Invited Speakers

PLENARY SPEAKERs

Angela Rasmussen
VIDO

Dr. Angela (Angie) Rasmussen, PhD is a virologist at the Vaccine and Infectious Disease Organization (VIDO) at the University of Saskatchewan. Her research focuses on the role of the host in virus susceptibility and pathogenesis, with a particular interest in emerging viruses that are or have the potential to be major threats to global health, such as avian influenza virus, dengue virus, Ebola virus, mpox (monkeypox) virus, MERS-CoV, and SARS-CoV-2. Her work combines classical experimental virology and animal models with systems biology approaches to study the global response to infection and how that contributes to pathogenesis or protection from emerging pathogens. Dr. Rasmussen graduated from Smith College with a BA in Biological Sciences (2000) and received a MA (2005), MPhil (2006), and PhD (2009) in Microbiology and Immunology from Columbia University. She did her postdoctoral fellowship at the University of Washington and previously held faculty positions at the University of Washington and the Columbia Mailman School of Public Health, as well as an affiliation with the Georgetown Center for Global Health Science and Security. In addition to her primary appointment at VIDO, Angie is also an adjunct professor in the Department of Biochemistry, Microbiology, and Immunology at the University of Saskatchewan and an adjunct professor in the Department of Ecology and Evolution at Stony Brook University. She is the co-lead of the Coronavirus Variants Rapid Response Network (CoVaRR-Net) Host-Virus Interactions pillar. She is also a member of the WHO Ad Hoc Expert Committee for Preclinical Models of COVID-19 and sits on the Editorial Boards at Vaccine, mSphere, and Cell Reports. In addition to her research, Dr. Rasmussen is a prolific science communicator on both social media and in the mainstream press, as well as a writer for numerous publications including Forbes, Leaps.org, Slate, Foreign Affairs, the Washington Post, and the New York Times. She is passionate about advocating for equity in biomedical research and public health, and is a member of the US NIH Advisory Committee to the Director Working Group on Changing the Culture to End Sexual Harassment, as well as a faculty mentor for the volunteer science education group Wearing is Caring. She believes strongly that biosecurity and global public health must be collaborative international efforts and is eager to extend this outreach work in Canada and abroad.

Presentation: When Pigs Fly - The Impact of Mis- and Disinformation on Virus Emergence and Animal Health
Wednesday Morning Plenary

Brett Stuart
Global Agri-Trends

Brett Stuart is the president of Global AgriTrends. The firm was organized in 2006 and provides global market research, analysis and forecasting to a variety of clients around the world. He was formerly the economist for the U.S. Meat Export Federation. He has conducted numerous research and analysis projects in the global meat trade area as well as advising government representatives on international trade issues. Mr. Stuart has conducted on-the-ground agriculture industry research for a variety of clients on six continents. Brett was raised on a cattle ranch operating in Utah and Wyoming and has previously worked as a market analyst and controller in the agriculture industry. He received an undergraduate degree in accounting at Utah State University and a Master of Business Administration degree from the University of Nebraska. He and his wife Amanda live on a farm near Preston, Idaho with their five children.

Presentation: Economics & Market Outlooks
Thursday Morning Plenary

BREAKOUT SPEAKERS

David Rosero
Iowa State University

Dr. David Rosero is an Assistant Professor of Animal Science at Iowa State University. His dynamic research program focuses on advancing swine nutrition and smart farming practices. He is passionate about mentoring and inspiring the next generation of professionals in the development of innovative solutions to advance sustainable practices, enhance animal welfare, and optimize productivity in swine systems. Leveraging his past experience as the Technical Officer at The Hanor Company, he combines invaluable industry experience with academic pursuits. His current research initiatives include 1) implementing nutritional and management interventions to improve pig livability, 2) evaluating the adequate access of pigs to welfare resources, and 3) harnessing PLF technologies to improve production practices and animal welfare. His research contributions have been recognized with the Emerging Scholar Award by the American Society of Animal Science and a Research Innovation Award by the National Pork Board.

