Invited Speakers

Henrik Bækstrøm holds a Masters in Agronomics – livestock production. He has worked in the food industry mainly with quality assurance, food standards, communications, marketing and procurement. He is currently livestock procurement manager forr Tican A.M.B.A. Bækstrøm was the driver and project manager for the development of the GRMS (Global Red Meat Standard) www.grms.org (implemented in all Danish abattoirs and recognized by GFSI) and responsible for the Danish Quality Assurance Manual.

Presentation - Food Company Perspective On Animal Welfare in Breakout #4 (Wed & Thurs AM)

Lorna Baird has been the Executive Director of Alberta Farm Animal Care (AFAC) since February 2010. Raised in Winnipeg, she obtained her BSc. in Agriculture (Animal Science) from the University of Manitoba and followed that with a MSc. in Agricultural Sciences (Animal Welfare Program) from the University of British Columbia (UBC). Lorna then spent four years working as a research scientist at the Agri-Food and Biosciences Institute in Northern Ireland and nowadays in her spare-time, works towards completing her PhD in Animal Science from Queen's University of Belfast. Her theses at both UBC and Queen's focus on lameness in dairy cattle. Lorna has eight years of experience developing and delivering “Lameness in Cattle” training sessions and research presentations to various audiences.

AFAC is a partnership of Alberta's major livestock groups, with a mandate to promote responsible, humane farm animal care. AFAC members have worked together to build a framework for continual improvement in handling, transport, research, education and other areas. More information on AFAC is available at www.afac.ab.ca.

Presentation - In the Media: Animal Welfare Crisis Caught on Video – Interactive Workshop in Breakout #5 (Wed & Thurs AM)

Eduardo earned his Agricultural Engineering degree (major in Animal Science) from Mexico and completed his PhD in nutrition and reproduction interactions under the supervision of Frank Aherne and George Foxcroft. For 9 years, he guided the Contract Research program at Prairie Swine Ccentre Inc from its infancy to a major business function. Eduardo joined Alberta Agriculture and Rural Development in 2004 as Research Scientist. He is currently an Adjunct Professor in the Department of Agricultural, Food & Nutritional Science, University of Alberta. His research projects focus on feeding novel grains, oilseeds and pulses, value-added processing and the impact of feeding co-products and fractions on carcass and meat quality.

Presentation - Oilseed Coproducts as Alternative Ingredients in Breakout #1 (Wed & Thurs AM)

Dr. Bench earned both her B.Sc. in Animal Science and M.Sc. in Applied Domestic Animal Behaviour from the University of California at Davis. She earned her PhD in Applied Ethology from the University of Saskatchewan under the guidance of Dr. Harold Gonyou. As a NSERC Post-Doctoral Visiting Fellow with Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada at the Lacombe Meat Research Station, she led a comprehensive pig transport review which assessed current Canadian and global pig transport standards and the validity of current scientific recommendations. Her work was published as part of the book, “Welfare of Pigs: from birth to slaughter”. Dr. Bench joined the University of Alberta in 2007 as an Applied Ethologist where she currently teaches animal behaviour and welfare courses and has continued her research in the areas of how stress impacts disease susceptibility and meat quality, the development of behavioural vices, the scientific basis of livestock welfare standards, the artificial selection of behavioural traits, and housing system design and management.

Presentation - In the Media: Animal Welfare Crisis Caught on Video – Interactive Workshop in Breakout #5 (Wed & Thurs AM)

Gregg joined the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation in June 2009. He is in Agricultural Development and on the Research & Development team as a Senior Program Officer responsible for livestock grants. Gregg has twenty-eight years of experience as a business executive and has managed an international genetics business (PIC), an integrated livestock operation (Premium Standard Farms) and a division of a global animal health business for Merial. Gregg has also helped St. Matthew’s University, School of Veterinary Medicine establish a clinical program for fourth year students. He has been involved with assisting entrepreneurs in crop bio-pesticides, livestock vaccines, genetically modified rice and livestock imaging technology. Gregg is a graduate of the University of Illinois with a B.S. in Agriculture Science, M.S. in Animal Science, Doctor of Veterinary Medicine and an MBA. He has received the Distinguished Alumni Award from the College of Veterinary Medicine at the University of Illinois.

