AG e-news March 12, 2018

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News and events from the Faculty of Agricultural and Food Sciences

UPCOMING EVENTS

Tuesday, March 13 – A Department of Animal Science Seminar will be held on in Room 219 Animal Science Building at 11:30 am. Paul Tamayao, M.Sc. student, will make the extension presentation “Effect of biochar supplementation on in vitro methane and rumen fermentation” and Angie Cerilli, M.Sc. student, will make the scientific presentation “Effects of lipid supplementation of sainfoin and sainfoin-grass mixtures on in vitro rumen fermentation and methane production”.  All are welcome to attend.

Tuesday, March 13 – A Human Nutritional Sciences Program Seminar will take place at 3:00 pm in Room 207 Human Ecology Building, with Lucien Cayer presenting “Association of oxylipins with pheno- and genotypic alterations in rats exposed to dietary 2-monocholoro-1,3-propanediol”.  As well,  Jessica Gutkin will present “Consumer Segment Profiles, Nutrition Practices, Health Attitudes and Key Drivers for Food Preferences among Rural and Urban Dwelling Baby boomers residing in Manitoba”.

Tuesday, March 13 – Ron Britton, Biosystems Engineering, is launching his book On Design: A Philosophy of Design and Engineering at 7 pm at McNally Robinson Books, 1120 Grant Avenue. While many engineering books speak to “doing” engineering, precious few focus on the concept of “being” an engineer. This is a book about how one engineer has reacted to circumstances that involve engineers, either directly or peripherally, including engineering successes and failures. It reflects on how engineers should—and hopefully do—fit into and contribute to our ever-changing world.

Wednesday, March 14 – There will be a Soil Science Seminar with Wennong Kuang, Visiting Ph.D. Student, Department of Soil Science, who will present “Linkage between Soil Profile N2O Accumulation and Surface Emission: Effects of Soil Moisture and Fertilizer Nitrogen” at 12:30 pm, Room 346 Ellis Building. Everyone welcome.

Thursday, March 15 – Manitoba Agriculture and the Northern Interlake Conservation Efforts (N.I.C.E) will hold Grain Information Day where you will hear the latest on Manitoba’s grain industry from grain experts. Event runs 8:30 to 4 pm at Arborg Bifrost Community Center. One of the featured speakers is Doug Cattani, Plant Science, on the topic “Intermediate Wheatgrass as a Perennial Grain.” Registration is $10 per person and includes lunch. For more information, call the Manitoba Agriculture office in Arborg at 204-376-3300.

Thursday, March 15 – There will be a Graduate Student Referendum on Faculty Endowment Fund contributions in the Agriculture Building – pizza lunch at 12:15 pm in the Atrium followed by presentations and referendum at 12:45 pm in Room 130 Agriculture.

Thursday, March 15 – As part of Nutrition Month, there will be a Body Talks workshop with Dr. Semone Myrie, Food and Human Nutritional Sciences, and Dylan MacKay, Community Health Sciences,presenting “Unlocking a Healthy Relationship with Food”, followed by a discussion at 12:30-1:30PM in the Active Living Centre Agora.

Friday, March 16 – The Manitoba Beef and Forages Initiative invites you to stop by their information booth from 11:00 am- 12:45 pm in the Agriculture Building Atrium. Representatives will be present to share information on current research being completed and new research opportunities for staff and students. Stop by for a slice of pizza and information on opportunities available to you.

Friday, March 16 – Do you have kids home on Inservice Day this Friday? Why not bring them out to the Farm and Food Discovery Centre for Dairy Day!  Explore the dairy barn and learn about how we get milk to make cheese and yogurt. Finish by helping to make some fresh ice cream. Cost: $5.00 per person over 5 years old, $3.50 3-4 year olds, under 3 free. Inservice Day events run from 10:00-2:00 on a drop in basis. Registration not required.

Friday, March 16 and Saturday, March 17 – The Plant Science Graduate Student Association (PSGSA) is hosting the 34th Annual Plant Science Graduate Student Symposium at the University of Manitoba in Winnipeg, MB. The theme for this year’s symposium is “Cultivating the Field of Big Data”. The event will host student presentations, 3-4 keynote speakers, and a variety of networking events. Graduate students from the University of Manitoba, University of Saskatchewan, North Dakota State University as well as other neighbouring universities are participating in symposium. The details of symposium is posted in website https://www.psgsa-uofm.com/ and will be updated in regular basis. This symposium is open for graduate students, undergraduate students and research associates/post-docs in faculty of agricultural and food science who are studying or conducting research in plant science or related discipline. For further information please contact: Plant Science Graduate Student Association https://www.psgsa-uofm.com/  (Anjan Neupane-neupanea@myumanitoba.ca).

