Dr. Richard Gates, Director of the Egg Industry Center passed away on November 8th at the age of 67. Born in Plymouth, MN., he earned a BS degree from the University of Minnesota in Agricultural Engineering followed by Master’s and Doctoral degrees from Cornell University in 1984. Richard was a consummate professional engineer able to operate among disciplines as evidenced by his success in holding joint appointments in the Departments of Agriculture and Biosystems and in Animal Science at Iowa State University. He previously held faculty positions at the University of Kentucky and the University of Illinois.
Richard mentored over 100 students many of whom are contributing to advances in the design and operation of poultry housing and equipment. He was instrumental in establishing the Stanley L. Balloun Turkey Teaching and Research Facility at ISU that provides students in poultry science and agricultural engineering with hands on experience.
His many honors and awards include the ISU Iowa Egg Council Endowed Professorship awarded in 2020. Contributions to the egg industry include the Life Cycle Assessment conducted in 2020 and the Sustainable Ag Systems Initiative. He assisted producers with intensifying protection against avian influenza and was a member of the group conducting the National Air Emissions Monitoring Study.
The Dean of the ISU College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, Dr. Daniel J. Robison encapsulated the feeling of the industry in stating, “We lost a great friend, colleague, scientist and advocate for the food sector”. Richard will be missed but his creativity lives on in his students and colleagues.