Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada

Multi-variable evaluation of agroecosystem models reveals challenges in daily and annual NEE simulation for croplands

Net ecosystem exchange (NEE) of CO₂ is the residual of two opposing fluxes, and accuracy at the modelled NEE level can eclipse compensating errors in its components. This study evaluated DNDCv.CAN and EPIC against multi-variable observations at two Manitoba agricultural sites acr...

Bioenergy potential of fast-growing trees, perennial grasses, and agricultural residues for renewable natural gas production in Canada

This study presents a comprehensive evaluation of fourteen lignocellulosic biomass feedstocks—including fast-growing trees (FGT: poplar, willow), perennial grasses (PG: switchgrass, miscanthus, phragmites), and agricultural residues (AR: hemp and canola straw)—to assess their pot...

Machine Learning and Statistical Models for Genomic Selection of Phytophthora Fruit Rot Resistance in Watermelon

Breeding for Phytophthora fruit rot (PFR) resistance caused by the devastating pathogen Phytophthora capsici remains challenging in watermelon mainly due to phenotyping constraints. To overcome these bottlenecks, we developed and validated genomic selection models using an inters...

PS2-18. Adoption of Multiple Mitigation Strategies to Reduce Greenhouse Gas Emissions in Beef Cattle Production Systems.

Abstract Increasing demand for food with higher environmental standards is shaping agricultural activities toward more sustainable food systems. In response, federal and provincial governments and commodity groups have set ambitious targets to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emission...

331. Growth Performance of Backgrounding Steers Fed a Diet with Continuous or Intermittent Inclusion of Ergot Alkaloids with and Without a Mycotoxin Deactivating Product.

Abstract This study evaluated the effect of feeding a backgrounding diet (60% barley silage:40% concentrate; DM basis) containing ergot alkaloids, with and without a mycotoxin-deactivating product (MDP), on the growth performance of feedlot steers. Crossbred steers (n = 360; 330...

324. Behavioral Responses of Impaired Feedlot Cattle After Chronic Pen Entry and Associations with Time to Death.

Abstract In feedlots, chronically impaired cattle are often moved to specialized pens, where they have easier access to resources and to facilitate monitoring and care. Understanding how chronic cattle transition into this new environment may provide insights into their likelihoo...

44. A Benchmark Study of Feeding and Management Practices, Feed Utilization, and Adoption of Growth-enhancing Technologies by the Canadian Feedlot Industry.

Abstract The Canadian feedlot industry is exceptionally diverse, in both operational practices and feeding management. Previous Canadian feedlot industry surveys lacked detailed information on feed ingredient usage, feeding management, and the use of growth and health enhancing t...

Characterization of Uromyces muscari and first confirmed report on Muscari armeniacum in Hungary

Abstract Muscari species are widely cultivated, popular ornamental plants in Europe, but are susceptible to rust fungi, which can substantially reduce their aesthetic value and overall fitness. In May 2023, characteristic rust fungus-like symptoms were observed on M. armeniacum p...

Agricultural practices as natural climate solutions in the Canadian Prairies

Management practices focused on environmental outcomes in agriculture can increase soil organic carbon (SOC) and reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, complementing farm production practices that provide food and a wide variety of other social-ecological services. However, evide...

Effects of processing treatments on phenolic content, antioxidant capacity, and anthocyanin levels and antimicrobial activity in fruit pomace fractions

Fruit pomace is a source of phenolics and antioxidants, but processing conditions influence compound recovery and stability. This study evaluated the effects of pH, enzyme addition, and processing time on bioactive compounds in liquid fractions derived from grape, apple, cranberr...

Observational study of the microbiome of perforated abomasal ulcers in unweaned beef calves in Canada

In western Canada, perforating abomasal ulcers (AU) are generally diagnosed postmortem in beef calves up to 2 months of age. Certain microbes have been associated with AU, but the evidence is circumstantial. Thus, analyzing the abomasal microbiome in calves with and without AU ma...

Increasing mammary development for better lactation performance of sows

Chantal Farmer, Lee-Anne Huber; Increasing mammary development for better lactation performance of sows, Animal Frontiers, , vfag048, https://doi.org/10.10

A comprehensive map of the bovine mobilome and their epigenetic regulation of mastitis

Abstract Retrotransposons are major components of mammalian genomes, yet their genome-wide annotation and epigenetic regulation in cattle remain incompletely characterized. Here, we present a comprehensive annotation and integrative epigenomic analysis of major retrotransposon cl...

Antibiotic-resistant Acinetobacter calcoaceticus-baumannii complex in the environment: a narrative review

Abstract Acinetobacter calcoaceticus–baumannii complex comprises of both environmental and pathogenic bacterial species. Pathogenic species are responsible for nosocomial infections, which are increasingly difficult to treat due to growing resistance to antibiotics. In addition t...

Presence and abundance of airborne Botryosphaeriaceae conidia are governed by temperature and season in the Okanagan Valley, Canada

BACKGROUND: Grapevine trunk diseases (GTDs) are one of the most important diseases in grapevines, threatening vineyard longevity and productivity worldwide. However, regional patterns of airborne inoculum remain poorly understood for many production areas, including the Okanagan...

Unifying liquid water anomalies through a protonic pseudospinor order parameter

Introduction: Liquid water exhibits correlated density, thermodynamic, dielectric, transport, structural, and phase-boundary anomalies that are commonly described by separate phenomenological variables. This work asks whether a single internal protonic order parameter can provide...

Complete genome sequences of three effective nitrogen-fixing strains of Bradyrhizobium ottawaense from Canada

ABSTRACT We report complete genome sequences of three nitrogen-fixing Bradyrhizobium ottawaense strains isolated from soybeans in Canada. Each ~9.0 Mb genome (chromosome and plasmid) harbors predicted genes for nodulation, nitrogen fixation, N 2 O mitigation, phosphate solubiliza...

Impact of dimensionality reduction on machine learning-based crop health prediction

Abstract Accurately predicting fungal disease dynamics poses a major challenge for data-driven sustainable agriculture. This study evaluates the impact of dimensionality reduction (DR) on the predictive performance of classical machine learning (ML) and deep learning (DL) models...

Host-specific soil oomycete communities are spatially repeatable across natural grasslands

Soil oomycetes contain some of the most devastating plant pathogens, and are widespread within the soil microbiome, yet how individual plant species structure oomycete communities in natural soils, and whether any such structuring is consistent across space, remains poorly resolv...

Optimizing a culture-enriched hybrid metagenomics pipeline to assess the AMR footprint of livestock manure in anaerobic digestate

ABSTRACT The role of environmental samples from livestock production systems, including manure and anaerobic digestate, as reservoirs of antimicrobial resistance genes (ARGs) is likely underestimated because conventional metagenomic approaches can overlook low-abundance ARGs and...