Advances in biotechnology have garnered the spotlight in recent years, particularly with regard to landmark uses of genetic biotechnology… think of the role mRNA technologies played in developing vaccines for COVID-19 as a recent example. Biotechnologies are increasingly utilized in agricultural and environmental applications, with terms such as CRISPR gaining widespread recognition among the consuming public

But what do farmers think about implementing these types of technologies in their operations?

In this episode Feedstuffs editor Sarah Muirhead talks with Michigan State University researchers Danielle Ufer and David Ortega about the findings of a recent study of more than 500 American dairy farmers on their willingness to adopt gene-edited genetics in their herds. Their research suggests that farmers may be a little gun shy when it comes to adopting new biotech applications, and that gene editing may face an uphill battle in the dairy sector.

This podcast is sponsored by Arm & Hammer Animal and Food Production and their #ScienceHearted podcast, “Food Chain Chats.” Check it out to hear insights on how the food supply chain is taking lessons learned from 2020 disruptions into 2021. Subscribe wherever you find your favorite podcasts.

The concept of group sow housing in swine production is far from new, but the implementation of California’s Prop 12 imposes a much heavier burden on producers in terms of the space required for gestating sows in a group system. That burden generally means smaller inventories and higher costs – not a winning recipe for profitable pork production.

In this episode of Feedstuffs In Focus we talk with Dr. Hyatt Frobose of JYGA Technologies about what exactly Prop 12 means for the swine industry, and more importantly how producers who want to access the California market can most effectively build or retrofit their facilities to be Prop 12 compliant… without sacrificing farrowing rates in the process.

Dr. Frobose is the U.S. Commercial Director for JYGA Technologies, the designer and manufacturer of Gestal swine feeding systems. Prior to joining JYGA, he earned a doctorate in swine management and nutrition at Kansas State University; his research evaluated stimulating estrus in sows during late lactation as a means to improve sow welfare, and the use of novel feeding technology to optimize sow performance.

This episode of Feedstuffs In Focus is sponsored by Topigs Norsvin, the second largest swine genetics company in the world. Topigs Norsvin’s unique breeding program is designed to accelerate genetic progress at the customer level by creating innovative products and solutions that benefit the entire pork production chain. To get more information, visit TopigsNorsvin.us.

Nearly 300 U.S. agriculture and forest products companies and associations delivered a letter to Secretary of DOT Pete Buttigieg last week, calling for the immediate intervention to protect U.S. exporters and their access to foreign markets. A global shortage of containers and ocean-going vessels, along with carriers’ increasingly-frequent refusal to carry agricultural products from the U.S. back across the ocean, has led to a disastrous situation for U.S. agricultural exporters.

In this episode we talk with Peter Friedman, executive director of the Agriculture Transportation Coalition, to get an update on the situation and discuss specific measures being proposed.

This episode of Feedstuffs In Focus is sponsored by United Animal Health, a leader in animal health and nutrition. You can learn more about United Animal Health and how they are working to advance animal science worldwide by visiting their website UnitedANH.com.

According to the International Feed Industry Federation, the commercial feed manufacturing industry is a nearly half-trillion dollar business globally. In the U.S. alone, according to the American Feed Industry Association, there are more than 5,800 animal food manufacturing facilities producing more than 284 million tons of finished feed and pet food each year. 

The past year has presented a series of challenges to the industry unlike any other year in recent memory.

In this episode we talk with Dr. Mark Lyons, CEO of Alltech, about what he and his colleagues in the global feed business have learned over the past year, and the challenges his company continues to face in COVID hotspots like India and Brazil. We’ll also discuss the results of the company’s annual Global Feed Survey, and the trends the survey uncovered from around the world. Finally, we’ll preview the Alltech One Ideas Conference.

This episode is sponsored by Alltech. Join Alltech for the annual Alltech ONE Ideas Conference coming up May 25-27. You can register for this virtual global agri-food conference by visiting one.alltech.com.

Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, U.S. consumers spent more than half of their food dollar on what the U.S. Department of Agriculture calls “food away from home;” in other words, on food consumed at restaurants and other foodservice establishments. The pandemic flipped that pattern on its head, with spending on food away from home dropping by more than $32 billion between February and April 2020.

In this episode we talk with Hinda Mitchell, founder and president of Inspire PR Group, a practice focused on strategic communications, stakeholder engagement, crisis preparedness and response and issues management. Many of her clients are national restaurant companies, food manufacturers and agricultural commodity groups, giving her an in-depth perspective on the foodservice segment and its relationship to the entire animal protein value chain. 

Mitchell describes the current state of affairs in the foodservice space, and some of the ongoing challenges facing restaurants, from ongoing restrictions in some states to a broader issue attracting and retaining a highly-engaged labor force.

This episode of Feedstuffs In Focus is sponsored by United Animal Health, a leader in animal health and nutrition. You can learn more about United Animal Health and how they are working to advance animal science worldwide by visiting their website UnitedANH.com.

Tyson Foods is one of the world’s largest food companies. With a massive global footprint and millions of animals in production, the company has taken an increased look at animal welfare with a scientific approach to figuring out ways to improve animal health and wellbeing. Recently, the company’s animal welfare research team embarked on a study that leveraged animal preference to test which environmental enrichments chickens on the company’s broiler farms prefer.

