staff.matters
the Faculty of Agricultural and Food Sciences staff newsletter
January 26, 2012
Week Nine of the Winter Series of the Office of Research Services Orientation Series will be held on Thursday, January 26 in 540 Machray Hall from 1:00 – 2:30 pm. Human Ethics will be represented by Maggie Bowman/Bruce Teft and Research Quality Management will be represented by Monica Woods/Ricardo Soriano.
An Advanced Plant Science Seminar will be held on Thursday, January 26 in Room 130 Agriculture Building at 3:30 pm. John Heard, MAFRI, will be presenting “Soil Safari 2011: Manitoba to Texas and Back”. All are welcome to attend. Refreshments at 3:00 pm in atrium.
The Northern Plains Sustainable Agriculture Society's Winter Conference "Healthy Soil - Healthy You!" has been scheduled for Friday, January 27 and Saturday, January 28 at the Ramkota Hotel in Aberdeen, SD. For more information and online registration, visit the conference website at http://www.npsas.org/news-events/winter-conference.html.
Join the South Osborne Community Co-operative for their first "Community Conversation Series" meeting - the theme is Bees and Sustainability, followed by a screening of the film "La Reine Malade - The Ailing Queen" on Sunday, January 29 at FortWhyte Alive. There will be a panel discussion at 2:30, including Rob Currie, Entomology, Phil Veldhuis, long time commercial beekeeper and president of St. Norbert Farmers Market, and Charles Polcyn, president of the Red River Apiarists Association.
A Department of Entomology Seminar will be held on Tuesday, January 31 in Room 220 Animal Science/Entomology Building at 10:10 am. Invited speaker Dr. Annemieke Farenhorst, Department of Soil Science, will be presenting "Tales and thoughts from farm families in Central American agriculture: pesticides". Refreshments served at 10:00 am.
The Animal Science Seminar Series continues on Tuesday, January 31 in Room 219 Animal Science Building at 11:30 am. Invited speaker Mark O'Riley, Learning and Development Services, will be presenting a special seminar on "Respectful work and learning environment".
As part of the Human Nutritional Sciences graduate seminar series, on Tuesday, January 31 from 3:00 to 4:00 pm in Room 206 Human Ecology Building, Dr. Jason Treberg, Canada Research Chair in Environmental Dynamics and Metabolism, will present "Mitochondria - They do more than make ATP". All are welcome to attend.
The Manitoba Swine Seminar 2012 is scheduled for Wednesday, February 1 and Thursday, February 2 at the Victoria Inn Hotel & Convention Centre in Winnipeg (near the airport). The event features a group of speakers who bring a wealth of knowledge and experience to address various challenges and issues affecting Manitoba's pork industry. Topics will include the status of Lake Winnipeg, low cell breeding, practical finisher management, and impacts on sow longevity in the barn, as well as manure separation research results and a panel discussion focusing sow management covering everything from nutrition to health. Laurie Connor and Martin Nyachoti, Animal Science, are members of the Swine Seminar organizing committee. Go online for more information, including registration and full program.
Food Science M.Sc. Thesis Defense - On Thursday, February 2, at 10:00 am in Room 346 Ellis Building, Lindsay Bourré will present "Incorporation of selected pulse flours into dried Asian white salted noodles". Everyone most welcome.
The 55th Annual Meeting of the Manitoba Soil Science Society is themed "Managing Soil Moisture to Mitigate Risks" and will be held Thursday, February 2 and Friday, February 3 at the Holiday Inn Winnipeg-South, 1330 Pembina Hwy. Keynote speaker is Dr. Henry Lin, Associate Professor of Soil Hydrology/Hydropedology at Penn State. Program and registration details at http://www.umanitoba.ca/faculties/afs/soil_science/MSSS/.
An Advanced Plant Science Seminar will be held on Thursday, February 2 in Room 130 Agriculture Building at 3:30 pm. Kenton Lobe, Canadian Mennonite University, will be presenting “Our Contested Food System: Exploring Underlying Paradigms and Worldviews”. All are welcome to attend. Refreshments at 3:00 pm in atrium.
Week Ten of the Winter Series of the Office of Research Services Orientation Series will be held on Thursday, February 2 in 540 Machray Hall from 1:00 – 2:30 pm. Office of Research Services – Contracts will be represented by Barbara Crutchley and Lynne Hiebert.
A Department of Entomology Seminar will be held on Tuesday, February 7 in Room 220 Animal Science/Entomology Building at 10:10 am. Invited speaker Dr. Dirk Weihrauch, Department of Biological Sciences, will be presenting “Ammonia transport in insects: a story from the tobacco hornworm Manduca sexta”. Refreshments served at 10:00 am.
