January 26, 2024

Canada announces US$5.04 million funding boost for livestock research

Canada's Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food, Lawrence MacAulay, alongside Saskatchewan Agriculture Minister David Marit, revealed a substantial investment of CAD 6.8 million (US$5.04 million) for livestock and forage research activities, The Mirage reported.

This funding, allocated through the Agriculture Development Fund (ADF) under the Sustainable Canadian Agricultural Partnership (Sustainable CAP), is earmarked to support 30 new research projects in 2024, a 14% increase from the previous year.

The annual competitive allocation of funding will drive research initiatives covering various critical areas. Among the highlighted projects for this year are the development of a rapid and sensitive pathogen surveillance method for Bovine Respiratory Disease in cattle, the creation of new red clover cultivars tailored for Western Canada, and an emphasis on African swine fever preparedness. The latter focuses on evaluating manure management and treatment strategies, along with understanding pathogen survival in mortality management.

In addition to the federal-provincial ADF funding, the initiative received substantial contributions from industry co-funders, totalling CAD 478,597 (US$355,000). The diverse group of contributors includes the Saskatchewan Cattlemen's Association, Saskatchewan Forage Seed Development Commission, Saskatchewan Canola Development Commission, Saskatchewan Pulse Growers, and Saskatchewan Wheat Development Commission.

-        The Mirage