Presentation: Improving Sow Livability - A Collaborative Approach
Breakout 2: Pig Survivability

Joel DeRouchey
Kansas State University

Dr. Joel DeRouchey grew up on a diversified purebred swine, cattle and sheep operation in Pukwana, S.D. He graduated with his bachelor’s in Animal Science from South Dakota State University in 1997 and his M.S. (1999) and Ph.D. (2001) in Swine Nutrition from Kansas State University. He was hired in 2001 as the Northeast Livestock Extension Specialist for Kansas State University. In 2004, Joel moved to the Department of Animal Sciences and Industry as a Livestock Nutrition and Environmental Management Specialist and with a 40% Extension, 40% Research, and 20% Teaching appointment. Currently, he is a full professor and State Animal Science Extension Program Leader and has a 50% Extension and 50% Research appointment. Joel works with a productive applied swine nutrition team that maintains approximately 12 MS and PhD students. He has co-authored 238 refereed journal papers, 484 abstracts and 709 extension publications and field day reports and a co-advisor or active committee member for 86 MS and PhD graduate programs. In 2018 Joel was named the National ASAS Outstanding Extension Specialist and received the North Central Region Excellence in 4-H Volunteerism Award. He was also recognized in 2010 by South Dakota State University as a Distinguished Young Alumni. Joel and his wife, Julene, have three children — James, Jenna and Jacob. They enjoy K-State football tailgating, 4-H activities, youth livestock exhibitions and currently live on a small farm near Wamego, KS.

Presentation: Key Findings in Post-Weaning Mortality Research & Pig Livability Project Producer Resources
Breakout 2: Pig Survivability

Rob Hannam
Farm Health Guardian

As the CEO of Farm Health Guardian, Rob Hannam is committed to helping farms and food companies improve animal health through digital biosecurity hardware and software. Launched in 2020 in Guelph, Ontario, Farm Health Guardian’s technology is reducing the risk of disease spread and improving biosecurity compliance. The technology saves time for farm workers and veterinarians and increases biosecurity compliance which results in improved animal health and lower cost of production. Rob’s passion for agriculture was cultivated while growing up on his family’s grain farm in Guelph, Ontario. He has worked in agriculture for over 30 years in positions based in both the United States and Canada. He has proven experience in building innovative businesses. He is also President of Synthesis Network, where he leads a team of marketing communications professionals who push the boundaries of agri-food leadership and innovation.

Presentation: How New Technology & Real Time Feedback Can Improve Transport Biosecurity
Breakout 3: Swine Health

Jette Christensen
Canada West Swine Health Intelligence Network

Dr. Christensen is the manager of Canada West Swine Health Intelligence Network (CWSHIN). Dr. Christensen is a veterinary epidemiologist (DVM, Ph.D. from Copenhagen, Denmark), with experience in all aspects of animal health surveillance in swine herds as well as national animal health surveillance, and disease control programs from work in both Denmark and Canada.

Presentation: Biosecurity at Load-Out - A Canada West Swine Health Intelligence Network Special Project
Breakout 3: Swine Health

Ruurd Zijlstra
University of Alberta

Dr. Ruurd Zijlstra is Professor in the Department of Agricultural, Food and Nutritional Science at the University of Alberta, Edmonton, Canada. He was born and raised in The Netherlands where he completed a M.Sc. program at Wageningen University. In 1996, he completed a Ph.D. program at the University of Illinois. He has produced 189 scientific papers and 14 book chapters mostly on swine nutrition topics. His current research program is focused on unique aspects of dietary starch and fiber, nutritional quality of co-products, and feed quality evaluation techniques. He received the 2018 Nonruminant Nutrition Award of the American Society of Animal Science – American Feed Industry Association.

Presentation: Opportunities & Challenges for Novel Protein Feedstuffs in Swine Diets
Breakout 5: Feed & Nutrition

Marie-Pierre Letourneau-Montminy
Laval University

Marie-Pierre Letourneau Montminy is a full professor in the Animal Science Department of Laval University in Quebec Canada. She graduated from both AgroParisTech and Laval University. Her main research focus is on producing sustainable animal protein especially optimizing the utilization of phosphorus and nitrogen in pig and poultry through animal trial, meta-analysis, and modelling to formulate eco-friendly and low cost diet.