In this episode Feedstuffs Editor Sarah Muirhead talks with Dr. Karen Christensen, Tyson Foods’ Senior Director of Animal Welfare, about the the company’s Broiler Welfare Research Farm, a state-of-the-art four-house commercial broiler farm, and how it allows the company’s Office of Animal Welfare and university research partners to scientifically evaluate and understand how welfare practices can impact broiler behavior and welfare outcomes in a commercial setting. 

RELATED: You can watch Sarah Muirhead’s full interview with Dr. Karen Christensen of Tyson Foods via Feedstuffs 365, our virtual community and events platform. Feedstuffs 365 is part of your subscription to Feedstuffs and can be accessed via Feedstuffs.com.

This podcast is sponsored by Arm & Hammer Animal and Food Production and their #ScienceHearted podcast, “Food Chain Chats.” Check it out to hear insights on how the food supply chain is taking their experiences from 2020 disruptions into 2021. Subscribe wherever you find your favorite podcasts.

Welcome to this episode of Feedstuffs Swine Healthline, brought to you by Pharmgate Animal Health and focused on Mycoplasma hyopneumoniae.

M. hyo doesn’t have to be a part of pig production anymore. As we hear in this episode, elimination programs can be a cost-effective solution versus controlling this troublesome pathogen. 

Our guest is Dr. Amy Maschhoff, DVM, associate director of health for The Maschhoffs, LLC. Dr. Maschhoff earned her veterinary degree from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign and began her career as herd veterinarian for The Maschhoffs. Now she serves in a more central role for The Maschhoff system, as well as supports the health assurance program for Acuity Genetics. Dr. Maschhoff also served on the National Pork Producers Council Swine Veterinarian Public Policy Advocacy Program. She is actively enrolled in the University of Illinois Swine Executive Veterinary Program. 

Dr. Maschhoff shares practical, on-farm experiences with eliminating M. hyo., the benefits of developing an elimination program, as well as the factors veterinarians should take into consideration when moving from M. hyo. control to elimination. She shares the lessons she has learned and will use in the future to improve elimination programs, as well as gilt monitoring programs. 

Thank you for listening to the podcast series, made possible by Pharmgate Animal Health.

On the heels of passing a $1.9 trillion COVID relief bill, the Biden Administration released details of a $2 trillion infrastructure initiative that would make massive investments in roads, bridges, inland waterways, rural broadband and other key pieces of the nation’s logistics and utilities grid of importance to agriculture. But will the nature of partisan Washington politics get in the way of good policy? What’s in the bill, and can it pass with anything resembling bipartisan support?

In this episode we talk Farm Progress Policy Editor Jacqui Fatka about President Biden’s “American Jobs Plan” and how the agriculture community reacted to its far-reaching proposals. She’ll also describe how farm-state legislators of both parties are increasingly frustrated at the lack of bipartisanship inside the Beltway, and how that might lead to another reconciliation bill.

You can read Jacqui’s latest Inside Washington column on what ag-focused legislators are doing about persistent congestion issues at U.S. ports at Feedstuffs.com. Also, join us April 15th in our new virtual community and events platform, Feedstuffs 365, for a discussion about the proposed merger of the Canadian Pacific and Kansas City Southern railways. Experts Max Fisher of the National Grain and Feed Association and Mike Steenhoek of the Soy Transportation Coalition will discuss what this merger means for the feed and grain industry.

The emergence of plant-based proteins and other would-be meat alternatives has many in the traditional animal protein industries concerned about losing market share among U.S. consumers. But what does the data actually tell us? How many consumers are willing to pay the premium price many plant-based proteins currently command at retail?

In this episode we talk with Glynn Tonsor, a leading agricultural economist at Kansas State University, about research he and his colleagues conducted over the past year regarding consumer attitudes about beef and plant-based meat alternatives.

Among the study's key findings, the researchers learned that consumers who regularly eat beef said they are willing to pay nearly $2 more per meal for a beef burger rather than the plant-based alternative, when dining at a restaurant. On the flip-side, those who have a preference for plant-based protein alternatives are equally passionate, saying they would be willing to pay $1.48 more per meal.

We’ll also hear why Tonsor isn’t overly concerned about animal-derived proteins losing market share, and what the literature tells us about who prefers plant-based, and who would rather have the real deal.

Read the full study and an executive summary.

Infrastructure – namely, the ability to quickly and efficiently transport commodities and other goods – has been a competitive advantage for a number of U.S. industries, especially agriculture. From our inland waterways to our extensive network of highways, the U.S. farmer, livestock producer and agribusiness professional has benefited for centuries from the best overall logistics infrastructure in the world.

Unfortunately, in recent decades the country has failed to keep pace with maintaining and modernizing our infrastructure, and unless something changes soon, that long-held competitive advantage could quickly become a relative disadvantage.

In this episode we talk with Max Fisher, Vice President of Economics and Government Relations for the National Grain and Feed Association, about the state of infrastructure policy proposals, and what lies ahead with a new Congress and a new administration.

This episode of Feedstuffs In Focus is sponsored by United Animal Health, a leader in animal health and nutrition. You can learn more about United Animal Health and how they are working to advance animal science worldwide by visiting their website UnitedANH.com.