BeVier will discuss world poverty and hunger, solutions to hunger, and world food systems in the context of business case studies. Agriculture accounts for about two-thirds of employment and one-third of gross domestic product in sub-Saharan Africa. In South Asia, the rural poverty rate is still about 40 percent. Almost no country has managed a rapid rise from poverty without increasing its agricultural productivity.

Presentation - Livestock as a Pathway out of Poverty in Wednesday AM Plenary

Mark immigrated to Canada in 1995 & started with Sunterra Farms at their Nucleus herd. He came from England with 6 years experience in swine production. Over the last 15 years he has moved up through the company managing various barns including the Nucleus he started at. Mark is now the Canadian Production Manger for Sunterra, looking after production from 13,000 sows. Marks responsibilities include the production side, budgeting & staffing including spending a lot of time on the foreign worker program.

Presentation - Issues with Recruiting Foreign Workers in Breakout #3 (Wed & Thurs AM)

Dee earned his DVM & PhD in Veterinary Medicine from the University of Minnesota. After 11 years in private practice as a swine practitioner, Dee joined the Department of Veterinary Populations Medicine at the University of Minnesota. Dee has more than 110 articles on porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome (PRRS0 published in scientific magazines.

Presentation - Achieving "Sustainable PRRSV Freedom" in Swine-Dense Regions: The Role of Air Filtration in Breakout #7 (Wed & Thurs PM)

Dr. Jack Dekkers grew up on a mixed dairy-crop farm in the Netherlands. He received his Bachelor and Masters degrees in Animal Science from the Wageningen Agricultural University and his Ph.D. in Dairy Science at the University of Wisconsin. In 1989, he moved to the University of Guelph, as professor in Animal Breeding at the Center for Genetic Improvement of Livestock. In 1997, Jack moved to Iowa State University, where he currently is Professor and Section Leader of the Animal Breeding and Genetics group. His current research focuses on the genetic basis of feed efficiency and disease resistance in pigs and on the integration of quantitative and molecular genetics and genomics, with applications to swine and poultry breeding programs. He has published over 150 papers in scientific journals and has given over 25 invited presentations at national and international scientific conferences.

Presentation - Implications of Genomics for Genetic Improvement Programs in Breakout #8 (Wed & Thurs PM)

Dr. de Lange is professor of swine nutrition at the University of Guelph. He obtained his B. Sc. and M. Sc. in Animal Science from the Agricultural University in Wageningen, the Netherlands. His research is largely focussed on the biology and mathematical representation of nutrient utilization in growing-finishing pigs. In addition he is involved in collaborative research on dietary means to reduce the negative impact of pig production on the environment, and feeding strategies to enhance gut health and development in newly weaned piglets. He has co-authored more than 100 peer reviewed book chapters and scientific publications and more than 130 abstracts that have been presented at scientific meetings. He has supervised more than 30 graduate students, presented more than 100 papers at major conferences, and co-authored more than 300 extension publications.

Presentation - Towards Integrated Nutritional Management of Growing-Finishing Pigs in Breakout #11 (Wed & Thurs PM)

A respected research leader in the pork and other animal industries in Australia Dunshea has focussed on improving efficiency through reducing inputs and outputs while maintaining product quality and consumer health. Current projects include increasing the value of grains for livestock; products to improve the health and eating experiences of consumers, regulation of growth and development of farm animals, animals as models of metabolic syndrome and human nutrition and the effect of heat stress on health, welfare and productivity of farm animals.

Presentation - The Future of High Tech Animal Agriculture in Friday AM Plenary

Sandra Edwards grew up on a small, mixed farm in the East of England. She completed a PhD at the University of Reading. She has since worked for more than 30 years in applied research for the UK Agricultural Development and Advisory Service, the Institute for Grassland and Animal Production, and the Scottish Agricultural College, where she has had responsibility for a range of projects on pig housing and welfare, nutrition and management. She has also been responsible for provision of specialist advice to Scottish pig producers and acted as consultant to a variety of industry bodies. From her position as Head of the Animal Management and Health Department of SAC, where she was Co-ordinator of all pig commodity matters, she moved in 1998 to become Reader in Animal Science in the Department of Agriculture at the University of Aberdeen. In 2000, she was appointed to the Chair of Agriculture at the University of Newcastle, where her research interests focus on the multidisciplinary interactions between nutrition, reproduction, behaviour and welfare in pigs and other farm livestock.

