AG e-news May 29, 2020
News and events from the Faculty of Agricultural and Food Sciences
UPCOMING EVENTS
Want to take a virtual field trip to the Bruce D. Campbell Farm and Food Discovery Centre? To help at-home learners, the FFDC is adapting its field trip activities and releasing a new one each week, along with resources from its partners. From Pizza parties to scavenger hunts and virtual reality tours, you and your your young learners will find lots of hands-on fun. Learn more at https://news.umanitoba.ca/take-a-virtual-field-trip-with-the-farm-and-food-discovery-centre/.
Learning & Organizational Development have moved many of their workshops to a synchronous online format, particularly those in their certificate programs. Please check LODReg for workshops located “Online.” Examples of these include Time Management, Effective Virtual Meetings, and Conversational Skills. They are also offering new one-hour Learning Labs for groups and teams (topics include “So now you are working from home…Challenges and Opportunities” and “Resiliency.”) To register or learn more about an LOD Workshop, please visit https://umanitoba.gosignmeup.com/Public/Course/Browse. If you are interested in scheduling a session for your unit, please contact Joshua Hartlin at Joshua.Hartlin@umanitoba.ca for more information.
Wednesday, June 3 – This year’s Three Minute Thesis (3MT®) competition final will look a little different than in previous years. The Faculty of Graduate Studies is excited to announce that the event will be broadcast online starting at 7:00 pm on June 3. Join us to cheer on FAFS students Xiang Li, Food Science, and Jessica Nicksy, Soil Science! At the final competition on June 3, the judges will choose the top three, and the audience will vote for People’s Choice. Students will compete for the Dr. Archie McNicol Prize for First Place ($2,500) and advance to the Western Canada Regional Competition to be held later this year, the UM Retirees Prize for Second Place ($1,250), Third Place ($750), and the People’s Choice award ($250). See the complete heat list at http://umanitoba.ca/faculties/graduate_studies/3mt/finalists.html and register to watch at https://3mtfinals.eventbrite.ca/.
Thursday, June 4 – Join us on Facebook at 7:00 pm for a live viewing of Shining Armour: The Margaret-Ann Armour Story. This short film commemorates Margaret-Ann Armour and her contribution to science, learning and mentorship. The file traces the profound and rippling effects of Margaret-An’s legacy through those she mentored. This short (20 mins) documentary-style film was a project supported by Annemieke Farenhorst’s NSERC Chair for Women in Science and Engineering, and was professionally produced by As It Happened Productions. https://www.facebook.com/Shining-Armour-The-Margaret-Ann-Armour-Story-111640293885201
Monday, June 8 – You are invited to celebrate National Insect Appreciation Day (NAIAD) with thousands of insect enthusiasts, amateurs, and professionals all across Canada by participating in the “insect picture challenge” on social media. You will need to post at least one picture of an insect on June 8, and include the hashtags #InsectPictureChallenge and #NationalinsectDay, while also challenging five friends to the challenge. You can use Twitter, Facebook or Instagram. Sponsored by the Entomological Society of Canada (https://esc-sec.ca/). They hope that this challenge will prompt the public to develop their curiosity towards insects and raise awareness about the presence of insects all around us.
Wednesday, June 24 – The University of Manitoba Seniors’ Alumni Learning for Life Program has gone online, and hosts free weekly lectures from UM experts on a variety of topics, including addiction, cannabis use and the emergence and spread of a pandemic in the age of social media. The June 24 session will feature Derek Brewin, Agribusiness and Agricultural Economics, and Barry Prentice, Supply Chain Management, Asper School of Business, at 1:00 pm entitled “COVID-19 and the Canadian Food Supply Chain”. These sessions are open to everyone. To see the full schedule and to register, visit http://umanitoba.ca/community/alumni/virtual-learning-life-program.
July 2020 – The Crop Diagnostics School is going virtual in 2020. The Crop Diagnostic School is designed to refine the diagnostic skills of agronomists and producers involved in field scouting and assessing crop health. This event is organized by Manitoba Agriculture and Resource Development and the University of Manitoba. This year, the Crop Diagnostic School will be offered as a virtual learning experience. Visit the CDS website https://www.gov.mb.ca/agriculture/crops/crop-diagnostic-services/manitoba-crop-diagnostic-school.html for more details. Registration will open at this site on June 1; fees to be determined. Certified Crop Advisor and Certified Crop Science Consultant credits are available.
STAFF AND STUDENT NEWS
The Faculty of Agricultural and Food Sciences mourns the passing of retired Biosystems Engineering staff member and much-loved instructor Jim Philp who died on May 12, 2020. Read more at https://news.umanitoba.ca/remembering-jim-philp-award-winning-teacher/.
Michael Eskin, Food and Human Nutritional Sciences, has been named the 2020 recipient of the Supelco AOCS (American Oil Chemists Society) Research Award. Read more at https://news.umanitoba.ca/food-chemist-recognized-for-outstanding-research/.
