to feeding the world.
JOSE A. CASTELLO: BIOGRAPHICAL PROFILE
José A. Castelló was born in Barcelona in 1930. He completed his secondary education in Arenys de Mar and Barcelona, after which he enrolled in the Poultry Science Course at the Real Escuela de Avicultura, founded by his grandfather, Salvador Castelló Carreras, obtaining his Poultry Expert diploma in 1950.
After studying for a Merchant Navy degree, sailing for nearly 2 years aboard an oil tanker, and obtaining his Steam Officer’s licence in Barcelona in 1953, he joined the School, working in administrative duties and at the adjoining Paraíso farm. In 1957 he was awarded a scholarship by the International Cooperation Administration of the United States to further his poultry studies in that country, attending Penn State, Purdue and Arkansas Universities over several months the following year.
Upon returning to Spain, he engaged in intensive outreach activities, delivering lectures and writing numerous articles in various national trade journals. In 1954 he had been one of the few Spaniards to attend the 10th World Poultry Congress, organised by the World’s Poultry Science Association (WPSA), held in Edinburgh, after which he visited a number of British poultry farms. In 1959 he published his first work, “Alimentación de las gallinas” (Feeding Hens), which sold out very quickly.
From 1959 to 1996 he taught poultry nutrition and production systems at the Real Escuela de Avicultura. In 1973, following the death of his father, Federico Castelló de Plandolit, he assumed the directorship of the School. Over more than four decades, he trained a very significant proportion of the professionals currently working in the poultry industry in Spain. During the 2000s he gradually stepped back from his duties as his son Federico Castelló Fontova took over the directorship of the Real Escuela, with José A. Castelló remaining as Director Emeritus and contributing occasional articles to the now-defunct journal “Selecciones Avícolas“.
Prof. Castelló was one of the founding members of the Spanish Branch of the WPSA in 1961, serving as its Secretary from that date until November 2001. From 1967 to 1970 he served as Deputy Secretary of the 14th World Poultry Congress, held in Madrid in the latter year.
In 1970, the World’s Poultry Science Association (WPSA), assembled with its delegations from around the world, elected José A. Castelló as President of the WPSA, a position he held from 1970 to 1974, making him the first and only Spaniard in history to be elected President of the WPSA.
At the General Assembly of the following Congress, held in the United States, he was elected Honorary Past-President of the WPSA, and at the World Congress held in Turkey in 2008 he was inducted into the organisation’s “International Poultry Hall of Fame“.
Prof. Castelló has been author or co-author of 21 books on poultry science and rabbit production. In 1981 he completed a comprehensive “Tratado de Cunicultura” (Treatise on Rabbit Production), coordinating a team of leading national specialists; at 3 volumes and approximately 1,200 pages, it was regarded as the most extensive work ever written on the subject in any language. He undertook a similar project in 1995, when he finished leading a team of technical experts in writing a monumental “Tratado de Avicultura” (Treatise on Poultry Science), in 6 volumes, several of which were subsequently updated to reach a total of 3,600 pages.
In 1975 he was one of the driving forces behind the Expoaviga trade fair in Barcelona, of which he became the first President. He subsequently remained on its Executive Committee, participating in successive biennial editions through to 2010. In 2006–2007 he played an active role in the establishment of AviAlter together with Enrique García Martín.
He has directly published close to 900 articles on poultry science and has indirectly promoted or encouraged the publication of several thousand articles covering all areas of the poultry industry. His most recent bibliographic contribution has been the publication of “Historia de la avicultura española” (History of Spanish Poultry Farming) (2021), produced in collaboration with seven other subject specialists; at over 300 pages and featuring 200 photographs, it represents a comprehensive review of everything that has occurred in this field from antiquity to the present day.
Prof. Castelló has delivered numerous lectures not only in Spain but also in the United States, Argentina, Chile, Portugal, New Zealand, Mexico, Guatemala, the Netherlands, Italy and Brazil. He has attended every World Congress and European Poultry Conference since the 1960s, and has directed and/or participated in more than 100 poultry and rabbit research projects on nutrition and management topics.
Mr. Castelló is married to Nuria Fontova, has 5 children, 9 grandchildren and one great-grandchild, and still prepares himself a plain omelette for breakfast every single day of the year……
Annex: A LIFE “FOLLOWING THE FEATHER”
José A. Castelló has always been grateful to the poultry industry for enabling him to travel and meet people from all over the world; his hundreds of professional trips (listed below) have been among the most rewarding experiences of his life.
