| Education
Students take part in beef feed trials with major retailer
Fourteen first year , Level Three Extended Diploma in Agriculture students are taking on a trial with leading meat producer Anglo Beef Processors ( ABP ) Ltd ; and the world ’ s biggest retailer , ASDA , with the aim of reducing the cost of beef production .
er level skills for UK ’ s agri-food sector
in the heartland of the UK ’ s multi-billion pound agri-food sector to and farming industries .
Lincoln at the University ’ s Riseholme Campus , students will work on an agricultural field station for testing farm innovations , completing crop trials , and experimenting in agrirobotics , water management and agronomy .
The National Centre for Food Manufacturing at Holbeach in southern Lincolnshire will continue to serve as the University ’ s gateway to the global food manufacturing industry , providing critical expertise on industry needs and hosting projects at its model food manufacturing plant .
The Master ’ s programme will be led by Dr Ramana Sundara , who joined the University of Lincoln with more than two decades of industry experience after working with Nestle as Manager of External Research Collaborations .
“ Our students will all undertake an individual research project , either in industry or in academia ,” Dr Sundara explained . “ This will give them a fantastic opportunity to specialise in their chosen field , apply new knowledge in a real-life setting , and make invaluable contacts with potential employers in the region ’ s agricultural and food processing industries .
“ The food and farming sector is so important to the country , and to our county . It represents one of our largest and oldest industries and in the UK , it is currently bigger than the aerospace and automotive sectors put together . This new postgraduate programme is designed to educate the workforce of the future . It will provide a comprehensive insight into the agri-food value chain and address challenges on our doorstep which have a truly global significance . It is our aim to produce a fantastic pool of home-grown , skilled workers with innovative approaches , who can continue to drive the UK ’ s agrifood industries forward .”
The new MSc in Agri-food Technology builds on the extensive BASIS and Crop Science training provided by the University for the region ’ s agricultural community over many years at Riseholme . Teaching will be informed by food manufacturing research projects delivered at Holbeach , biodiversity modules in the School of Life Sciences , and the agri-robotics work of the School of Engineering and School of Computer Science . The programme will also feature a variety of guest lectures from key figures in the farming and food processing industries .
For more information on the MSc in Agri-Food Technology at the University of Lincoln , visit : www . lincoln . ac . uk / home / liat
T he beef grower feeding trial , which is being supported by specialists from ABP Ltd ., will last for 12 weeks , and is expected to identify efficiencies during the grower feeding phase .
Using 24 young cattle divided into three groups , comprising a mix of Herford , Brown Swiss , Limousin and Belgian Blue crosses the trial will see one group of cattle receiving an innovative supplement which is claimed to reduce feed intake without effecting weight gain . It is hoped the trial will reveal significant financial benefits to using the supplement during the grower phase .
The project will see the students take ownership of the trial , feeding the cattle seven days a week and weighing the stock at regular intervals to calculate weight gain against the amount of feed intake .
On the trial , Jeanette Dawson OBE , Chief Executive and Principal of Bishop Burton , said ; “ This trial will be incredibly interesting for both our students and our partners ASDA and ABP Ltd . Not only will the project allow our students to learn about the fundamentals of meat production , and then put them into practice , it will also enable us to work with ABP to trial new feed supplements .” www . farmingmonthly . co . uk November 2016 | Farming Monthly | 31