That's not chicken feed: U of G gets $3.5M gift for poultry research

Mar 13, 2024

Improving innovation and sustainability in the Canadian poultry and egg sector is the goal of a new $3.5 million gift from the William and Lynne Gray Foundation and L.H. Gray & Son Limited to the University of Guelph.

The gift will create the Bill and Lynne Gray Chair in Advanced Poultry Technology Management in the Department of Animal Biosciences within the Ontario Agricultural College (OAC).

With the goal of elevating the Canadian poultry and egg sector on the global market, the gift will help advance technologies and systems that are key to sustainable and profitable production.

We are incredibly grateful to Bill and Lynne Gray’s commitment to fund this chair, which will help OAC advance its mission of improving the Canadian and global food system,” said OAC acting dean Dr. John Cranfield. “This gift will help elevate our strength in poultry production research and teaching.”

The chair will also work closely with faculty in the School of Engineering on environmental control issues such as lighting, ventilation, sanitation and biosecurity, using new and emerging technologies to help control the spread of avian diseases.

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Video: WARNING! Rough Start To Breeding Season!!

WARNING! Sheep Breeding Season Begins With A Bang! Breeding season is officially underway at Ewetopia Farms, but it didn’t exactly start the way we planned!

This vlog begins with us sorting through our rams to find the perfect match for a customer’s breeding program. What should have been routine quickly turned dangerous when one of our more nervous rams panicked. In seconds, Arnie’s knee was injured, and then I was slammed hard onto the concrete floor — both of us taken down by one ram!

Thankfully, it was just bruises, but it’s a reminder of how unpredictable and powerful mature rams can be. Once we recovered, it was time to get back to the real work — the start of breeding season.

We sorted the ewes into four breeding groups (two Suffolk and two Dorset), checking parentage as they ran through the chute, deworming those that needed it, and setting aside thinner ewes for session two of breeding season in a month’s time.This staggered approach keeps lambing organized and prevents overcrowding in the barns.

From rogue rams to the excitement of new breeding groups, this episode is full of action. Stay tuned for the next vlog, where we’ll share how we chose the rams for each group!