Presentation - Producing 2 Tonnes of Pigs per Sow in Breakout #9 (Wed & Thurs PM)

A former Canada Research Chair in Swine Reproductive Physiology; currently Leader of the Swine Reproduction-Development Program (SRDP) and Co-Director of the NSERC "EmbryoGENE" Strategic Research Network. The goal of the SRDP is to link studies on the basic mechanisms controlling reproduction and early embryonic development in the pig to problems of practical importance to the swine industry. Studies on factors affecting reproductive maturity in the gilt, the causes of lactational anoestrus and reduced fertility after weaning in the sow, and the effects of nutrition on reproductive performance are major areas of activity. Research on the consequences of variability in ovarian follicular development at the time of ovulation for oocyte maturation and early embryonic development involves extensive use of in vitro fertilization techniques and molecular biology. Within the EmbryoGene Network initiative, the University of Alberta will develop core technologies for genomic and epigenomic screening of early pig embryos and will collaborate with industry partners to apply these technologies to better understand the impact of the embryonic environment (culture conditions in vitro and effects of metabolic state and functional nutrients in vivo) on embryonic fetal and post-natal development of the offspring.

Presentations
- Science to Reality – Reproductive Research in the Future in Breakout #9 (Wed & Thurs PM)
- Research and Education Goals for the Pork Industry in Friday AM Plenary

Gagné graduated from Laval University as a Computer Specialist. He began working with Genetiporc in 1996 as the Director of Logistics and Transportation until 2005. Those years were a great time of expansion for Genetiporc, with an increase in hog exports to the USA, Mexico, Brazil, and Dominican Republic. In 2005, Normand Gagné was promoted to Assistant Director of Swine Production, where he was in charge of the Nursery and Finishing barn, as well as Transportation and Environment. In January of 2011, he became the General Director of Swine Production. Normand Gagné is now in charge of managing a company with 12,000 sows in Quebec and New Brunswick. Genetiporc produces more than 300,000 market hogs, as well as sow and sire reproducer lines.

Presentation - Recruitment of New Workers: A Success Story in Breakout #3 (Wed & Thurs AM)

Dr. Bob Goodband is a Professor in the Department of Animal Sciences and Industry where he teaches the basics of modern, sustainable swine production and nutrition. "Our swine team routinely meets with pork producers and industry leaders from the various segments within the swine industry as well as related agri-businesses to determine the best direction for K-State Research and Extension," says Goodband. "The answer from our constituents continues to be that they want us to help them be low cost producers while finding new opportunities to increase productivity. Thus, the overall goal of our swine program is developing, evaluating, implementing, and disseminating the latest technology to improve the economic competitiveness of swine producers. To impact economic competitiveness, we concentrate on the main drivers, cost of production and productivity. A major portion of our time involves answering questions from individual producers."

Presentation - Weaning Management in Breakout #2 (Wed & Thurs AM)

Kevin Grier is a respected grocery product, livestock and meat industry market analyst and editor. Publications authored by Grier include: Grocery Trade Review, Canadian Cattle Buyer, Canadian Pork Market Review and Canadian Chicken Market Review. Successful companies and organizations in the Canadian livestock, meat and grocery products industries depend upon the research reports and periodicals authored by him. He has proven analytical ability and a deep understanding of industry issues and trends from farm to retail.

