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Seven agriculture and agri-food research projects led by University of Guelph experts will receive more than $2.5 million under the Ontario Regional Priorities Partnership Program (ON-RP3).
Prof. Ray Lu, Department of Molecular and Cellular Biology, will use his $480,001 award to refine novel technology developed in his lab to help pig breeders identify lower-stress sows.
From among 300,000 breeding sows in Ontario, 15 per cent of piglets currently do not survive to weaning. Half of those piglets – or about 650,000 animals – die each year from crushing or savaging by sows, meaning a $12.9-million loss to the Ontario pork industry each year as well as animal welfare concerns, said Lu.
He said reducing those losses even by 10 per cent “would bring about $1.3 million in savings to the Ontario pork industry annually and would represent an improvement in animal welfare, which has become increasingly important for the growth and sustainability of the pork industry.”
Lu said he aims to produce a prototype gene chip for DNA markers that will enable breeders and farmers to identify sows less likely to harm piglets.
He works with Alliance Genetics Canada, one of the largest breeding companies in Canada and a co-leader of this newly funded project, along with their collaborator, the Canadian Centre for Swine Improvement.
Other U of G projects to receive funding include
- Christine Baes, Department of Animal Biosciences: breeding livestock to cope with changing climate, especially extremes in temperature and humidity; industry partner, Semex Alliance: $499,899
- Milad Eskandari, Plant Agriculture: increase soybean yield while improving quality in specific traits like protein to help food-grade industry in Ontario; SeCan: $180,000
December 5, 2019 - University of Guelph
