Key Takeaways
- Livestock Gentec is recognized for its transformative genomic technologies in cattle.
- Focused on enhancing beef sector competitiveness, profitability, and sustainability.
- Collaborates globally to deliver innovative genetic solutions and management tools.
Livestock Gentec’s Award-Winning Initiative
Genomic Technologies in Cattle Industry
- Livestock Gentec, an applied research and commercialization center, received the ASTech Award 2023 for its groundbreaking work in genomic technologies for cattle. Established in 2010 at the University of Alberta, the center integrates research, development, and technology to serve the beef industry in Canada.
Enhancing Competitiveness and Sustainability
- Livestock Gentec focuses on increasing the beef sector’s competitiveness, profitability, and sustainability. This is achieved through genetic solutions that offer better management tools. These tools are designed to enhance livestock production efficiency, reduce production costs, and minimize the environmental footprint.
Improving Meat Quality and Animal Health
- The center also works on improving meat quality, adding value to the product, and supporting improving animal health. This includes increasing resilience to disease and extreme temperatures and ensuring food safety through healthy animal husbandry practices.
Global Collaboration and Knowledge Transfer
- Livestock Gentec collaborates extensively with industry and academic partners worldwide. The center is committed to building teams that develop applied genomic solutions and transferring this knowledge directly to producers, ensuring practical application and impact in the field​.
The Other ASTech Award 2023 Finalists:
- Dr. Rafiq Ahmad, University of Alberta
- Initiative: Smart and Sustainable Systems Empowering Industries and Society
- Focus: Dr. Ahmad leads the Smart & Sustainable Manufacturing Systems Laboratory (SMART Lab) and the Aquaponics 4.0 Learning Factory (AllFactory), focusing on digitization, lean manufacturing, robotics, and green technologies in agriculture.
- Dr. Marleny Aranda Saldaña, University of Alberta
- Initiative: Valorization of Agri-food Waste with Novel Green Processes
- Contribution: An expert in Food/Bio-Engineering Processing, Dr. Saldaña’s work emphasizes emerging green processing technologies in agri-food waste management.
- Dr. Susie Li, Innotech Alberta
- Initiative: Real-Time Biosensor for Crop Disease Forecasting
- Innovation: Dr. Li develops real-time biosensor technology for in-field crop disease surveillance to reduce yield loss and environmental impact from unnecessary fungicide use.
- AGvisorPRO (Patrick Walther, COO)
- Initiative: AGvisorPRO advances agtech through its product ecosystem
- Advancement: AGvisorPRO provides digital solutions to the agricultural sector, including a platform connecting farmers with experts and a machine learning-powered tool for equipment dealerships.
Discover the other awards here.