Adey Melesse Yalew concedes that a research career in livestock feed quality is an unusual choice for a woman raised in the capital city by a father, who was a banker, and a clothes-designing mother. “Originally, I wanted to be a medical doctor, but the available openings at university were so limited in 1990 that only a few applicants gained admission,” she says. “I saw family friends, who were agriculture graduates, being successful, so I pursued what has become my second passion.”