Research

For more than two decades, the Ontario Aquaculture Research Centre in Alma, Ont., has been a vital resource for research conducted by faculty at the University of Guelph and by experts in the Ontario aquaculture industry. Today, the centre supports the province’s rainbow trout aquaculture industry with new studies, and it’s seeking ways to diversify Ontario’s fish offerings so consumers have more variety.

“We are actively looking for new collaborations and new research ideas,” says manager Dr. Marcia Chiasson. “We’re open for business.”

Technological advancements in shopping systems, particularly automated shopping, have shown value during the COVID-19 pandemic. Dr. Simon Somogyi, a professor in the School of Hospitality, Food and Tourism Management, has looked at consumer behaviour patterns in grocery stores and how technological advancements can limit contact between shoppers. 

Antibiotics are a cornerstone of modern medicine for both humans and animals. But their widespread overuse has contributed to the development of “superbugs” that are increasingly resistant to antibiotic treatments.

Conventional wisdom suggests that the best way to prevent pneumonia in beef cattle is to boost the animal’s immune response — the capacity to recognize and defend against bacteria, viruses and harmful substances — during the transition period when calves are placed together in feedlots.

Field trials on the farm follow applied research projects once they leave the lab bench. Field trials are a great way to gather on-farm perspectives, and the province-wide network of research centres owned by the Government of Ontario through its agency, the Agricultural Research Institute of Ontario, is home to many innovative field studies.

A complementary approach is for producers to take the lead in developing research questions and conducting projects on their own farms, working in cooperation with a support organization.

Soil mapping provides farmers and policy makers with detailed information on the condition and characteristics of land. Traditional soil mapping, in which a surveyor collects soil samples and maps their locations, was an important first step toward better soil conservation and environmental sustainability. However, it doesn’t provide the kind of broad picture now possible through digital soil mapping based on greater computational power and availability of environmental data.

The Ontario government is investing $7 million into agri-food research projects that will support greater environmentally friendly agricultural practices, protect livestock health and welfare, and stimulate economic growth within the agri-food sector and Ontario’s rural communities.

Through the Ontario Agri-Food Innovation Alliance Ontario is supporting advanced agri-food research in collaboration with the University of Guelph on projects that include:

Apple crops rely on pollinators to reproduce, so growers often spend thousands of dollars every year to house and manage honeybee colonies. However, previous studies have shown that, when diverse and abundant, wild bees can provide significant pollination services in orchards. Depending on the apple variety, growers may be able to use fewer hives or none at all.

From mid-summer until the following spring, some Ontario fields lie fallow while others are covered with crops designed to rejuvenate the soil. University of Guelph researchers are investigating various combinations of cover crops to see which ones offer the best environmental and economic improvements. This long-term study is being conducted at the Ontario Crops Research Centre sites in both Elora and Ridgetown, coordinated by plant agriculture professors Dr. Manish Raizada and Dr. Dave Hooker, respectively.

Duffield and researchers at the Ontario Veterinary College (OVC) are studying metabolic disease in dairy cattle to explore potential solutions for farmers across the country. Duffield’s research is funded in part by the Ontario Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs through the Ontario Innovation Agri-Food Alliance with in-kind support from Elanco and Lactanet. Read the story on the OVC website >