At the 2025 Joint Annual Executive Conference, UEP elected the following officers during the Board meeting: J.T. Dean as chair; Sherman Miller as vice chair; Sandra Lausecker as treasurer; and Peter Forsman as secretary. The Board also elected representatives for each respective Area, and 15 at-large members.

The Animal Welfare Issues Briefing, led by Chair Roger Seger, began with an overview from UEP’s Dr. Larry Sadler on UEP Certified Hatch Check and in-ovo sexing. Dr. Sadler reminded attendees that the UEP Certified Hatch Check certification is available and to reach out to him to apply. Dr. Sadler then provided an update on the success of the Unscrambled Egg campaign, new training videos on hen welfare and provided a state law summary with compliance dates. It was announced that USDA can no longer conduct UEP Certified Audits due to staffing cuts, but is still interested in being involved in the certification program.

Kim Rice chaired the Food Safety Briefing, where the discussion focused heavily on recent Salmonella Enteritidis (SE) outbreaks and how UEP can address the issue with various partners and stakeholders. Potential strategies discussed included working with AEB to develop a nationwide food safety training module or program for smaller producers, researching SE to see how it might have evolved over the years and working with the FDA to educate all producers on best practices.

The Environment and Sustainability Briefing was chaired by Doug Mack. Lauren Lurkins, UEP consultant, provided numerous updates on EPA air emission models, air emission litigation, PFAS biosolid risk assessments, Ohio Lake Erie litigation and the National Fire Protection Association sprinkler standard.

Brian Kreher chaired the Government Relations Issues Briefing, starting with updates from Louie Perry, UEP consultant, who provided an overview of the impact of the Reconciliation Bill on the egg industry, an update on the government shutdown and the skinny Farm Bill. Randy Green, UEP consultant, shared an update on UEP public comments on the USDA reorganization, the Ultra Processed Food Definition and presented on updates to the new dietary guidelines for Americans and the Make America Healthy Again report. Chad Gregory led a discussion around the need for a full-time UEP representative in Washington D.C.  and an update on the EGGPAC report, noting that donations are at 98% of the 2025 goal.

The Animal Health and Biosecurity Briefing, chaired by Sherman Miller began with updates from Dr. Craig Rowles on whole-house nitrogen depopulation research. UEP members were reminded to sign up for USDA Biosecurity Assessments and Audits, including small producers. Dr. Mickey Rubin with AEB provided an update on HPAI research with Dr. Brian McCluskey of Lonestar Epi Consulting. Discussion surrounded on HPAI vaccine potential, with Oscar Garrison, UEP, providing an update on research vaccine trials at USDA ARS, along with additional animal health concerns.