Saskatoon, Saskatchewan – Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada
Member of Parliament Brad Trost, on behalf of Agriculture Minister Gerry Ritz, today announced an investment of up to $275,000 to the Chicken Farmers of Saskatchewan to undertake a research project on disease control in the Saskatchewan broiler chicken industry.
With this investment, the Chicken Farmers of Saskatchewan aims to identify and characterize new variants of the avian reovirus and determine how they are transmitted. It also aims to evaluate the safety and effectiveness of vaccines for inclusion body hepatitis (IBH) in field trials.
This project is a step in the development of vaccines for avian reovirus and IBH, two diseases that are a common problem for many broiler producers. If commercialized, these vaccines have the potential of reducing economic losses in the Canadian broiler chicken industry and the need for therapeutics by preventing instead of treating these diseases.
Quick facts
- The Chicken Farmers of Saskatchewan is a non-profit, producer funded organization whose mission is to develop a profitable, safe and expanding Saskatchewan chicken industry.
- In 2012, Canada produced chicken products worth $2.4 billion.
- This investment is made through the Industry-led Research and Development stream of Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada's AgriInnovation Program, a five-year, up to $698-million initiative under Growing Forward 2.
Source: AAFC