Livestock producers will learn new ways to address odor problems on their operations at the International Livestock Odor Conference Oct. 16-18 at the Iowa State Center.

Gov. Branstad and Iowa State President Martin Jischke will attend the conference, as well as participants from more than 10 countries.

The conference will feature producer-oriented programs, scientific programs, poster sessions and a trade show. Each will deal broadly with livestock, particularly swine, cattle and poultry, said Hank Harris, co-chair of the conference.

“The real purpose of the conference is to bring scientists together to discuss current research,” Harris said. “We are expecting presentations from at least 10 different countries that should be very beneficial.”

Researchers from several countries will present findings in odor-related projects during the scientific programs on Oct. 16.

Poster sessions will be held at the end of the scientific programs. Brian Meyer, a communications specialist with the College of Agriculture, said: “The poster sessions are where the researchers set up a display about their work, in some cases an actual poster. There will be 20 to 30 displays, and the researchers will be available for discussion during that time.”

The producer-oriented segment of the conference, beginning on Oct. 17, will include general sessions that address economic, legislative, community, health and legal issues related to odors, Harris said.

Panel discussions will be held for experts to present practical information and demonstrations about using new or existing odor-control technologies in livestock operations.

The trade show will feature information from over 50 companies about the latest odor-neutralizing products. Tours of the Odor Evaluation Laboratory and the Swine Nutrition Research Center will also be available.