Presentation - Canadian Risk Management Approaches: ASRA, ASRA-lite, and HPIP in Breakout #10 (Wed & Thurs PM)

After graduating from the Ontario Veterinary College at the University of Guelph in 1988, Dr. Harding worked in a mixed animal practice in Humboldt, Saskatchewan. He has specialized in swine since 1991, and in 1997 established a swine consultancy practice Harding Swine Veterinary Service. In 1997 he also completed a Master of Science degree in Veterinary Medicine, at the University of Minnesota. Dr. Harding has consulted for both small family and large corporate swine operations in Western Canada. In August 2004, he became an Associate Professor, Swine Production Medicine, at the Western College of Veterinary Medicine, University of Saskatchewan, taking on swine-related responsibilities in teaching, research, clinical and service. His research interests include porcine circovirus, emerging disease investigations, and understanding how intrauterine growth restriction affects postnatal immune function and disease severity.

Presentation - Swine Dysentery and other Emerging Brachyspiras in Breakout #7 (Wed & Thurs PM)

Joe has 25 years experience working in the agricultural sector, specifically in risk management as it relates to hedging, ingredient purchasing, cost effective diet formulation and livestock marketing. He has developed and directed risk management activities for industry leaders such as Iowa Select Farms and Premium Standard Farms, He traded the domestic soybean meal deck at Continental Grain and received his initial training at Archer Daniels Midland after graduating from Iowa State many years ago. In his current venture as a risk management consultant, Joe works with packers, producers, veterinarians, mill operators, feed ingredient suppliers and even academics. He has also served as keynote speaker for national agricultural forums, providing context about commodity markets and nutritional factors impacting production.

Presentation - Practical Risk Management in Volatile Markets in Breakout #10 (Wed & Thurs PM)

Dr. Kiehne and the Swine Vet Center work closely with swine producers to improve production and herd health status while maintaining profitability. Swine Vet Center is also a leader in conducting practical swine research with funding from National Pork Board and pharmaceutical and manufacturing company grants/awards, as well as overseeing four 2400-head research barn facilities.

Presentation - Keeping Baby Pigs Alive in Breakout #2 (Wed & Thurs AM)

Dr. Kuster earned his degrees from the University of Illinois. His undergraduate work was in Animal Science before being admitted to Veterinary School, and receiving his DVM in 1998. He continued on to receive an MS in Swine Medicine and Theriogenology while completing the Executive Veterinary Program and then a PhD in Veterinary Medical Science. Since completing his PhD in 2003, Dr. Kuster has served as an independent consultant through Kuster Research and Consulting, Inc. focusing on boar studs, offering third party semen evaluation at the KRC andrology laboratory, and participating in private and public research projects.

Presentation - Application of Novel Technologies for Semen Evaluation in Breakout #9 (Wed & Thurs PM)

Dr. Joan Lunney is a Research Scientist at the USDA Agricultural Research Center (ARS), Beltsville Agricultural Research Center (BARC). She is an internationally recognized authority on pig immunology and genomics. Dr. Lunney's current research focuses on swine immunology, genomics, and resistance to diseases, particularly to porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome virus (PRRSV). She coleads the US National Pork Board funded PRRS Host Genomics Consortium (PHGC) to assess the role of genetics in determining pig resistance and susceptibility to PRRSV infection, pathology and growth effects. She is part of the USDA funded PRRS Coordinated Agricultural Project (PRRS CAP) that involves >20 labs nationally and whose aim is to develop creative solutions for the successful control and prevention of PRRS. She has expanded the PHGC effort to functional genomics and proteomics as well as to overall swine health in collaboration with Canadian scientists; the latter is funded through Genome Canada and Genome Alberta.

Presentation - Genomics and Animal Health in Breakout #8 (Wed & Thurs PM)

Dr. McOrist has 24 years of experience in the production animal industries, focusing on pig health and management. He has on-going active collaborations with multinational pharmaceutical, biotechnology and biologics companies and international regulatory authorities. He has extensive and multifaceted leadership experience in the planning, execution and reporting of successful livestock veterinary research programs, particularly in pigs. Many of these programs have delivered tangible benefits in terms of new animal drug registrations and a major international livestock vaccine.