Friday, March 16 and Saturday, March 17 – It’s time once again for Discover Agriculture in the City, a free, two-day event featuring interactive displays and live presentations from key organizations in the agriculture industry that will take place downtown at the Forks Market. This event allows urban Canadians to explore and discover the important role agriculture plays in their lives. On Saturday, come see the Food Fight at 12 noon in the South Atrium featuring our very own food product development students. For more information, visit http://aginthecity.ca/.

Saturday, March 17 – The next workshop in the Applied Skills in Food Preparation program is the Food Handlers Certificate course through FoodSafe Manitoba. Students get a 50% discount on the $100 fee. The workshops includes important information on safe food handling, and at the end of the course, students will take the Manitoba Health Food Handler Training exam. Workshop includes lunch and takes place at the Farm and Food Discovery Centre at Glenlea Research Station. To register email ffdc@umanitoba.ca.

Tuesday, March 20 – A M.Sc. Thesis Defense by Monica Cyr, M.Sc. Human Nutritional Sciences, entitled  “Honoring the Grandmothers Through (Re)Membering, (Re)Learning and (Re)Vitalizing Métis Traditional Foodways” will take place at 10:00 am in Room 104 Richardson Centre for Functional Foods and Nutraceuticals.

Tuesday, March 20 – A Department of Animal Science Seminar will be held on in Room 219 Animal Science Building at 11:30 am. Deepak Ettungalpadi, Ph.D. student, will make the scientific presentation “Canola meal utilization in sows”.  All are welcome to attend.

Tuesday, March 20 – A Human Nutritional Sciences Program Seminar will take place at 3:00 pm in Room 207 Human Ecology Building, with Kristen Fleet presenting  “Food Consumption in a Canadian Nationally Representative Sample”.

Wednesday, March 21 – There will be a Soil Science Seminar with Eric Bremer, PhD, R&D Manager, Western Ag Innovations, Cheyne Ogilvie, MSc candidate, CCA, PAg, Western Ag Innovations and Edgar Hammermeister, PAg, Manager, Western Ag Professional Agronomy – Manitoba, who will present “From Data to Decisions: Quantifying Soil Nutrient Supply Power Using PRS® Technology” at 12:30 pm, Room 346 Ellis Building. Everyone welcome.

Wednesday, March 21 – The next seminar in the Faculty of Agricultural and Food Sciences Seminar Series will be held at 3:30 pm in the Carolyn Sifton Lecture Theatre, 130 Agriculture Building. Jason Morrison, Department of Biosystems Engineering, will present on “Data Science: Lessons for Ag Researchers and Industry from a Burgeoning Emergent Discipline”.  Refreshments will be served at 3:00 pm in the Atrium. Everyone is welcome to attend.

Wednesday, March 21 – The Three Minute Thesis (3MT) Finals will take place 7-9 p.m. at the Robert B. Schultz Theatre at St. John’s College. Megan Bourns from Soil Science is a finalist with her presentation on soybeans – come cheer her and the rest of the students on!  Read more at http://news.umanitoba.ca/finalists-ready-to-put-spotlight-on-innovative-research-at-3mt-finale/.

Thursday, March 22 – A Department of Entomology Seminar will be presented by Dr. Mary Liz Jameson, Department of Biological Sciences, Wichita State University, on “Spatial scale and ephemeral resources: An insect perspective”. Refreshments at 10:00 am, seminar begins at 10:10 am sharp in 220 Animal Science/Entomology Building. All are welcome.

Thursday, March 22 – An Advanced Plant Science Seminar will be held in the Carolyn Sifton Lecture Theatre, 130 Agriculture Building at 3:30 pm.  Yang Lin, Ph.D. student, Plant Science, will present “QTL Mapping of Fusarium Head Blight Resistance in Two Winter Wheat Doubled Haploid Populations”.  All are welcome to attend. Coffee at 3:00 pm in the Atrium.

Friday, March 23 – The Department of Food and Human Nutritional Sciences invites you to an open presentation by Dr. Natalie Riediger, candidate for Assistant Professor position in Food Systems and Human Health. There will be a research seminar/lecture on “Equity in Consumer Food Systems: Policies and Health Outcomes” 9:30 am – 11:00 am in Agriculture Room 138. Pre-Seminar coffee at 9:00 am. Everyone welcome!

