Science needed to help feed growing global population
While many people view a plant based diet as the only way to satiate a growing global population, providing a balanced diet to everyone is a worthy goal, researchers write. And genomics can help us...
View ArticleGenomics may unlock future of disease control in swine
Researchers around the world are puzzling out swine genomics to reduce disease susceptibility in pigs. Last month Dr. John Harding told delegates at the Saskatchewan Pork Industry Symposium that...
View ArticleControlling Parasitic Worms with Genetic Selection
Scientists at the University of Guelph consider drug-free alternatives to control harmful parasites in sheep Media Release, Ottawa, December 16, 2013 Helminths are gastrointestinal parasitic worms that...
View ArticleCommunicating ag research top of mind in 2013
Looking back at what I’ve covered this last year, I realized I’ve been ruminating on how we communicate ag research and the issues around it all year. My reasons for this obsession are no mystery. As a...
View Article‘Food Age’ Favors Mongrels Over Purebreds
Look around and you’ll see less diversity in breeds among farm animals. Almost without anyone noticing some once popular breeds are now extinct or nearly so. And we’re not talking just a few breeds...
View ArticleSystems approach to livestock production
Whether you’re raising swine, beef cattle, or any other livestock, your operation is a complex system. Optimizing that system can include everything from improving animal husbandry to picking the right...
View ArticleCooperation needed to make beef industry competetive
At the close of 2013, the Beef Straw Man group published a report to spur the beef industry towards greater profitability, competitiveness, and sustainability. The final report covers everything from...
View ArticleStraw Man's impact on beef research
Last week we looked at the information flow component of the Beef Straw Man report, which calls on more information sharing throughout the beef industry. It’s worth noting the Straw Man designated BIXS...
View ArticleGenetically modified food changes mankind’s DNA? What, again?
Among the fears critics most often cite is that genetic modified food will change human DNA and life as we know it. In fairness this is probably true, after all farming has quite literally changed...
View ArticleGenomics research round-up
Canada is certainly no slouch when it comes to genomics research. But it’s worth doing a global scan to see what’s happening on the international scene. Here are three quick snippets of stories that...
View ArticleScientists find new pig virus for first time in U.S.
Scientists have isolated a new swine virus, distinct from PEDv, from hog manure taken from four different Ohio farms, Reuters reports. The disease doesn’t infect humans or other species and isn’t a...
View ArticleGenome Alberta Assembling Resources to Tackle PEDv
On February, 12th Genome Alberta hosted a webinar titled “Genomics approaches to respond to the Porcine Epidemic Diarrhea Virus (PEDv)” The webinar had more than 60 attendees from the U.S. and Canada...
View ArticleMapping out genetic resistance to bovine TB
Cattle producers in the United Kingdom are struggling to control bovine tuberculosis. But researchers at the University of Edinburgh’s Roslin Institute are working on a genetic solution to the problem....
View ArticleAntibiotics vs genetic tinkering in producing safe meat
We humans are facing a serious famine in the near future. Our population is growing at such a rate that it will soon be impossible to raise enough food for everyone if we stick to farming in the usual...
View ArticlePuzzling out larkspur resistance
With its delicate blue flowers, larkspur is an attractive delphinium. But it’s not a welcome sight to ranchers in Western Canada and the United States. Large stands can poison up to 10 per cent of a...
View ArticleU.S. Pork Industry Launches Three-Prong Strategy to Stem PEDV Spread
Media Release, Des Moines, Iowa – March 11, 2014 – The National Pork Board has announced additional funds earmarked for research in the fight against the further spread of Porcine Epidemic Diarrhea...
View ArticleOn-farm research "way forward" in battle against PEDv, researcher says
As the North American pork industry tries to contain porcine epidemic diarrhea virus (PEDv), Canadian researchers are hoping to round up funding for on-farm research into the disease. PEDv, which is...
View ArticleResearchers unravelling pigs' susceptibility to viral diseases
Canadian researchers are collaborating with researchers south of the border to figure out how a pig’s genetics play into its susceptibility to Porcine Circovirus Type 2 (PCV2) and Porcine Respiratory...
View ArticleBovine TB controversy: Do deer farms spread the disease to cattle farms?
Controversy rages over whether Chronic Wasting Disease (CDW) in deer and elk, specifically found in high occurrences on deer farms, is spreading to cattle farms. In cattle, the equivalent disease is...
View ArticleSocietal and Cultural Challenges of Agricultural Biotechnology
Agriculture is a major economic driver in Alberta but like agriculture in the rest of the world, there are challenges. Farmers and ranchers have low profit margins as the retail price of food seldom...
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