Expanding research capacity will drive innovation, economic growth
The government of Ontario, Canada, is investing in two projects to foster innovation in the province’s livestock industry and support economic growth.
With CA$14.4 million (US$11.5 million) from the government of Ontario and CA$3.6 million from Ontario Pork, construction is underway on a new CA$18 million swine research facility that will use state-of-the-art technology to build Ontario’s capacity and expertise to support cutting-edge research that drives innovation in the swine sector and contributes to the sector’s competitiveness and productivity.
The Ontario Swine Research Centre – Elora is a partnership between the government of Ontario province, Ontario Pork and the University of Guelph. The facility will have capacity for a wide number of research disciplines, including animal health, nutrition and welfare; consumer-oriented research; environmental factors; genetics/genomics; nutrient management; and reproduction.
In addition, the governments of Canada and Ontario are advancing beef nutritional research with an investment of CA$1.3 million through the Canadian Agricultural Partnership at the Ontario Beef Research Centre – Elora. The beef nutrition research investment supports the purchase of 96 Insentec feeders, a digitized precision feeding system that tracks and adjusts the nutrition for each individual cow as needed. Results from the research will produce healthier cattle and reduces waste, making beef farmers more competitive in the global marketplace.
The Ontario Beef Research Centre – Elora is a partnership between the Government of Ontario through its agency the Agricultural Research Institute of Ontario, the Beef Farmers of Ontario and the University of Guelph. The site includes 300 acres of pasture, two barns with state-of-the-art feeders to accommodate 288 mature cows and 120 heifers with four laboratories, including a sample storage lab and a clean lab for genomics research.
“Our government is making the critical investments necessary to support cutting-edge technologies, like Insentec feeders and a new swine research facility, because they fuel innovation and help Ontario livestock farmers be more competitive in the marketplace,” said Lisa Thompson, Ontario Minister of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs. “By investing in agrifood research and supporting the livestock sector, our government is building Ontario to ensure the continued economic growth of the industry and rural Ontario.”
Ontario’s cattle and hog sectors contribute CA$5.2 billion in GDP through the agrifood value chain and support more than 98,500 jobs.