The patent-pending technology developed by Chengbo Yang, Animal Science, and Francis Lin, Physics and Astronomy, was the basis of a business proposal that took an Asper MBA business venture team to the final round of the 2020 SCG Bangkok Business Challenge, Asia’s longest-running global student start-up competition. Team MYCA, which included Sankalp Kalra, Meycee Kalaw, Paul-Emile Crevier, and Yusuf Kacama, was selected as one of the six finalists from a pool of 208 teams representing 83 institutions and 24 countries. Read more at https://news.umanitoba.ca/asper-mba-students-excel-at-international-business-plan-competition/.
Plant Biotechnology student and world-class swimmer Kelsey Wog was named Canada West Female Athlete of the Year, and will move forward as one of the Canada West nominees for the prestigious Lieutenant Governor Athletic Awards, which honour the nation’s top male and female student-athletes. Those awards will be announced on June 25th. According the UM Today article documenting her accomplishment, “By the time Kelsey Wog’s record-setting career at UM is complete, the hometown product will go down as one of the greatest student-athletes in school history.” Read more at https://news.umanitoba.ca/bisons-kelsey-wog-named-canada-west-female-athlete-of-the-year/
Two Food and Human Nutritional Sciences Ph.D. candidates successfully defended their doctoral theses. Ala’a Eideh (Advisor: J. House, Food and Human Nutritional Sciences) defended “Nutrigenetic and Metabolomic Approaches to Study the Role of Dietary Antioxidants and Plant Bioactives in Human Health” and Ethendhar Rajendiran (Co-Advisors: V. Ramprasath & J. House; Food and Human Nutritional Sciences) defended “Gut Microbiome and Genetic Heterogeneity in the Impact of Dietary Fat Consumption from Different Sources on Cholesterol Metabolism in Humans”.
Jim House, Food and Human Nutritional Sciences presented a webinar on May 11 entitled “Prairie Protein Quality and Functionality Research Ecosystem” to the Bridge2Food Global Plant-Based Foods Ecosystem collaboration based in the Netherlands. He will also be presenting at the Bridge2Food Virtual 15th Plant-Based Foods & Proteins Summit North America 2020, June 22-25, related to research conducted in his collaborative network on protein quality.
Five members of Jim House’s lab in Food and Human Nutritional Sciences participated in the Canadian Nutrition Society’s Virtual Poster Showcase May 7 – 15 including Adam Franczyk, Gerardo Medina, Taryn Bailey, Shengnan Li and Neijat Mohamed.
IN THE NEWS
Heads up – watch for an upcoming The Conversation Canada article co-authored by Dean Martin Scanlon – https://theconversation.com/ca.
Kateryn Rochon, Entomology, and Karin Wittenberg, Animal Science, were interviewed on Quirks and Quarks on CBC in “Prairie farmer says he’s ‘pretty much gambling’ with unstable conditions — made worse by climate change” (May 22) – https://www.cbc.ca/radio/quirks/prairie-farmer-says-he-s-pretty-much-gambling-with-unstable-conditions-made-worse-by-climate-change-1.5577294.
Yvonne Lawley, Plant Science, was featured in a video on Manitoba Co-operator entitled “Making cover crops work in Manitoba” (May 28) – https://www.manitobacooperator.ca/video/making-cover-crops-work-in-manitoba/.
Ryan Cardwell, Agribusiness and Agricultural Economics, was quoted in the article “Global food trade defended” in the Western Producer (May 26) – https://www.producer.com/2020/05/global-food-trade-defended/
Ryan was also quoted in the article “Economists say farmers will likely be OK during COVID” in the Western Producer (May 21) – https://www.producer.com/2020/05/economists-say-farmers-will-likely-be-ok-during-covid/
Ryan authored the op-ed “Food and agricultural markets during a pandemic: Insights from economists” which appeared in the Manitoba Co-operator (May 1) – https://www.manitobacooperator.ca/news-opinion/news/food-and-agricultural-markets-during-a-pandemic-insights-from-economists/
Nazim Cicek, Biosystems Engineering, authored an op-ed entitled “Pandemic creates opportunity for change” in the Winnipeg Free Press (May 12) – https://www.winnipegfreepress.com/opinion/analysis/pandemic-creates-opportunity-for-change-570396322.html.
Rob Currie, Entomology, was quoted in the CTV News story “‘Murder hornets’ may spread east from B.C. if not eradicated, entomologist says” (May 4) – https://www.ctvnews.ca/sci-tech/murder-hornets-may-spread-east-from-b-c-if-not-eradicated-entomologist-says-1.4923941. Rob was also interviewed by multiple media sources (Weather Network, SiriusXM, Canadian Geographic, CBC).
Kateryn Rochon, Entomology, was quoted in the CTV News story “Warmer weather means it’s time to watch for ticks and Lyme disease” (May 1) and “Ticks active again in Manitoba” (May 4) – https://winnipeg.ctvnews.ca/warmer-weather-means-it-s-time-to-watch-for-ticks-and-lyme-disease-1.4921406 and https://winnipeg.ctvnews.ca/ticks-active-again-in-manitoba-1.4924551.
