MANITOBA BEEF & FORAGE INITIATIVES INC

DR . MARY-JANE ORR, MBFI GENERAL MANAGER

Through 2021 Manitoba Beef & Forage Initiatives (MBFI) has continued to adjust to the ‘new normal’ of operating in a pandemic under ever changing public health restrictions . As a not-for-profit research and demonstration farm in partnership with Manitoba Beef Producers (MBP), Ducks Unlimited Canada (DUC), Manitoba Forage & Grassland Association (MFGA), and Manitoba Agriculture and Resource Development (MB ARD), we are positioned to quickly adapt to changing requirements to support collaborators in their research needs .

At MBFI’s Annual General Meeting new directors Matthew Atkinson, an MBP director from District 8, and Laura Plett, a producer from Stead, were confirmed to our board of directors . They join Tracy Gilson (Chair), Kristine Tapley (Vice Chair), Tyler Fewings (Treasurer), Melissa Atchison, and Lawrence Knockaert on the 2021-2022 board . MBFI recognizes the service and dedication of outgoing directors Tyler Fulton and Ken Gross . We thank you for your commitment to MBFI and wish you all the best in your future work!

The 2021 summer student cohort, including Lauren McKee, Maeghan McDonald, Rylee Paterson, and Josie Pedersen were a fantastic group that arrived ready to learn and work hard . We are thankful for the opportunity to work with the next generation of beef producers and share the experience with students new to farm production . MBFI Extension Coordinator Jordan Dickson had a beautiful baby girl this fall and we wish the proud new parents all the best over the coming year! MBFI has welcomed Ron Kristjansson to the team, joining Leah Rodvang and Clayton Robins .

MBFI is deeply appreciative of our dedicated board of directors, full time staff, summer students, and collaborators that have been highly adaptable and worked diligently to fulfill our mission to advance the Manitoba beef and forage industry by engaging stakeholders, evaluating on-farm innovation, and providing extension for sustainability of farmers, the public, and the environment . In short, our mission is to engage, evaluate, and extend .

Engage

MBFI works to engage stakeholders in the beef and forage industry to build relationships across academic institutions, industry, producers, students, and the public . MBFI is excited to partner with organizations to create opportunities for hands-on learning, build public awareness of agriculture, and collaborate in on-farm research project development . Highlights from 2021 include working with 4-H Manitoba in their purchase of a model dystocia simulator that will be housed in the MBFI Learning Centre . The full-size cow and calf model will demonstrate the birthing process and techniques to assist in-utero mal-presentation . Stay tuned for news in 2022 for opportunities to see the model in action .

Another highlight is the signature of a Memorandum of Understanding for research collaboration between Assiniboine Community College (ACC) and MBFI, recognizing the mutual benefits gained through promoting research activities and production extension . Over the school year MBFI has hosted ACC student site visits to our farm stations and is working one-on-one with students in multiple Capstone projects .

Evaluate

Evaluation of on-farm innovations and proposed beneficial management practices at MBFI’s farm stations provide a place to see practices in action and a basis of observed data for management decisions to support industry and environmental sustainability . In the 2021 field season there were four Tier I demonstration projects, designed as case studies, and six Tier II projects designed with randomized treatment replication and or control treatment to assess if the practice(s) perform better than a comparison under the conditions at MBFI . Demonstration project leaders are now busy completing annual reports to be published on MBFI’s webpage in the spring of 2022 . There were also seven active academic research studies hosted at MBFI over the last year .

As a component of MBFI’s Canadian Agricultural Partnership grant, we are eagerly working towards completing plans to increase our capacity for livestock and crop monitoring research equipment . Investment in research tools and new technologies is focused on addressing current gaps in capacity and on creating opportunities beyond current projects to attract researchers and incentivize innovative studies . Virtual fencing is one highlight that we will be excited to showcase at MBFI as the technology becomes available in Canada .

Looking forward to the 2022 field season a new project intake is currently underway, with proposals to be reviewed by MBFI’s Research Advisory Committee in early 2022 . A sampling of potential topics includes continued work with annual forages in diverse mixtures for greenfeed production and grazing, regeneration of saline areas, comparing different forage mixes for sod seeding in a marginal pasture, forage species demonstration plots at both the Brookdale Farm and First Street pasture, comparing grazing at different utilization and rest periods, and overall benchmarking of soil health, pasture health, and livestock performance . To make a project suggestion or for more information check out MBFI’s webpage at www .mbfi .ca/research or email information@mbfi .ca .

Extend

Extension and education programming at MBFI is founded in on-farm research and demonstration studies to promote excellence, efficiency, and sustainability of practices . Over 2021, an increased emphasis was placed on creating virtual content through collection of video content from project leaders and in hosting webinars . In our first webinar, Dr . Samuel Wauer (Merck Animal Health) presented on how to make the learning curve less steep on implementing artificial insemination . The President’s Student Leadership Project student group, in collaboration with MBFI and DUC, hosted a webinar for university students to raise awareness of the role of beef cattle in grassland conservation in Manitoba . MBFI also hosted a webinar for cover cropping on the Canadian Prairies, with Callum Morrison presenting findings from the 2020 Prairie Cover Crop Survey . Video content and webinar recordings are available for viewing through our website (www .mbfi .ca/video-gallery) .

In-person field tours were slow to start in the summer, and we were eager to be a host site for the Manitoba Soil Science Society field tour . The format was designed for smaller groups with presentations in the field from Michelle Erb (MB ARD) and Curtis Cavers (University of Manitoba) at an open soil pit showcasing the Newdale soil series, Brandon University graduate student Adriana Avila working with Dr . Alex Koiter on the effect of grazing management of riparian zones on phosphorus distribution, and Dr . Terence McGonigle (Brandon University) on estimating soil carbon stocks to 100 cm depth in different pasture systems . Later in August, MBFI hosted a Brookdale Farm field day showcasing increased grass productivity under planned rotational grazing, a demonstration of estimating grazing days, diverse annual forages to extend grazing, and a snapshot of findings from the 2020 Prairie Cover Crop Survey .

Activities in the Brookdale Farm Learning Centre have slowly started up again with bookings for industry meetings at a reduced capacity with vaccination requirements . In December I was thrilled to participate in a Holistic Management course at the Learning Centre . While restricted to the small group size, it provided a great opportunity to get to know producer participants and educators while learning tools to improve the MBFI farm operations . Planning for events in 2022 include in-person and virtual hybrid events for grazing planning, ins and outs of electric fencing, and solar power options for watering systems .

Looking forward to 2022, MBFI is eager to publish findings from completed field studies, continue building partnerships, and to provide extension programing that can be tailored to diverse audiences .