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Sustainable FuturesThe official publication of the Agricultural Institute of Canada Fall 2010

in Agriculture

AgriculturalInstitute of Canada

Informed. Credible. Current.

Innovation

Sustainable Futures Fall 2010 5

ContentsTable of

Sustainable FuturesPrinted for: The Agricultural Institute of Canada (AIC) 9 Corvus Court Ottawa, Ontario K2E 7Z4 Phone: (613) 232-9459 Toll Free: (888) 277-7980 Fax: (613) 594-5190 news@aic.ca www.aic.caAIC Staff: International Program Coordinator Tom Beach, FAIC

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Sustainable Futures Editorial Advisory Committee: Doug Yungblut, PhD, PAg Lianne Dwyer, PhD Shahrokh Khanizadeh, Eng, PhD Josée Owen, MSc Frances Rodenburg Dinah Ceplis, PAg

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©2010 Matrix Group Publishing Inc. All rights reserved. Contents may not be reproduced by any means, in whole or in part, without the prior written permission of the publisher. The opinions expressed in this publication are not necessarily those of Matrix Group Publishing Inc. Printed in Canada.

Up FrontMessage from the AIC President

Forward ThinkingA Potential Road Map for Agriculture in CanadaUnderstanding, Quantifying and Reporting Greenhouse Gas Emissions from Canadian Farmland

Innovative IdeasWorking Together for Whole-System Sustainability in AgricultureThe Very Bright Future of Agricultural FeedstocksIncreasing Sustainability through Precision Agriculture

Stimulating DiscussionThe Soil’s Contribution to Agricultural Productivity

Inside the AICMembership Benefits Membership Application

Buyers Guide

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Sustainable Futures Fall 2010 13

Arguably, true sus -tainability in production

o f f o o d , feed, fibre or fuel is vital for the long term well-being and health of our people and planet. Yet, while the importance of this principle is easily recognized, the means by which we achieve long term sustainability in agriculture is not.

Understanding, developing and implementing long-term environmentally sustainable agricultural practices requires a whole-system integrated approach which takes into account the opportunities for synergies between individual parts of the entire production system. The National Centre for Livestock and the Environment (NCLE), based at the University of Manitoba, embodies this whole-system approach to research, extension and education, with specific focus on the long-term environmental and economic sustainability of livestock pro-duction systems. This holistic approach strengthens linkages between livestock and crop production to develop solutions and to capture opportunities which ultimately improve the effi-ciency of the entire production system.

It takes a team effortEmbracing a “potluck” mentality, partners from a variety of

backgrounds come together, each bringing their own contribution or “dish” to the collaborative effort. The end result is a pooling of complementary skills, expertise and resources conducive to pro-ducing more comprehensive outcomes, while at the same time limiting redundancy and overlap that can result when operating in “silos”. A multi-disciplinary, whole-system approach to research also facilitates integration between soil-plant-animal interfaces, providing more complete assessments than investigations within individual disciplines. Consider greenhouse gas emissions from cattle and soil—soil and animal scientists operating independ-ently can quantify nitrous oxide emissions from soil and enteric methane emissions from cattle, but working together yields net emissions for the whole cattle production system. There are addi-tional benefits as well—trained students for employment in the agriculture and agri-food industry, peer-reviewed research used for public benefit and policy development, and the most effective utilization of human and financial resources.

BuIldIng on a strong BaseStrong partnerships and ongoing dialogue between the

research community, industry and multiple levels of government are key to successful whole-systems research. Partners from

Innovative Ideas

By Christine Rawluk, MSc

Continued on page 16

Working Together for Whole-System Sustainability in AgricultureThe National Centre for Livestock and the Environment is a group of multidisciplinary and multi-organization teams that develop solutions and capture opportunities for livestock production at a whole-systems level.

ABOVE: Systems-based research such as environmentally sustainable overwintering strategies for beef cows encompasses cattle productivity, nutrient use efficiency, greenhouse gas emissions and pathogen shedding and offers many graduate student training opportunities.

ABOVE: Feed management implications for pathogen shedding and microbial community dynamics represent one facet of livestock production systems research at the NCLE.

BELOW: Whole-systems based research at the NCLE strengthens linkages between livestock and crop production systems to the benefit of the entire production system.

16 The official publication of the Agricultural Institute of Canada

and demonstration capacity. In September, the Governments of Canada and Manitoba announced funding through the Canada-Manitoba Western Economic Partnership Agreement for an Agricultural By-products Processing Research and Demonstration Facility to complement the existing equip-ment and facilities used by NCLE and its partners. The new facility will enable research and development supporting on-farm processing and utilization of liquid and solid agricultural by-products, adding value to materials that are otherwise viewed as “waste”. The facility will support multiple users and a full range of activities from basic and applied research to technology transfer and training.