Derek Brewin, Agribusiness and Agricultural Economics, and Barry Prentice, Supply Chain Management, Asper School of Business, co-auothored the op-ed “CAOVID-19 and the Canadian food supply chain which appeared on UMToday (April 9) and in the Manitoba Co-operator – https://news.umanitoba.ca/covid-19-and-the-canadian-food-supply-chain/
Don Flaten, Soil Science, was quoted in the article “Collaborate with cattle for improved soil biology” in Top Crop Manager (April 8) – https://www.topcropmanager.com/collaborate-with-cattle-for-improved-soil-biology/
Kim Ominski and Rhea Teranishi, Animal Science, and Mario Tenuta, Soil Science, were featured in the article “Clearing the air, one cow at a time” in Manure Manager (April 4) – https://www.manuremanager.com/clearing-the-air-one-cow-at-a-time/
PUBLICATIONS
Veilleux, J., Ross, F., and Holliday, N.J. 2020 Bionomics of Scolytus schevyrewi (Coleoptera: Curculionidae) in Saskatchewan and Manitoba, Canada. The Canadian Entomologist (2020), 152, 183–199.
Helbig, M., J.M. Waddington, P. Alekseychik, B.D. AMIRO, and 56 others. 2020. Increasing contribution of peatlands to boreal evapotranspiration in a warming climate. Nature Climate Change. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41558-020-0763-7. (Note that Nature Climate Change has a high Impact Factor of 19.181)
MacMillan K.P and R. H. Gulden. 2020. Effect of seeding date, environment and cultivar on soybean seed yield, yield components, and seed quality in the Northern Great Plains. Agronomy Journal; 1-13. https://doi.org/10.1002/agj2.20185
Eskin, N.A.M., Chen, G., Sha, S., Aladedunye, F, Unger, E. and Jones, P. 2020. Canola Oil Chapter in Bailey Industrial Oil and Fat Products, Eighth edition (F. Shahidi, editor-in-chief). John Wiley & Sons, Inc., New York.
Rahman, Md. J., Liang, J., Eskin, N.A.M. and Eck, P. 2020. Identification of hydroxycinnamic acid derivatives of selected Canadian and foreign commercial beer extracts and determination of their antioxidant properties. LWT-Food Science and Technology. 122.
Kapourchali, F.R., Louis, X.L., Eskin, N.A.M. and Suh, M. 2020. A pilot study on the effect of early provision of dietary docosahexaenoic acid on testis development, functions, and sperm quality in rats exposed to prenatal ethanol. Birth Defects Research. 112(1), 93-104.
Vafaei, N, Marat, K., Jones, P.J., Rempel, C.B., Eskin, N.A.M. and Scanlon, M. 2020. Interesterification of soybean oil with propylene glycol in supercritical carbon dioxide and analysis by NMR spectroscopy. Applied Biochemistry and Biotechnology.
Feltham, B.A., Louis, X.L., Eskin, N.A.M. and Suh, M.2020. Docosahexaenoic acid: A potential therapeutic nutrient to combat the prenatal alcohol-induced insults on brain development. Advances in Nutrition.
Nosworthy, M.G., Medina, G., Franczyk, A.J., Neufeld., J., Appah, P., Utioh, A., Frohlich, P, and House, J.D. Thermal processing methods differentially affect the protein quality of chickpea (Cicer arietinum). Food Sci. Nutr. https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1002/fsn3.1597. This is the final paper in a series of papers exploring the impact of processing methods on the quality of pulse proteins. This work represents a collaboration between UM, the Food Development Centre in Portage la Prairie, and the Canadian International Grains Institute. The results from this study can be used by the food industry in designing plant-based foods with protein content claims.
The Canadian Journal of Agricultural Economics has out a special issue on the effects of COVID-19 in food and agricultural markets. Ryan Cardwell, Agribusiness and Agricultural Economics, co-edited (with Alan Ker at Guelph) – read their introduction here https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/cjag.12245. Chad Lawley wrote a paper on land values – https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/cjag.12242. Derek Brewin wrote an article on grains/oilseeds – https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/cjag.12239.
GENERAL NEWS
The Centre for the Advancement of Teaching and Learning (The Centre) invites full-time faculty members and instructors at the University of Manitoba with a passion for teaching excellence to become involved in the mentoring process in the Teaching and Learning Certificate (TLC) program. The teaching mentor role is a vital component of the TLC program and is an important part of our work to foster a teaching community. Teaching mentors will provide support and evaluate participants who are part of the two year program. Participants are pre-tenured faculty members (UMFA) and instructors (UMFA) from the Fort Garry and Bannatyne campuses. Teaching mentors and their mentees are matched by The Centre based on a similar discipline background, but not from the same faculty. For more information go to: https://centre.cc.umanitoba.ca/development/tlc-mentor-program/ and https://centre.cc.umanitoba.ca/development/tlc/.