As producers themselves, Council's Research and Environment Committee members direct research funds to programs and projects that all hog farmers can use in the day-to-day operation of their barns. Research funded by Manitoba Pork Council is focused on food safety, animal care and production, workplace safety and health, and environmental stewardship.
When evaluating requests for funding, Committee members ensure that the work of the research institution focuses on producers' priorities and also considers the ability of the research to leverage additional funds from other organizations. These additional funds enable access to research that would cost many times more than Manitoba's pork producers would be able to fund on their own.
The research process doesn't end with funding and sponsorship of research. Without communicating the information and knowledge gained from research to Manitoba's pork producers the process would be incomplete.
Council Research News
These monthly newsletter inserts provide Manitoba's pork producers with timely information from researchers throughout Canada (and occasionally from other parts of the world) that can be put to work in day-to-day on-farm operations.
Annual Research Reports
Funded Research Organizations
Canadian Research Network on Bacterial Pathogens of Swine
The
Canadian Research Network on Bacterial Pathogens of Swine is the first collective research effort of specialists in porcine bacterial diseases across Canada. Based out of the Université de Montréal's Faculté de médecine vétérinaire the Network includes 30 researchers from 11 research-based institutions across Canada, including all four Canadian veterinary colleges.
Department of Animal Science, Faculty of Agricultural and Food Sciences, University of Manitoba
The Swine Research Team in the
Department of Animal Science at the University of Manitoba is committed to helping Manitoba's pork producers meet industry challenges through innovative research and teaching programs. Among other research projects, scientists are studying strategies to increase the utilization of locally-produced crops, management strategies for optimizing sow productivity, optimum transportation conditions for weanlings, and alternative strategies for the use of antimicrobial agents in swine diets.
Lake Winnipeg Research Consortium Inc.
The
Lake Winnipeg Research Consortium Inc. is dedicated to the facilitation of multidisciplinary research on the lake to gain a better understanding of the physical, chemical and biological processes that are critical to its well being. The Lake Winnipeg drainage basin is vast, stretching from the foothills of the Rocky Mountains in the west, almost to Lake Superior in the east, and south into the United States to South Dakota. There is a great deal of agricultural activity in this drainage basin, and there are many urban centres along major waterways, some with large populations and significant industry. Nutrients and toxins have found their way into Lake Winnipeg as a consequence of the activities that take place within this vast drainage basin. The Consortium's research activities to date have focused on identifying and quantifying theses substances and determining the effects they are having on the lake ecosystem.
Manitoba Livestock Manure Management Initiative Inc.
Established in 1997, the
Manitoba Livestock Manure Management Initiative is a livestock industry-driven method of coordinating the research work being done on effective manure management. Since its inception the Initiative has funded nearly 50 projects with a combined value in excess of $3.5 million. Each project explores innovative manure management technologies and processes that will foster sustainable development.
Prairie Swine Centre Inc.
Prairie Swine Centre Inc. is a non-profit research and technology transfer corporation affiliated with the University of Saskatchewan with expertise in three disciplines - behaviour, nutrition, and engineering. The mission of Prairie Swine Centre Inc. is "to provide a centre of excellence in research, education and technology transfer, all directed at efficient sustainable pork production." With its emphasis on near-market research the Centre seeks to improve the financial position of pork producers by defining feeding and management systems that maximize net income. The Centre also carries out research addressing issues and opportunities in environment, barn air quality and animal well-being.
Swine Research and Development Consortium
The Swine Research and Development Consortium (SRDC), located in Brandon, is a joint initiative of Manitoba Pork Council; Manitoba Agriculture, Food and Rural Initiatives; and the University of Manitoba. It was created in 1998 to deliver real-time ultrasound technology, at cost, to Manitoba's pork industry. It provides a variety of custom hog industry research and evaluation services - including
custom carcass evaluation, custom probing, and breeding and genetic consulting - to assist industry stakeholders in developing and maintaining a competitive market advantage using new production technologies.
VIDO - Vaccine and Infectious Disease Organization
The
Vaccine and Infectious Disease Organization was created in 1975 with a mandate to develop vaccines for the protection of livestock against serious and economically devastating diseases, and to ensure the technology reached the producer. The Organization has become an internationally recognized leader in developing innovative vaccines and mechanisms of vaccine delivery to improve health and quality of life for livestock. VIDO's facilities include modern virology, immunology, bacteriology, and biochemistry labs as well as a 160-acre research station. To date VIDO's work on behalf of Canadian livestock producers has resulting in being awarded 52 patents with a further 27 patents pending as of the fall of 2003. VIDO encourages Canadian livestock producers to regard it with a sense of ownership - as a research facility working to alleviate infectious disease in food animals. The
VIDO Swine Technical Group including producer representatives, investigates methods and challenges of swine production and acts as a resource for the industry.
