Exhibitors with innovative products were recognized last month during Canada’s Outdoor Farm Show. The Innovation Program offers awards to businesses in five categories: agronomics, business solutions, environmental sustainability, equipment and livestock. The 2023 winners were announced Sept. 11 before the Sept. 12-14 show began at Discovery Farm Woodstock. Why it matters: The program recognizes new […] Read more
Tag Archives bacteria
Vet app, grain data tech, biostimulant among innovation winners
Major U.S. retailers limit infant formula purchases on shortage
Reuters — U.S. retailers including Target, CVS and Walgreens Boots Alliance said on Tuesday they have limited purchases of infant formula due to a supply shortage. The limits come after top supplier Abbott Laboratories in February recalled some baby formula including Similac made at its plant in Michigan over complaints of bacterial infections in infants […] Read more
New tests find more resistant bacteria
Science Notes: CRISPR technology being used to identify which bacteria are most abundant
New research from the University of Georgia shows there may be more antimicrobial-resistant salmonella in food animals than scientists previously thought. Using technology she developed, UGA researcher Nikki Shariat and Amy Siceloff, a first-year doctoral student in UGA’s Department of Microbiology, found that traditional culturing methods used to test livestock for problematic bacteria often miss […] Read more
Anthrax kills southeastern Saskatchewan sheep
Spores forced up by changes in soil moisture
Dramatic shifts in soil moisture are again bringing anthrax spores to the surface on the Prairies, this time in a southeastern Saskatchewan sheep pasture. Lab results on Wednesday confirmed anthrax as the cause of death of one animal in a flock of sheep in the R.M. of South Qu’Appelle, about 50 km east of Regina, […] Read more
Bacteria boost plant root hair growth
Science Notes: Symbiotic bacteria in root cells may be key to producing better crops, study finds
A Rutgers study has found that symbiotic bacteria that colonize root cells may be managed to produce hardier crops that need less fertilizer. The study appeared in the journal Microorganisms. Bacteria stimulate root hair growth in all plants that form root hairs, so the researchers examined the chemical interactions between bacteria inside root cells. They […] Read more
Nitrogen fixing bacteria to be available in 2021
Envita, a nitrogen-fixing bacteria, will be available to Canadian farmers for its first full season in 2021. It works within plant cells to fix nitrogen from the air and was approved by the Canadian Food Inspection Agency earlier this year, following six years of research and farm trials in Canada and the United States. Azotic […] Read more
Specialized cellular compartments discovered in bacteria
Science Notes: Discovery of bacterial “organs” could pave the way for a new generation of antibiotics
Researchers at McGill University have discovered bacterial organelles involved in gene expression, suggesting that bacteria may not be as simple as once thought. This finding could offer new targets for the development of new antibiotics. The study, published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, is the first to show that E. coli uses similar […] Read more
New killing mechanism discovered in ‘game-changing’ antibiotic
Science Notes: AMR is seen as a threat to human health and prosperity
Scientists at the University of Liverpool and University of Utrecht have taken another step forward on their quest to develop a viable drug based on teixobactin – a new class of potent natural antibiotic capable of killing superbugs. Research published in Nature Communications provides fundamental new insights into how teixobactins kill bacteria, including the discovery of a […] Read more
Safety advocates sound alarm over new U.S. hog slaughter rules
Chicago | Reuters — U.S. food safety and the health of plant workers will be at risk from new federal rules that allow meat companies to slaughter hogs as fast as they want and shift the role of government inspectors, food and environmental advocates said on Tuesday. The warnings about the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s […] Read more
With phosphorus, less might be plenty
A long-term trial shows repeated phosphorus applications don't correlate with higher yield
You could be over-indulging your crops — and it might be costing you. New Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada (AAFC) research indicates crops growing in soils consistently treated with applied phosphorus (P) take more than their necessary share. With a steady abundance of the nutrient, soil microbes that work to make P more available to the […] Read more
Cyber-Savvy Farmer
