3 minute read
The importance of agricultural research
Courses offered in the bachelor of agriculture technology program include emerging technologies in ag, economics of precision agriculture, precision farming global positioning essentials and GIS for agriculture decision making, as well as specific courses related to the integration and use of ag technology in crops and livestock systems, farms and ranches. The curriculum looks at all platforms and all equipment brands. Students will specialize in either crops or livestock technological applications. Practicums will be completed at agriculture data companies, technology and equipment manufacturers, agriculture equipment dealerships, crop input service providers, private agronomist service companies, crop and livestock service centres, farms, breeding and genomic companies, and other related agriculture industries. Graduates of the program will find employment in a variety of agricultural production fields. The bachelor of agriculture technology program is the culmination of several years of consultation, research and development, says Crowe. It was established in response to demand from industry and students. More than 40 agricultural organizations and companies were consulted during an independent industry needs assessment. A student survey indicated strong interest in a degree program and identified curriculum interests in the area of agriculture technology. Students in the bachelor of agriculture technology program will complete their on-campus studies and hands-on training in Lakeland’s new Agriculture Technology Centre, which is slated to open later this year. The 8,000-square-foot building at the Vermilion campus will be an on-farm lab where students gain experience working with new ag technologies and analyzing new data-sets. Lakeland will also offer three other new programs this fall at the Vermilion campus: agricultural sustainability diploma, post-bachelor certificate in commercial agriculture production and an applied environmental sciences certificate.
Chinook Contract Research Team
THE IMPORTANCE OF AGRICULTURAL RESEARCH TO MOVE THE BAR OF EXCELLENCE EVER UPWARDS
While our farmers and ranchers make livestock production look easy by producing the nutritious, safe food we put on our tables every day, a lot of time and money goes into the improvements of farm tools and systems each year to advance the health and welfare of the livestock they care for. Take for instance, the recent research into the future development of the lidocaine-loaded castration bands for pain mitigation. To prevent injury and stress as the male calves get older, it is common for cattle producers to castrate male calves at an early age, making them less aggressive and therefore, reducing the incidence of harm to themselves and others, and improving their growth efficiency and carcass quality. You may have used a lidocainebased ointment if you have applied a gel to a canker sore; it numbs the area by blocking nerve signals in your body, giving you relief from the pain. The principle is the same with the lidocaineloaded bands.
Developed and tested in Alberta by Dr. Merle Olson, Nick Allan and their team with Chinook Contract Research, these bands provide pain relief for at least seven days after application. Their laboratory results have indicated that there is a quick release of lidocaine which helps to numb the area within the first 30 minutes. The field studies examined the effectiveness of the bands in an applied situation and found that the bands’ delivery of lidocaine to the tissues relieved pain and worked as well as if a person were administering the lidocaine in the form of an injection to the tissues. Over the longer period, the bands showed better results as the lidocaine injections wore off while the bands continued to provide therapeutic pain mitigation for at least seven days. Our Alberta cattle producers want to ensure their animals are cared for and healthy. These bands provide another level of assurance to beef producers that they can mitigate pain in their animals while avoiding surgery or administration of injections which take extra time and add stress to the handler and animal. The goal of the research team to have this product available to producers by 2022. With the recent transition of research from Alberta Agriculture and Forestry’s mandate, Lakeland College has welcomed Alberta Agriculture and Forestry’s beef researchers to their team to continue this important research. Watch for more new tools and discoveries as Lakeland continues to build on Alberta Agriculture’s legacy of excellent research.
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