Friday, March 23 – The Project in Agroecology (AGEC 4550) Final Oral Presentations will take place in 344 Ellis Building. These seminars describe the fourth-year thesis projects of the Agroecology students.  Each talk is a maximum of 15 minutes, followed by a 5-minute question period.  See topic list at http://events.umanitoba.ca/EventList.aspx?fromdate=3/23/2018&todate=3/23/2018&display=Day&type=public&eventidn=15146&view=EventDetails&information_id=32846. Pizza and refreshments following the seminars. Everyone welcome!

Tuesday, March 27 – A Department of Animal Science Seminar will be held on in Room 219 Animal Science Building at 11:30 am. Jong Woong Kim, Ph.D. student, will make the scientific presentation “Net energy system in swine”.  All are welcome to attend.

Wednesday, March 28 – There will be a Soil Science Seminar with Dr. Assem Abu Hatab, Assistant Professor, Food & Agricultural Economics Group, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, who will present “Urban Sprawl, Food Security, and Agricultural Systems in Developing Countries: A Systematic Review of the Literature.” at 12:30 pm, Room 346 Ellis Building. Everyone welcome.

Tuesday, April 10 – You are invited to a public screening of the critically acclaimed documentary Food Evolution followed by an expert panel discussion. Doors open at 6 pm, movie starts at 7 pm and panel discussion at 8:30 pm. Panellists include registered dietitian Gina Sunderland, producer Paul Orsak, and researcher Mark Belmonte. Cost of $12 ncludes movie screening, beverage (alcoholic or non) & popcorn. To get your ticket, visit https://www.eventbrite.ca/e/food-evolution-movie-screening-panel-discussion-tickets-43213370354.

April 26-27 – Canadian Agri-Marketing Association Manitoba is hosting “Earning Public Trust – An Interactive Working Session”, a professional development event at Delta Hotels Winnipeg by Marriott, 350 St. Mary Avenue. This two-day event includes a full day working session that will feature representatives from some of North America’s leading agri-businesses, ag representatives and food brands. The second day consists of a half-day strategic planning session that will use the previous day’s best practices to help attendees apply them in the development of a Public Trust Strategic Plan. Learn more and register at http://publictrustcama.ca.

September 30-October 3 – Save the date for the 12th Congress 2018 International Society of Nutrigenetics-Nutrigenomics which will take place in Winnipeg, MB. Check out the website at www.isnn2018.org.

STAFF AND STUDENT NEWS

A number of awards were presented at Degree Grads Farewell on March 10. FASO major awards went to student Rachael Verwey, Katharyn Houston, and Jenna Bruneau . FASO minor awards went to Morgan McCormick, Erik Nielsen, and Seth Baker. The John Roth Memorial Award, given to a student who has demonstrated leadership and community involvement, has promoted faculty spirit and encouraged student involvement in faculty events, and has demonstrated a commitment to Agriculture, was presented to Jenna Bruneau. The graduating class selected Kim Ominski, Animal Science, as Professor of the Year.

The Department of Soil Science welcomes new Administrative Assistant Flor Toribe. She is originally from the Dominican Republic where she worked at Pontificia Universidad Catolica Madre y Maestra in Santiago for several years. She has a B.Sc. in Business Admin from that university and a M.Sc. in Service Leadership and Innovation from Rochestor Institute of Technology, New York. She is in Room 366and can be reached via flor.toribio@umanitoba.ca.

Peter Jones, Richardson Centre for Functional Foods and Nutraceuticals, traveled to Toronto to present at Pulse Canada Presents: Leveraging the Health and Sustainability Benefits of Pulses to Improve Food and Diet Quality.  The title of his presentation was “The Impact of Pulse Ingredient Inclusion in Cereals, Snacks and Bagels on Glycaemic Response, Satiety and Endurance”.

Michael Eskin, Food and Human Nutritional Sciences, was invited by Professor Oleg Medvedev, Chair of Pharmacology, Limonosov Moscow State University, to give a Master Class Video Lecture at a Pedagogical Conference for Teachers in Krasnoyarsk Medical School in Siberia on February 7. Because of the time difference, Dr. Eskin prepared a power point that was translated into Russian and presented by Professor Medvedev. The lecture was based on one of Eskin’s Lipid Raps, as Professor Medvedev has a Non-Governmental Center on “Healthy Nutrition” in Moscow where these raps are shown.

Chad Lawley, Agribusiness and Agricultural Economics, presented an invited seminar in the Department of Agricultural and Resource Economics at the University of Saskatchewan on March 2. He presented “Ownership Restrictions and Farmland Values: Evidence from the 2003 Saskatchewan Farm Security Act Amendment”.

