At the recent 51st South African Society for Animal Science (SASAS) Congress, Professor Edward Webb, Deputy Dean: Research and Postgraduate Studies in the Faculty of Natural and Agricultural Sciences (NAS), and his co-authors received the David Uys trophy for the best scientific article published in the South African Journal for Animal Science in 2017. This presentation was delayed as this year’s event was a combined congress for 2018 and 2019.

The award-winning article was titled "Influence of bioregion and environmental factors on the growth, size and reproduction of Bonsmara cows".

Despite being a renowned animal scientist, Prof Webb was still humbled by the recognition of his work and said: "I am delighted as this journal is an accredited ISI journal and enjoys international recognition. I am particularly proud as this award is made based on impact and citations."

He further elaborated: "Our research findings provided the first convincing scientific evidence of the validity of the theories that made Prof Jan Bonsma an international legend and resulted in the creation of the Bonsmara cattle breed. This research quantifies the effects of non-genetic factors such as the physical environment, temperature, humidity, soil-pH and fertility, feed and nutrients on the growth, size and adaptability of beef cattle in South Africa. I have been studying the underlying physiology of animal growth and development for many years, focusing mainly on the effects of nutrition and exogenous molecules. I feel honoured to be part of the research in this field, which is a privilege afforded to me by the University’s close association with the creation of the Bonsmara cattle breed."

Prof Webb has a C1 rating from the National Research Foundation. To date, he has supervised close to 70 PhD and master’s students and is currently supervising 12 master’s and PhD students. He has published more than 110 peer-reviewed articles and close to 50 full-length conference papers/keynote addresses. He was also the Head of the Department of Animal and Wildlife Sciences from 2005 to 2008, and again from 2010 to 2016, when he accepted the position of Deputy Dean in NAS.

He serves on the editorial boards of the following scientific journals: Small Ruminant Research and Animal Products: Small Ruminant Research (both published by Elsevier), the South African Journal of Animal Science, and Production Animal Physiology and Meat Science: South African Journal for Animal Science.