This class will be a lecture and discussion-based experience dealing with current issues and remarkable changes in animal agriculture in Alberta. Introductory topics will cover the changing demographics of farmer age, shrinking land bases and a growing global demand for protein. Technical material will only be presented when necessary to provide learners the tools to understand issues and form opinions about them. Exciting topics to be discussed include: amazing genetic progress in farm animals, animal welfare, niche market products, high-tech equipment and new designs for animal housing, backyard chickens, the use of steroid hormones in beef production, supply management, heritage breed conservation and much more. Anyone who eats food will enjoy this course!
Frank Robinson has been a professor of poultry production and physiology at the University of Alberta since 1986. For over 30 years, Frank was very active in researching reproductive efficiency of female broiler breeders. He has taught in the area of poultry science and general animal agriculture with an emphasis on inquiry-based learning. He is a lively and dynamic teacher. He was inducted into the Alberta Agriculture Hall of Fame in 2006, and is a 3M National Teaching Fellow.