A reminder that if you have additional thoughts on what aspects are important for our undergraduate degree curriculum renewal project, please send them to Brian Amiro (brian.amiro@umanitoba.ca).  We are especially interested in your views on current strengths, weaknesses, and gaps in any of our programs.

IN THE NEWS

Mario Tenuta and graduate student Abhishek Agarwal, Soil Science, were featured in Top Crop Manager (mid –March 2018) in the article “Verticillium longisporum of canola in Manitoba” – see page 32 at http://magazine.topcropmanager.com/publication/?m=1031&l=1#{%22issue_id%22:480515,%22page%22:%2232%22}.

Jared Carlberg, Associate Dean (Academic), was quoted in the article “Indigenous students invited to apply for summer internships” in UM Today (March 9) – http://news.umanitoba.ca/indigenous-students-invited-to-apply-for-summer-internships/.

Mario Tenuta, Soil Science, was quoted in the article “Manitoba poised to meet advancing soybean cyst nematode” in the Manitoba Co-operator (March 8) – see page 21 at https://static.agcanada.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/03/MBC180308.pdf.

Martin Entz, Plant Science, was quoted in the article “Farmer-based plant breeding fills organic variety need” in the Manitoba Co-operator (March 8) – see page 22 at https://static.agcanada.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/03/MBC180308.pdf.

Colin Penner, School of Agriculture, was interviewed in the article “Smarter than you think” in the Country Guide (March 5) – https://www.country-guide.ca/2018/03/05/ag-colleges-offer-students-insight-to-the-business-side-of-farming/52730/.

Magda Rogalsky, M.Sc. graduate in Soil Science, was featured in the article “Managing phosphorus and zinc in corn” in Top Crop Manager (March) – see page 32 at http://magazine.topcropmanager.com/publication/?i=478029#{%22issue_id%22:478029,%22page%22:%2232%22}.

PUBLICATIONS

Michael Eskin, Food and Human Nutritional Sciences, has just had his 15th book published by Elsevier Press. The book is volume 83 in Advances in Food and Nutrition Research and is titled New Research and Developments of Water-Soluble Vitamins. The book was organized and edited by Dr. Eskin and covers major new developments in water-soluble vitamins including the recent discovery of a water-soluble form of vitamin E, tocopheryl phosphate.

Yongbo She, Dylan MacKay, James House, Peter Jones. 2018. CYP7A1-rs3808607: A single nucleotide polymorphism associated with cholesterol response to functional foods.  Current Opinion in Food Science.  https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cofs.2018.02.013

Cardwell, R., & Ghazalian, P. L. (2018). The effects of aid agency independence on bilateral aid allocation decisions. World Development, 106, 136-148.

GENERAL NEWS

The Faculty of Agricultural and Food Sciences welcomes applications for Head, Department of Soil Science. Applications will be accepted until March 16, 2018 or until the position has been filled. For more information visit https://viprecprod.ad.umanitoba.ca/default.aspx?REQ_ID=01304.

The Department of Animal Science is seeking a Canada Research Chair -Tier 2 in Sustainable Food Systems Modeling. Applications will start to be considered on March 16, 2018 and will continue until the position is filled. It is anticipated the position will begin on July 1, 2018 or as soon as possible thereafter. For more information visit https://viprecprod.ad.umanitoba.ca/default.aspx?REQ_ID=01438

The Department of Biosystems Engineering is seeking a NSERC Industrial Research Chair in Grain Quality Management. Deadline to apply is  April 2, 2018. For more information visit  https://viprecprod.ad.umanitoba.ca/default.aspx?REQ_ID=01449.

Our fiscal year end of March 31, 2018 is fast approaching! Visit our Year End at the University website (http://umanitoba.ca/admin/financial_services/comptrollers/yearend.htm) to review the Year End Guidelines & Schedule for 2017-18 which includes frequently asked questions, key deadline dates, checklists & your Financial Services contacts to help you through the process.

The Manitoba Schools Science Symposium is an annual provincial science fair for students in Grades 4 -12 with approximately 350 projects per year.  They are currently recruiting judges for the 2018 fair.  This year it will be held April 27 – 28 at the University of Manitoba Max Bell Centre.  If you are interested in being a judge for the fair please register at http://www.msss.mb.ca/sfiab/user_new.php?type=judge.  For further information please contact the Judging Chair at judging@msss.mb.ca.

Crystal Jorgenson