Below is a detailed record of some of Prof. Castelló’s travels “Following the Feather”:
| Date | Location | Purpose |
|---|---|---|
| Aug. 1954 | Edinburgh, UK | World Poultry Congress |
| 12/57–03/58 | Pennsylvania, Arkansas and Indiana (USA) | ICA Scholarship |
| Nov. 1960 | Utrecht, NL and Cuxhaven, Germany | European Poultry Conf. and Lohmann |
| Aug. 1962 | Andorra | RITENA |
| Aug. 1964 | Bologna and central-southern Italy | European Poultry Conference |
| ? 1965 | Lisbon and northern Portugal | Comercial Piensos El Sol |
| Dec. 1965 | Netherlands | Coop. CPI and Hypeco |
| Aug. 1966 | Kiev, USSR and Czechoslovakia | World Poultry Congress and Symposium |
| Dec. 1966 | Southern UK | Farm visits |
| Sep. 1968 | Jerusalem, Israel | European Poultry Conference |
| Sep. 1968 | Utrecht and farms, NL | Ornithophilia Fair |
| May. 1969 | London and central-southern UK | Olympia Fair and farms |
| Aug. 1971 | 5 States, USA | WPSA Presidency |
| Sep. 1971 | Switzerland | WPSA Meeting and Optigal |
| Mar. 1972 | UK and Scotland | Ross Farms |
| Apr. 1973 | São Paulo, Brazil and New Orleans, USA | Latin American Congress and New Orleans |
| May. 1973 | Southern Germany and Dortmund | Dortmund Fair |
| Jun. 1974 | South Africa | Anderson Farms |
| Aug. 1974 | New Orleans, Cal., Wash. and New York, USA | World Poultry Congress |
| ? 1974 | London and other locations, UK | TECNA-BOCM contact |
| Sep. 1976 | Malta | European Poultry Conference |
| Jan. 1977 | New Hampshire and Atlanta, USA | Hubbard and Atlanta Expo |
| Aug. 1977 | Hämeenlinna, Finland | WPSA Committee |
| Sep. 1978 | Rio, Brazil + Argentina + Peru | World Poultry Congress |
| Dec. 1978 | Ghent, Belgium | Chore Time visit |
| Aug. 1979 | Florida, USA + Guatemala | Florida farm and lectures |
| Oct. 1979 | Beekbergen, NL | Poultry Nutrition Symposium |
| Sep. 1980 | Hamburg, Germany | European Poultry Conference |
| Jun. 1981 | UK and Hanover, Germany | Farms in southern UK and Trade Fair |
| Dec. 1981 | Central France | Rabbit farm |
| Mar. 1982 | Paris Fair and Ploufragan, France | Experimental Station |
| Jul. 1982 | Amadora, Portugal | OECD Seminar |
| Nov. 1982 | Utrecht, NL | VIV |
| Nov. 1982 | Estoril, Portugal | Iberian Poultry Symposium |
| Mar. 1983 | Jutland, Denmark | ASA Farms |
| Sep. 1983 | Erba, Italy | Mostra Cunicultura |
| Apr. 1984 | Rome, Italy | World Rabbit Congress |
| Aug. 1984 | Lagos and Kaduna, Nigeria | Poultry Association Seminar |
| Aug. 1984 | Helsinki, Finland | World Poultry Congress |
| Nov. 1984 | Tel Aviv, Israel | Breeding farms |
| Dec. 1984 | Southern UK | Poultry abattoir and farms |
| ? 1985 | Malmö, Sweden | European Feed Team |
| May. 1985 | Acapulco, Mexico | Latin American Congress |
| Oct. 1985 | Ma’ale Hahamisha, Israel | European Nutrition Symposium |
| Oct. 1985 | Paris, France | SIMAVIP |
| Aug. 1986 | Paris and Loire, France | European Poultry Conference |
| Nov. 1986 | Utrecht, NL | VIV + farm tour |
| May. 1987 | Aarhus, DK | European Feed Team |
| Oct. 1987 | Königslutter, Germany, and Berlin | European Nutrition Symposium |