An Animal Science Seminar will be held on Tuesday, February 7 in Room 219 Animal Science Building at 11:30 am. Presenters Kane Christiuk, M.Sc., and Omar Dahab, M.Sc., will be presenting “impact of diet on fecal Escherichia coli populations from cattle in overwintering environments” (Scientific) and “low inclusion of a blend of organic trace mineral (Zn Cu, Fe and Mn) to broiler chickens diet is able to regulate oxidative stress” (Scientific).
A Public Faculty Seminar will be held Tuesday, February 7 at 7:00 pm, presented by Gary Fulcher, Food Science, on the topic "What's in Your Cereal Bowl? The Good, the Bad and the Ugly". It will be held in the Myrtle Lorimer Meeting Room, Pembina Trails Library (2724 Pembina Highway). There will be refreshments - the event and parking are free and everyone is most welcome!
A new advising initiative, Degree Exploration Day, is scheduled for Wednesday, February 8 in the Manitoba Room at University Centre from 10:00 am to 3:00 pm. It is designed to provide students the opportunity to explore the various degree programs offered at the University of Manitoba through a one day “fair”. Academic Advising personnel from all Faculties and Schools have been invited to provide an information and academic advising booth to promote their degree programs. The goals of this event are to advise students on their future course selections, application processes, admission requirements, opportunities and skill development experiences to improve candidacy for admission. Also students who are undecided about their degree of choice will have the opportunity to talk to Academic Advisors and Career Services and work through the exploration process.
The University of Manitoba's speaker series Visionary Conversations, hosted by President Dr. David T. Barnard, will next present "Water: Too Much, Too Little, Two Lakes". Join our expert panel for a discussion of water resource issues that impact the supply and quality of water, the environment and the future of this very critical resource to our existence. The panel of four speakers includes our own Annemieke Farenhorst, Soil Science and NSERC CWSE Chair - Prairies and David Lobb, Soil Science and Research Chair in Watershed Systems. The event will be held Wednesday, February 15 at the Robert B. Schultz Theatre, St. John’s College. Reception in Galleria - 6:30 pm - 7:00 pm - sponsored by the Alumni Association and then Panel Discussion – 7:00 pm - 8:30 pm.
The Canadian Organic Science Conference (COSC) will be held February 21-23 at the University of Manitoba in Winnipeg. This event will provide a forum for presentation and discussion of organic research in Canada and beyond. Leading scientists will present current advances in the field of organic agricultural practices. Information will be of interest to organic and non-organic stakeholders. For more information, contact conference co-chair Martin Entz at m_entz@umanitoba.ca or visit the website at http://www.oacc.info/cosc/.
The Growing Local Conference will be held February 23-25 at the Marlborough Hotel in Winnipeg. Celebrating five years as Manitoba's premiere food security event, this year's conference will once again bring together consumers and farmers, and everyone in between. There is a broad line-up of workshops and displays, and the keynote speaker this year is Winona LaDuke, author and activitist, who will speak on "Food Sovereignty and the Green Economy: Challenges and Strategies for the Social Justice Movement". More information regarding the event can be found online.
The Department of Agribusiness and Agricultural Economics is pleased to announce that Dermot J. Hayes, Pioneer Hi-Bred International Chain in Agribusiness, Professor of Economics and Professor of Finance at Iowa State University will be delivering our annual Kraft Lecture on Tuesday, February 28 in Room 172 Agriculture (Richardson International Auditorium). Coffee will be served at 2:30 pm and the lecture will begin at 3:00 pm.
The U of M Plant Science Graduate Student Association (PSGSA) will host the 28th Annual Plant Science Graduate Student Symposium (PSGSS) on March 23-24 here in Winnipeg. This two-day event is designed to bring graduate students together from across the border Universities and expose them to new plant science research initiatives taking place in other regions. Students from the University of Manitoba, University of Saskatchewan, University of Minnesota and North Dakota State University take part in the PSGSS which provides professional development, including oral presentations, keynote lectures, banquet and awards and numerous networking and social activities. To learn more, and to download registration and abstract forms visit www.umanitoba.ca/afs/psgsa and click on the conference link.
A correction to last newsletter in which we reported Western Grains Research Foundation Fellowship winner Sean Asselin as Peter McVetty's Ph.D. student, when in fact his Ph.D. supervisors are Doug Cattani and Anita Brûlé-Babel. (Sean is completing his M.Sc. with Peter.)
Congratulations to Victoria Ndolo, M.Sc. student in Food Science, who was a recent recipient of the James Barlow fellowship.
Aklilu Alemu, Ph.D. student in Animal Science, won a travel fellowship and attended the International Livestock Congress (ILC) held in Denver, Colorado from January 7-12. The travel fellowship was awarded to 12 students representing 11 universities from 7 countries, including Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, Ethiopia, and the United States.
