The University of Arkansas has appointed Dr. Zena Herrera as an assistant professor of meat science and muscle biology in the department of animal science.
Herrera, who grew up on a small farm in southern Missouri, discovered her passion for meat science while competing on the University of Arkansas Meat Science Quiz Bowl team as a student.
She will serve dual roles with the Arkansas Agricultural Experiment Station and the Dale Bumpers College of Agricultural, Food and Life Sciences. Her research focuses on fetal programming, a field particularly relevant to Arkansas’s cattle industry.
Cow-calf operations, which raise calves for sale after weaning, represent the majority of cattle farms in Arkansas. Herrera’s expertise in fetal programming research is expected to benefit these producers.
The appointment strengthens the university’s animal science department and its research capabilities in livestock production and meat science.