| Nov. 1987 | Belgrade, Yugoslavia | Poultry Seminar |
| May. 1988 | Beekbergen, NL | EU Seminar |
| Jun. 1988 | Oslo, Norway | WPSA Meeting |
| Sep. 1988 | Nagoya, Japan + Hong Kong + Thailand | World Poultry Congress |
| Nov. 1988 | Utrecht, NL | VIV + farm tour |
| Dec. 1989 | Southern UK | Harper Adams and farms |
| Jul/Aug 1990 | Utrecht, NL | VIV + farm tour |
| Dec. 1990 | Southern UK | Dalgety/TECNA and farms |
| Oct. 1991 | Venice, Italy | Nutrition Symposium |
| Jul/Aug 1992 | Ind., Cal., Ore., Fla., USA | World Rabbit Congress |
| Sep. 1992 | Amsterdam, NL | World Poultry Congress |
| Sep. 1993 | Jelenia Góra, Poland | European Nutrition Symposium |
| Dec. 1993 | Belgium | Roxell |
| Aug. 1994 | Glasgow, Scotland | European Poultry Conference |
| Sep. 1994 | Colón, Argentina | AMEVEA Seminar |
| Nov. 1994 | Utrecht, NL | VIV |
| Feb. 1995 | Southern France | Foie gras duck production |
| Oct. 1995 | Istanbul and Antalya, Turkey | European Nutrition Symposium |
| Sep. 1996 | New Delhi, India + Nepal | World Poultry Congress |
| Aug. 1997 | Tepatitlán, Mexico | AVECAO Symposium |
| Nov. 1998 | Utrecht, NL | VIV + farm tour |
| Apr. 1999 | Chillán, Chile | FIA Lectures |
| Aug. 1999 | Veldhoven, NL | Nutrition Symposium and farms |
| Sep. 1999 | Bologna, Italy | Poultry Product Quality Symposium |
| Aug. 2000 | Montreal, Canada | World Poultry Congress |
| Sep. 2001 | Maasmechelen, Belgium | Poultry abattoir |
| Sep. 2002 | Bremen, Germany | European Poultry Conference |
| May. 2003 | Les Landes, France | Toulouse Fair and farm |
| Nov. 2003 | Kunszállás, Hungary | Zucami Farm |
| Dec. 2003 | Lisbon, Portugal | Broiler Poultry Conference |
| Jun. 2004 | Istanbul, Turkey | World Poultry Congress |
| Sep. 2004 | Rennes, France | SPACE and Ripoche farm |
| Sep. 2005 | Balaton, Hungary | Nutrition Symposium and farm |
| Nov. 2005 | Vila Real, Portugal | Zootechnics Congress |
| Sep. 2006 | Verona, Italy | European Poultry Conference |
| Sep. 2006 | Chillán, Chile | Araucana Seminar |
| Jan. 2007 | Santarém, Portugal | Broiler Production Course |
| Jun. 2007 | Paris, France | WPSA Working Group |
| Sep. 2008 | Prague, Czech Republic | Poultry Product Quality Symposium |
| Sep. 2009 | Southern NL | Venco farms and poultry manure |
| Sep. 2009 | Antwerp, Belgium | WPSA Working Group |
| Nov. 2009 | Crete, Greece | Delacon Symposium |
| Aug. 2010 | Tours and Le Mans, France | European Poultry Conference |
| Mar. 2011 | Southern NL | Poultry houses |
| May. 2011 | Central NL | Laying farms |
| Jun. 2011 | Tepatitlán, Mexico | Laying Poultry Conference |
| Aug. 2012 | Salvador de Bahia, Brazil | World Poultry Congress |
| Oct. 2013 | Eindhoven, NL | Venco Heat Exchanger |
| Oct. 2013 | Zollikofen, Switzerland | WPSA Working Group |
| Jul. 2014 | Utrecht, NL | VIV |
| Oct. 2015 | Cambridge, UK | WPSA Working Group |
| May. 2016 | Utrecht, NL | Poultry Summit |
| Oct. 2017 | The Hague, NL | WPSA Working Group |
| May. 2018 | Utrecht, NL | VIV |
| Nov. 2018 | Hanover, Germany | EuroTier |
| Nov. 2018 | Molina, Chile | Mapuche Hen Expo |
| Nov. 2019 | Vechta, Germany | WPSA Working Group |