Livestock Innovation

LRIC in the news

Coming events

Ongoing until March 31, 2023: Showcasing Dairy Research Excellence in Canada Webinar Series by Dairy Farmers of Canada.

Register here

February 15, 2023: Poultry Industry Council Producer Update, Mount Brydges ON

Register here

February 22, 2023: Poultry Industry Council Virtual Update

Register here

April 19, 2023: Getting Research into Practice event, Grandway in Elora

More details here

May 17, 2023: Poultry Industry Council Research Impact Day, Elora ON

Register here

Recordings from past LRIC events

Livestock and data use Horizon Series webinar with Martin Gooch and Karen Hand

Livestock and plastic use Horizon Series webinar with Dr. Erica Pensini

More to food than composition - comparing the A&W Beyond burger to real hamburger with Dr. Michael Rogers

Funding opportunities

Please visit LRIC's website for more information on upcoming and currently open funding opportunities, including: 

• Egg Farmers of Canada 2023 call for letters of intent (deadline March 1, 2023)
• Genomics Applications Partnership Program (deadline April 4, 2023)
• Species at Risk Partnerships on Agricultural Lands (intake Mar 1 - 8, 2023)
• FoodShift Program
• Rapid Response for Business Development

Sector-specific innovation highlights

Poultry: How chickens fight Marek's Disease

Research from The Pirbright Institute in the UK has identified key differences in the immune response of chickens that are resistant to Marek's disease compared to those that are not. Chickens resistant to Marek's Disease produce more cytokines in response to the virus, paving the way for development of more effective vaccines.

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Swine: Mitigating heat stress in pigs

Changing the diet of pregnant sows could be the key to easing increasing heat stress episodes in pigs anticipated due to climate change, suggest researchers from the University of Queensland. Heat stress causes pigs to lose their appetites, reduces milk prduction, harms their gastrointestinal tracts and hinders piglet growth.

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Beef: Feeding Monensin to cows decreases intake but increases efficiency

Research led by Oklahoma State University shows that feeding mature beef cows the ionophore Monensin decreased their forage intake by 7.8% without affecting body weight and body condition scores. At the same time, milk production incrased by 5.4% and brought cows into heat more quickly after calving.

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Dairy: Explaining the complexities of dairy methane reduction strategies

Reducing emissions stemming from the dairy industry is a complex issue, says a new Rabobank report . The study outlines three important steps to help the dairy industry with methane reduction: aligning government and industry targets, incentivization of farmers, and a willingess by the dairy industry to embrace the need for accelerated greenhouse gas emissions reduction. 

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Cross-sector innovation highlights

Feed: New technology could make amaranth a feed option

Scientists in Russia have developed a new technology for deep processing amaranth that extracts 30% more protein than traditional processing methods. Amaranth is a protein-rich, gluten-free grain similar to quinoa that isn't currently used widely in agriculture because of high production and processing costs.

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Genetic engineering: Creating animal-crop hybrid proteins

An Argentinian company is hoping to make alternative meat tastier by inserting pork and beef genes into soybeans and peas to create hybrid proteins that are both plant- and animal-based. Moolec Science SA hopes its approach would make alaternative proteins more palatable to consumers - a stumbling block for current plant-based products on the market.

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Sustainability: Water conservation trumps drive for net zero

Water conservation and waste reduction were identified as the top priorities for agricultural business in a survey of environmental, social and governance priorities released recently by satellite communications firm Inmarsat. Only 29% of respondents identifed reaching net zero as their top priority, compared to 33% who want to reduce water use and waste.

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On the horizon

Agtech adoption on the rise around the world

The latest global survey of farmers by consulting firm McKinsey shows many farmers plan to try new products and practices over the next couple of years. The survey of 5,500 farmers across nine countries found that farmers are increasingly buying online, and digital payments are emerging as a growing trend despite 60% of farmers still perferring cash as the main method of payment. Western countries lead agtech adoption with farm management software the top technology used, followed by precision ag hardware. demand for biologicals for pest control and fertilizers is also growing.

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What's behind the falling popularity of plant-based meats

Some experts believe that plant-based meat's recent drop in popularity is related to its attempt to mimic real meat too closely. Designed to look, cook and taste like meat, the idea was to appeal to omnivores and flexitarians - people who would like to reduce but not eliminate their meat consumption for various reasons. But these products fall into the category of ultra-processed meat, which doesn't appeal to consumers who want healthy food with simple ingredients.

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Three big themes

Antimicrobial resistance
Beneficial gut microbes to improve poultry health

The University of Guelph's Dr. Shayan Sharif is leading a large research project that is looking at using beneficial microbes to improve poultry heatlh as part of the ongoing search for alternatives to antibiotics in poultry production. Birds with a healthy gut are less susceptible to pathogenic bacterial infections.

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Climate change
New study sheds light on potential environmental impact of cellular meat

A study from Ohio State University into the life cycle assessment of cultivated or cellular meat found that blended product - ones that combine cell-cultured and plant-based beef - had 87% fewer greenhouse gas emissions, used 39% less energy, 96% less water and had 90% less influence on land use compared to a conventional beef patty. A move to 100% cultured beef would use more energy than a conventional beef patty, but with less water and land use and lower overall greenhouse gas emissions, researchers noted.

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Emergency preparedness
A look back at Canada's last Foot and Mouth Disease outbreak

The threat of a Foot and Mouth Disease (FMD) outbreak is always at the back of producers' minds - it spreads easily, is extremely contagious and could cost the industry billions as well as take a powerful psychological toll on farmers. The last FMD outbreak in Canada was over 70 years ago in Saskatchewan. This article from Canadian Cattlemen details the outbreak of 1952 which cost the industry $500,000 in lost livestock and eradication costs, but over $1 billion in reduced livestock value.

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Thanks for reading. We'd love to hear your feedback about LRIC - both about what we're doing and what you think we should be doing! Please contact us at info@livestockresearch.ca with any questions or comments.