Presentation - Cost of Enteric Diseases in Breakout #7 (Wed & Thurs PM)

Frank Novak is Managing Director of Alberta Pig Company which developed and manages hog production system in East Central Alberta under the banner of Sunhaven Farms. The farmer-owned Sunhaven Farms group has developed an integrated hog production chain with in-house production of hog genetics and feed. Sunhaven is an industry leader in the area of welfare friendly hog production with an extensive production base using pen gestation systems for sows and straw-based finishing. As Managing Director, Frank is responsible for the overall management of the system including the oversight of ingredient purchasing, hog marketing and risk management. Frank is Alberta-born and raised, holds a BSc in Animal Science and MSc in Agricultural Economics from the University of Alberta and a PhD in Agricultural Economics from the University of Illinois. He spent more than 10 years as a professor at the University of Alberta teaching and conducting research in the areas of farm financial management and risk management before he and his partners started Alberta Pig Company in 1996.

Presentation - Risk Management: A Producer's Perspective in Breakout #10 (Wed & Thurs PM)

Graham Plastow (PhD) is Chief Operating Officer and interim CEO for Livestock Gentec, having joined the Alberta Bovine Genomics Program as Director in 2007. He spent more than 20 years in the agri-food industry and was a pioneer of animal genomics with PIC and Sygen (one of the world's largest animal breeding companies when acquired by Genus in 2005) where he was Chief Technology Officer. He has led or participated in numerous international research collaborations and has held positions on boards and committees of industry and research organizations including the Roslin Institute, the Genesis Faraday Partnership (UK), and the Biotechnology Research and Development Corporation in the US. Plastow leads the Genome Alberta/Genome Canada project on the genomics of swine health.

Presentation - What is Genomics? in Breakout #8 (Wed & Thurs PM)

Dr. Pomar is a research scientist with Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada based at Sherbrooke (Lennoxville), QC and an adjunct professor at Laval and Sherbrooke universities. Pomar heads a research program in swine nutrition, mathematical modeling and carcass evaluation systems. In collaboration with other scientists, he is engaged in the development of an innovative precision feeding and farming system which will enhance profitability and competitiveness of the Canadian swine industry. He is also heavily involved in verifying and updating the pork carcass classification system and developing new approaches for online carcass evaluation.

Presentation - Sustainable Precision Livestock Farming: A Vision for The Future of the Canadian Swine Industry in Breakout #11 (Wed & Thurs PM)

Florian Possberg has specialized in hog production since 1975. He started by building a 60 sow operation near Humboldt, Saskatchewan that grew into Possberg Pork Farms with 1200 sows. In 1995, he started Big Sky Farms where he was CEO until 2008. His family started Polar Pork Farms Ltd in 2009 and have 5400 sows.

Florian is a director of SaskPork, Canadian Pork Council and NFAHW Council. He chairs the Canadian Swine Health Board and Pig Code Committee.

Presentation - New Code of Practice & Impact on Producers in Breakout #4 (Wed & Thurs AM)

Minister Ritz grew up on a family farm near Rosetown, Saskatchewan, and that heritage has driven him to make sure the Canadian agriculture industry remains innovative and competitive. Over the past year he has travelled to Asia, South and Central America, Africa and the Middle East to open markets and increase trade, ensuring that Canadian farmers can boost their bottom line by selling more of their products to more consumers around the world. He was first elected to Canada's Parliament representing the riding of Battlefords-Lloydminster in 1997. He was re-elected in 2000, 2004, 2006, 2008 and 2011. He was named Secretary of State for Small Business and Tourism in January 2007 and was appointed Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food and Minister for the Canadian Wheat Board in August 2007. He also serves as the Regional Minister for Saskatchewan.

Presentation - Our 5 year plan for Canadian Agriculture in Friday AM Plenary

Jeff has always had a passion for business. He's been intensely fixated on staying abreast of the latest marketing strategies, technologies and trends that are shaping the modern business environment ever since. Mixing his command of business-systems with his expertise in internet marketing, he's developed a number of results-oriented marketing services designed to help small business owners recognize the profits they've been leaving on the table for years. His company, Marketing Ninjas (www.marketingninjas.com), is an Edmonton Internet Marketing Consulting Company that specializes in helping professionals and experts position themselves as the trusted authority in their market. He incorporates very specific Internet marketing promotion strategies including social media and blogging to create a powerful web presence that results in more prospects and profits for our clients.