Agriculture Diploma students Matt Lowry, Pat Flynn, Del Cowan and Darren Bestland, members of the Bisons men's hockey team contributed to the Bisons beating the first place Saskatchewan Huskies in Canada West standings for the second time in a row this weekend at Max Bell Arena. Come out and support our Diploma Students and enjoy some great hockey at their next home game versus Calgary on February 3.
Derek Brewin and Fabio Mattos, Agribusiness and Agricultural Economics, attended a conference in Saskatoon December 11-13 on the New Grain Marketing Environment, sponsored by the Western Canadian Agricultural Economics Departments (Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Alberta and Lethbridge). Derek chaired a session on the futures market. Speakers included Barry Prentice from the Asper School and past graduates of our program: Joe Jansen, Bill Wilson and Brad Vannan. More details at: http://www.kis.usask.ca/grainconference.html.
Julieta Frank, Agribusiness and Agricultural Economics, attended the Second Annual Canadian Agriculture Policy Conference in Ottawa, January 11-13. The Conference is organized jointly by the Canadian Agricultural Economics Society and the five Enabling Research for a Competitive Agriculture policy research networks.
Fabio Mattos, Agribusiness and Agricultural Economics, is now overseeing three new visiting Brazilian students who have recently arrived in our department and will stay here doing their thesis research. Gabriel Lemos is a M.S. student in statistics in the University of Sao Paulo and will stay here until May. His thesis will focus on agricultural insurance. Maria Alice Christofoletti is a M.S. students in applied economics in the University of Sao Paulo and will stay here until July. Her research explores how the informational content of different types of market participants affects prices and volatility in commodity futures and options markets. Rodolfo Silva is a M.S. students in applied economics in the University of Sao Paulo and will stay here until July. His research investigates the relationship between prices and volatility in international grain markets.
Dr. Jianjun Tian, a visiting researcher in Food Science from the Inner Mongolia Agricultural University, College of Food Science and Engineering, has arrived and will be staying until July 2012.
A big thank you to the student ambassadors and the diploma instructors that came out to Ag Days in Brandon to help staff our Faculty booth. The annual show draws about 35,000 visitors and has over 500 exhibitors. Thanks to Jackie Dudgeon, Nadine Mabon, Kelsey Bailey, Sally Parsonage, Dustin Godard, Ian Cook, Gabi Sponagel-Ridder, Ernie Steeves and Rheal Cenerini.
Ryan Cardwell, Agribusiness and Agricultural Economics, was interviewed for a Globe and Mail article (December 20) entitled "High food prices are here to stay".
Ryan Cardwell, Agribusiness and Agricultural Economics, was also interviewed on January 4 by CFMU radio about high food prices.
Derek Brewin, Agribusiness and Agricultural Economics, was quoted in the Wall Street Journal online December 7 regarding the CWB and the court ruling against the Minister which might cause some uncertainty in the wheat supply chain if it led to a new producer vote.
Rezai, K., Beta, T., Bern, C., White, P.J. (2012). Characterization of free and bound lipids among four corn genotypes as affected by drying and storage temperatures. Journal of the American Oil Chemists' Society (in press).
Certificate of Merit Call for Nominations - The Certificate of Merit is presented by the Faculty of Agricultural and Food Sciences and the School of Agriculture in recognition of leadership with agricultural organizations and outstanding service to the community at large. Two Certificates of Merit are presented to one graduate of the Agriculture Diploma program, and one to a graduate of the Agriculture Degree program. Nominations can be forwarded to Michele Rogalsky, Director, School of Agriculture at Michele_Rogalsky@umanitoba.ca before January 31.
Celebrating Teaching & Learning 2012 - University Teaching Services is inviting all sessional, pre-tenured and tenured faculty to enter their annual teaching contest. U of M teachers are encouraged to share the ways in which they are a trailblazer, maverick, innovator, etc. in their teaching. All submissions are eligible for a draw towards a FREE iPad 2 and will be published in the Spring 2012 UTS newsletter and/or the UTS website. To enter: Submit either a 250-word narrative OR a 1½ minute video. Visit http://bit.ly/xz48FP to enter. Deadline is February 1, 2012.
staff.matters is e-mailed bi-weekly on Wednesday afternoon to members and friends of the Faculty of Agricultural and Food Sciences at the University of Manitoba. The bi-weekly news deadline is Tuesdays at 4:00 pm. Email Crystal Jorgenson with your news or get in touch with your department staff.matters rep:
- Agribusiness: Barb Hewitt 9259
- Animal Science and Entomology: Mei Ding 6125
- Biosystems Engineering: Debby Watson 6033
- Food Science: Allison Cranmer 9621
- Plant Science: Bev Godard 8563
- Soil Science: Lynda Closson 8153