Engineering a better farm: Livestock industry making connections with Waterloo’s engineering school

By Lilian Schaer for Livestock Research Innovation Corporation

It’s been a year since Dr. Mary Wells, Dean of Engineering at the University of Waterloo, headlined a panel discussion on engineering a better farm at the annual Livestock Research Innovation Corporation (LRIC) symposium. 

It was an early part of LRIC’s work to learn what on-farm challenges – identified by Ontario’s livestock commodities – could be solved with engineering while also starting to make connections with some of Ontario’s engineering schools to introduce them to possibilities offered by the agriculture sector. 

Early this summer, UW Engineering hosted the Future of Ag Tech Symposium, welcoming members of the livestock industry to its Waterloo campus to showcase its innovation and tech capacities. 

Climate change, emerging diseases, changing societal expectations and an evolving regulatory environment are all big picture challenges facing the livestock sector, and according to LRIC CEO Kelly Somerville, finding effective solutions will need innovation and a willingness to do things differently.  

“It’s still important that livestock farmers focus on continuous improvement and efficiency in production, but issues like reducing antimicrobial use or finding ways to reduce emissions also matter — and they go beyond the research and innovation capacity of a single livestock commodity,” Somerville says. 

This means the industry needs expertise in automation, engineering, or computer science, for example, that can be applied to support the betterment of the livestock sector. 

That’s why, for the past several years, LRIC has been encouraging cross-sectoral research approaches and building relationships with scientists and experts not traditionally linked to agriculture who can bring new perspectives to the table. 

Waterloo is home to Canada’s largest engineering school, which is among the world’s top 50 for engineering and technology, as well as the world’s largest co-operative education program. UW Engineering has an annual research budget of approximately $80 million and more than 10,500 students. 

“We don’t have an agriculture or food school, but there is a lot of engineering at Waterloo with professors who are interested in the sector but don’t have the connections with the industry,” said Michele Van Dyk, UW Industry Engagement Manager. “We do a lot of research here, and we are looking for agtech applications.” 

This includes robotics and automation, vision and imaging systems, data capture technologies, wireless communications, sensor development, artificial intelligence and explainable decision-making, cybersecurity, logistics and supply chain optimization, remote monitoring, climate resilience, energy efficiency, air quality, biomedical devices, biomanufacturing, epidemiology, and more.

Wearable technologies, for example, are being developed to provide real-time health monitoring and could soon enable wearable drug delivery systems. In robotics, new systems are being designed to automate repetitive tasks, helping to reduce labour costs while ensuring consistency in areas like livestock feed, or growing crops.

Computer vision and image analysis are being used to support remote sensing via drones and satellites, offering detailed insights into field conditions and land use. Wireless and remote monitoring technologies are enabling RFID tracking and advanced movement detection, while sensors are being used to detect water leaks and monitor gas emissions.

Meanwhile, circular economy innovations are turning plastic, crop residues and livestock waste into sustainable products, including bioplastics and renewable fuels, such as ethanol, hydrogen, and biodiesel.

In addition to making connections between researchers and agricultural organizations, Waterloo’s well-known co-op program is an excellent way to introduce engineering students to the opportunities and technology in agriculture. 

Through a four- or eight-month work term, students are embedded with companies to tackle actual projects and work assignments; many students return to a former co-op employer following graduation for full-time, permanent work. 

“We are developing a talent pool, and we have the skills you need in data analysis, programming, robotics and artificial intelligence, but we also put emphasis on teaching soft skills like communications, critical thinking, customer service, and project management,” explained Alyssa Kuron, Industry Strategist, Co-Operative and Experiential Education at UW at the event.

This could be one way for the sector to attract a new generation of workers to help address the ongoing shortage of skilled labour in particular. 

Kuron encouraged ag sector employers to think about the roles that need filling in their organizations and to consider UW co-op — not just in engineering but across all of UW’s six faculties — to fill the gap. Government programs are available to support co-op student wages, she noted.

LRIC will continue to nurture its burgeoning relationship with UW, as well as work on outreach to other engineering schools, as part of its ongoing mandate to drive innovation in Ontario’s livestock sector. 

“New approaches and initiatives like Engineering a Better Farm that expand our horizons beyond those of just our sector are what’s needed to help the livestock industry rise to the challenges of the future,” Somerville says. 

Livestock Research Innovation Corporation is funded in part by the Sustainable Canadian Agricultural Partnership (Sustainable CAP), a five-year, federal-provincial-territorial initiative. This article is provided by LRIC as part of its ongoing efforts to report on research, innovation, and issues affecting the Canadian livestock industry.