UWRF Humane Handling Institute

08/25/2026

We are happy to share that 33 trainees were certified in "Humane and Effective Cattle Stunning” after they attended both of our training sessions and passed their quizzes at the 2026 American Association of Meat Processors Annual Convention in Milwaukee earlier this summer.

08/24/2026

📨Our August newsletter went out last week and contains lots of exciting news. Check it out or stay tuned on our social media to learn more!

Check it out here:

Email from UWRF Continuing Education Stay connected with the latest happenings in HHI! THE HUMANE HAND: A resource for developing careful and confident livestock handlers in meat plants.   August 2026

07/31/2026

📨 In case you missed it, our July newsletter went out last week - https://conta.cc/4vyvPl6! Be sure to check it out to learn more about what we've been up to so far this summer! Highlights include:

👀 A reminder on how human and cattle vision differ, along with some video from our trip to McCarty Family Farms
🥩 Information about our ongoing partnership with MPSC
📅 Details regarding our upcoming workshops September and October
🍖 Highlights from our time at the 2026 American Association of Meat Processors Convention

07/14/2026

We are so proud to call Karly a part of our team! Learn more about her research by clicking on the link below! 🐮

The UW-River Falls College of Agriculture, Food and Environmental Sciences recently awarded five faculty research fellowships to expand dairy-related research through the Dairy Innovation Hub initiative.

The first awarded is Karly Anderson, is a scientist and trainer at the Humane Handling Institute at UW–River Falls. Her project examines how the placement of captive bolt devices affects brain structures responsible for consciousness in dairy cattle.

Get to know Anderson and her project at https://dairyinnovationhub.wisc.edu/2026/05/26/five-faculty-fellowships-funded-at-uw-river-falls-by-state-sponsored-dairy-innovation-hub/

07/14/2026

What a great couple of days at the American Association of Meat Processors 2026 Convention in Milwaukee!

Our team had the absolute pleasure of:
🐖Hosting an engaging educational session focused on humane stunning and building a humane handling plan!

🐮 Working with convention attendees during a unique hands-on training session focused on the humane stunning of cattle (including head anatomy, ideal stun placement, and equipment maintenance!)

🐐Talking with many people, answering questions and making connections at our tradeshow booth!

Thank you to everyone who attended, asked thoughtful questions, and shared your experiences. Events like these are a great opportunity to learn from one another and strengthen the future of meat industry together!

Special thanks to Emma from Wisconsin River Meats (AND a former HHI trainee😀) for providing support during the training session, and Ryan from BUNZL Processor Division for walking us through daily cleaning and maintenance of stunning tools.

Check out some highlights from this event below!

07/03/2026

Our team is looking forward to the American Association of Meat Processors Annual Convention in Milwaukee next week! We hope to see you there!

06/29/2026

Our team celebrated June Dairy Month by traveling to McCarty Family Farms! Ashlynn Kirk and Karly Anderson, along with Program Technician Megan Winkelman recently packed up the Cattle Vision Goggles and headed to Kansas! While there, they worked alongside the McCarty’s team to walk through cattle facilities (including milking parlors, treatment areas, cow lounging areas, and trailers) to see everything through the eyes of the cattle that move through them!
We appreciate the dedication that this team has to keeping cattle vision in mind to promote cattle movement through their facilities and were able to collect many videos for training materials to help others more accurately understand a cow’s perspective! One highlight of our experience was having several employees on the farm try the goggles on for themselves. Feedback including “now that I know how cattle see, it makes sense why they move like this!” is just one of the reasons why this trip was one to remember!

We’d like to thank the entire team at McCarty Family Farms for being so welcoming, and especially McKenzie Metz for showing us around!

06/19/2026

See you at the American Association of Meat Processors Convention!!

The Humane Handling Institute is giving a 2-part education session during our annual Convention in Milwaukee, July 9-11. If you attend both, you will earn a certification in the humane and effective stunning of cattle. Learn more about this and all the other great educational opportunities taking place during our Convention at https://aamp.com/page/convention

06/19/2026

05/28/2026