The nearly completed Bruce D. Campbell Farm and Food Discovery Centre, located at the same site as the National Centre for Livestock and the Environment, is anticipated to attract upwards of 30,000 visitors a year. The Discovery Centre will provide a hands-on interactive experience addressing all aspects of food production from farming practices to healthy choices-healthy living. Early on dubbed the “sister centre” to NCLE, the two centres will col-laborate in programming and activities to mutual benefit.

The National Centre for Livestock and the Environment is gaining momen-tum and is well situated to become a hub where a variety of interested parties con-verge and connect, facilitating the develop-ment and flow of information and technol-ogy. Fostering a close working relation-ship between industry, government and researchers in this centralized fashion will streamline the connections between research and development, technology evaluation and information transfer and education & training, to capitalize on new opportunities. The common goal is long-term economic growth of the agriculture sector, environmentally sustainable agricul-ture production and healthy, stable com-munities.

Christine Rawluk, MSc, is the research development coordinator for the National Centre for Livestock and the Environment and can be reached at Christine_Rawluk@umanitoba.ca.

To obtain references for this article email kkornelsen@matrixgroupinc.net.

feeding systems that minimize phosphorus excretion, while at the same time maintain animal health and reduce costs. At the opposite end of the in-yard management system, Nazim Cicek and Francis Zvomuya are investigating manure treatment options that remove and concentrate phosphorus from liquid manure into a separate stream. In the field, long-term studies led by Don Flaten, Kim Ominski and Mario Tenuta are showing responses to various in-field manure, crop rotation and grassland man-agement strategies.

This strategy of bringing together stake-holders and having all parties engaged from the beginning has been successful in the past as well. The La Broquerie Long-Term Pasture and Manure Management Study, now in its seventh year, has brought together 13 researchers to date, spanning expertise in economics and food, plant, soil and animal sciences (http://umani-toba.ca/afs/labroquerie). This study has also engaged pork, beef and dairy pro-ducers and capitalized on the extension role served by provincial and federal part-ners such as Manitoba Agriculture, Food and Rural Initiatives (MAFRI) and Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada’s Agri-Environment Services Branch (AESB). To date, this part-nership has generated over 40 extension and outreach events, five peer-reviewed publications (with more on the way) and has produced six trained graduate students. Armed with diverse skill sets, these young men and women were readily employed by both industry and government. With plan-ning for the latest phase well underway, these statistics are sure to grow.

Taking a similar approach, Kim Ominski, Don Flaten and Luciano González are working with cattle producers, livestock and nutrient management specialists from provincial and federal departments, and other researchers across western Canada to identify environmentally sustainable cat-tle overwintering strategies. The research team is leading a multi-disciplinary com-parative evaluation of extensive and con-fined overwintering systems for beef cattle, drawing on the hands-on expertise of their colleagues from AESB, MAFRI and produ-cer partners.

What does the future hold?A new initiative of Manitoba Pork and

NCLE will expand research, development

industry and government are engaged at the early stages, usually beginning with NCLE asking, “How can we help you?” Continued dialogue from project design to completion ensures the relevance of our research to industry and provides a conduit for transfer-ring useful information quickly into the hands of end-users. By operating along this hori-zontal partnership platform, the multi-disci-plinary, multi-organization teams maintain strong linkages between the various stake-holders along all phases, from R&D through to technology transfer and training.

Early partnership building efforts at NCLE focused on engaging University of Manitoba researchers from a variety of disciplines, strengthening relationships with various producer and government organ-izations within Manitoba and bringing them together to address common interests. As our network continues to expand, partner-ships are extending beyond both provin-cial and national borders; joining national networks such as the Linking Environment and Agriculture Research Network led by Peter Boxall at the University of Alberta is but one example.

PartnershIPs at WorkAs an example of partnerships at work,

the NCLE joined forces in 2009 with a variety of industry and government part-ners to develop and deliver a stakeholder workshop to tackle the phosphorus bal-ance issue in Manitoba. Regulations in Manitoba will shift all livestock producers from managing manure on a nitrogen basis to a phosphorus basis, effective 2013. This change will challenge producers to use a variety of management tools to comply with the new regulations and still continue operating at a profit.

To address this challenge, the work-shop identified critical research and exten-sion gaps in the areas of feed, field, manure and whole-system management that needed to be addressed (http://pwork-shop2009.com). At the workshop, NCLE was identified as a lead research partner and is actively implementing research pro-jects in all identified areas (http://umanitoba.ca/afs/ncle/MPBalance.html). For example, researchers Jim House, Juan Carolos Rodriguez-Lecompte, Martin Nyachoti, Kim Ominski and Kees Plaizier are leading teams to identify dietary modifications and

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