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Welcome to Field Notes; the newsletter aiming to bring you the latest news and updates in agriculture, agri-food science, and One Health research.

What Are We Up To This Month?

Animal Health Canada & ACER African Swine Fever Depopulation Workshop

November 5th & 6th | Ottawa, Canada

ACER has partnered with Animal Health Canada to support the swine industry in improving Canada's preparedness and response to African Swine Fever (ASF). As part of this mandate, this week we hosted an event to hear from international experts in farmed animal depopulation to learn about their direct experience with supporting human and animal well-being during large-scale depopulation. The goal of this workshop was to develop concrete and practical recommendations tailored to the Canadian swine industry's needs in large-scale depopulation scenarios.

Thank you to everyone who attended this workshop with us!

Sustainable Agricultural Summit

November 20th - 21st | Minneapolis, United States

The Sustainable Agricultural Summit brings together those in the agriculture and food value chain to learn and advance a shared vision for a sustainable food system in the United States. This summit is an important opportunity for farmers, processors, suppliers, brands, researchers,  environmental organizations, and the public to network, discuss actionable insights, and share their own perspectives and experiences. We are very excited to have Laura Zehr and Erin Wynands attend and participate in this event! You can register and learn more about the program here.

November Article of the Month

Qualitative social and human science research focusing on actors in and around dairy farming - An invited review

Published in the Journal of Dairy Science

Citation: Vaarst, M., Ritter, C., Saraceni, J., Roche, S., Wynands, E., Kelton, D., & Koralesky, K. E. (2024). Qualitative social and human science research focusing on actors in and around dairy farming-An invited review. Journal of Dairy Science.

Summary: This study examines how researchers from fields outside of dairy science discuss dairy farming. The authors identified 117 articles that employed qualitative research methods to explore a range of topics related to dairy cattle, farmers, and societal issues. These articles provide new insights and perspectives, highlighting critical questions about fairness in the industry and the impact of climate change.

The review emphasizes the importance of interdisciplinary collaboration, suggesting that dairy scientists should engage with this broader body of research. By doing so, they can enrich future studies and foster a more comprehensive understanding of dairy farming. This approach could help address ongoing challenges in the sector, such as industrialization's effects on equity and the recognition of animals' agency. Overall, exploring diverse perspectives on farming can lead to more informed and innovative research outcomes in the dairy industry.

Read the open access article here

Resource Round-Up

Best practices for silage production: What does the research say?

As part of ACER’s work with Dairy Farmers of Canada to share Cluster 3 research findings, our team produced a live action video on best practices and considerations around different types of silage production. This research was led by Dr. Nancy McLean from Dalhousie University in Nova Scotia.  Check out the full video here!

Are there other topics or questions you are interested in?

Email us at [email protected]. We always welcome your questions and feedback!

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