2015 Maine Agricultural Trades Show starts January 13

Jan 08, 2015

Event to be held at Augusta Civic Centre

By Diego Flammini, Farms.com

Agriculture producers, consumers, visitors and anyone with an interest in Maine’s agricultural community can attend the 74^th Maine Agricultural Trades Show, taking place January 13-15 at the Augusta Civic Centre.

Since its inception in 1941, the show gives attendees a wide array of exhibitors, meetings, seminars, activities and events to explore and enjoy.

Included in the events available are courses by the Cooperative Extension & Board of Pesticide Control. The hour-long training sessions can be used by licensed pesticide applicators as credits towards recertification.

There will also be speakers from the Maine Milk Commission, education sessions from the Maine State Florists and Growers Association, the Maine Vegetable & Small Fruit Growers Association, and the United States Department of Agriculture.

With potatoes being Maine’s primary vegetable with over $164 million in production in 2013, there will be programs dedicated to the beloved spud.

Jim Dwyer of the University of Maine’s Cooperative Extension (UMCE) will do a presentation on potato pest management on January 13 and January 15 will see Andy Wilbur from Wilburs of Maine making Needhams, a staple in the Maine candy conversation.

Needhams are chocolate-coated coconut candy treats using mashed potatoes.

Video: Sweetener Effects on Gut Health - Dr. Kwangwook Kim

In this episode of The Swine Nutrition Blackbelt Podcast, Dr. Kwangwook Kim, Assistant Professor at Michigan State University, discusses the use of non-nutritive sweeteners in nursery pig diets. He explains how sucralose and neotame influence feed intake, gut health, metabolism, and the frequency of diarrhea compared to antibiotics. The conversation highlights mechanisms beyond palatability, including hormone signaling and nutrient transport. Listen now on all major platforms!

“Receptors responsible for sweet taste are present not only in the mouth but also along the intestinal tract.”

Meet the guest: Dr. Kwangwook Kim / kwangwook-kim is an Assistant Professor at Michigan State University, specializing in swine nutrition and feed additives under disease challenge models. He earned his M.S. and Ph.D. in Animal Sciences from the University of California, Davis, where he focused on intestinal health and metabolic responses in pigs. His research evaluates alternatives to antibiotics, targeting gut health and performance in nursery pigs.