Presentation - Getting the Message Out - Using Social Media in Breakout #5 (Wed & Thurs AM)

Richard Shanks is National Managing Director, Aon's Food System, Agribusiness & Beverage Group - a resource/practice working with Aon offices and their clients to deliver innovative industry-specific risk management solutions and services. Clients include food and beverage processors, food manufacturers, transporters, wholesalers, retailers, agribusiness input suppliers, crop/livestock producers, food and agricultural cooperatives, trade associations and lenders. Rick provides industry-specific experience with an emphasis on risk identification, assessment and developing solutions for non traditional risks such as food contamination events, bioterrorism, brand damage, supply system disruption, volumetric loss to crop/livestock, commodity price and other high-impact financial volatility risk exposures of a global food system.

In today's complex food system and agribusiness exposure environment, the need to reduce volatility, stabilize earnings and control pre-loss and post-loss risk exposures is critical, New risks have emerged as a result of recent changes in regulation and globalization that can have financially devastating effects if not properly identified and addressed. Product contamination and recall are issues that ultimately cause your company to go out of business. How you react to these exposures will determine your destiny.

Presentation - Managing Risks of a Global Food System in Thursday AM Plenary

Since 2008, Jeff Simmons has served as president of Elanco, the animal health division of Eli Lilly and Company, (NYSE: LLY). Elanco is an innovation-driven company with offices in more than 75 countries and 2010 sales of $1.39 billion. As part of this role, he is also a Senior Vice-President and Executive Officer of Lilly. In more than two decades with the company, Simmons has held a number of sales, marketing and management positions, in the United States and abroad, including serving as country director in Brazil and area director for West Europe based in the U.K.

These international experiences offered Simmons a new perspective on food and agriculture and created a deep conviction about the need for solutions to global hunger. He has published two white papers on this topic, available at www.plentytothinkabout.org.

Presentation - Making Safe, Affordable & Abundant Food a Global Reality in Wednesday AM Plenary

Karl Skold has over 25 years of proven leadership in commodity procurement, risk management, and commodity analysis. He has a strong background in procurement and risk management strategy development across multiple commodity categories. His expertise is in deep commodity analysis background in the agricultural space with particular emphasis on livestock and poultry markets. As President of Westside Economics, Skold provides economic analysis and forecasting focused in the agricultural space. He develops procurement & risk management strategies for food & beverage companies and meat & poultry producers.

Presentation - Prediction of Future Prices & Cost of Production in Thursday AM Plenary

Dr. Mike Tokach is an extension specialist and professor in swine nutrition at Kansas State University. Mike’s focus is transferring information to swine producers and conducting practical nutrition research. Mike has presented over 250 invited seminars at animal and veterinary science meetings around the world in addition to numerous presentations to local producer groups. Mike has authored or co-authored 194 refereed journal papers, 415 abstracts, 644 extension publications, and 5 book chapters. He and his colleagues have generated over $7 million in grants and gifts to Kansas State University to support swine research. Mike was named one of the 50 people that have made the greatest impact on the swine industry in the last 50 years by the National Hog Farmer Magazine.

Presentation - Diet Formulations Using Lower Energy Feeds in Breakout #1 (Wed & Thurs AM)

Dr. Zijlstra is a professor with research interest in ingredient evaluation and feed processing. His vision is to create a decision model that optimizes feed processing following ingredient evaluation. The end goal is to ensure a predictable performance of agricultural species. Within each feed ingredient, a range exists in quality characteristics that must be validated in animal models, but should be measured for a large number of samples using laboratory-based technologies. Subsequently, equipment, for example near infra-red reflectance spectroscopy, can feed quality following proper calibration. The range in quality is usually related to a change in factors such a fiber or other anti-nutritional factors that negatively influence nutrient digestibility or rate of digestion. Feed processing, including grinding, pelleting, expansion, extrusion, etc. can be used to reduce the negative impact of these factors and thereby improve digestibility characteristics.

Presentation - Novel Swine Feeding Programs To Enhance Competitiveness And Pork Differentiation in Breakout #11 (Wed & Thurs PM)