Presentation: Decreasing Greenhouse Gas Emissions, Feeding Costs & Labour Requirements by Using Precision Feeding Techniques
Breakout 5: Feed & Nutrition

Karel van der Velden
Nijsen

Karel van der Velden, who was born and reared on a farm, began working as an account manager for the family business Nijsen in August 1986, after graduating from HAS Green Academy. After 22 years, he advanced his career by becoming the company’s Head of Sales. Karel has been the Business Development Manager at Nijsen since 2015, and he is responsible for product development as well as co-setting the company’s future policy. Karel represents the Nijsen company in several Dutch and European associations, as well as associated Working Groups and Task Forces. As a member of the Executive Board, he is jointly responsible for the strategy and operation of the Dutch SecureFeed, a supra-statutory body established by the animal feed business with the goal of ensuring food safety.

Presentation: The Role of Livestock in Future Food Systems
Breakout 5: Feed & Nutrition

Jennifer Patterson
University of Alberta

Jennifer Patterson obtained her MSc in Animal Science from the University of Alberta where she is currently a Research Associate and the Swine Industry Liaison for Livestock Gentec. This involves developing research projects that address current industry challenges and providing continued support to producers to implement results at the farm level, putting “science into practice”. Jennifer has worked with many pig industry groups around the world and her current focus is on gilt management to improve sow lifetime productivity and retention. She also loves working with farm production data, through which powerful insights can be developed to make data-driven decisions that positively affect overall herd performance.

Presentation: Gilt Development - Laying the Foundation for Future Performance
Breakout 6: Sow Management

Courtney Werth
South West Vets

Courtney Werth is an applied researcher with a background in the human healthcare sector, now applying her skill sets within the animal health sector as lead of the applied research team at South West Vets. Courtney’s early career focused on evaluating treatment outcomes by conducting applied research with clinicians and patients as part of a mental health and addiction treatment facility. Transitioning to the swine industry, she leverages her experiences from applied research, outcome evaluation, and big data to work collaboratively with veterinarians, producers, and industry stakeholders on initiatives that aim to enhance swine health and management practices.

Presentation: Weigth Watchers - Insights from Ontario Sow Herds
Breakout 6: Sow Management

Chris Opschoor
Topigs Norsvin

Chris Opschoor is 46 years old and has already 26 years working in the pig industry. After studying at the Hogeschool INHOLLAND on Animal Husbandry, 1994 - 1998 he graduated with a BSc in Swine husbandry and later obtained his degree in Animal Breeding and Genetics from Wageningen University. He worked as an Account Manager (Swine nutrition and farming) for the Company Agruniek Rijnvallei from September 1998 until October 2007. For 9 years he gave technical support to his customers and was responsible for sales too. His main focus was to take his clients to a higher technical level. After 9 years, he started working for Topigs Norsvin as a Specialist in Feeding & Genetics, as a Topigs Norsvin International Feed group member. Chris’s main task in this team was to develop recommendations for feeding and management of all Topigs Norsvin products. He gave technical support to breeding farms worldwide, Global Key Accounts and local colleagues, and to the Global Feed Industry, and all other pig industry partners. For 7 years Chris has been responsible for the Topigs Norsvin Global Nutrition Services team. Since 2022, Chris also become responsible for the Female Reproduction team this resulted in the team Global Nutrition and Reproduction Services. Since the first of June of 2023, he become the Director of the department Global Technical Services of Topigs Norsvin. He is managing an enthusiastic, driven, and very professional team of scientist and specialist in the areas of nutrition, female and male reproduction, breeding program management, veterinarians and meat quality who are located all over the world. With this BEST TEAM, it is possible to support our clients worldwide to unlock their genetic potential.

Presentation: Between Gestation & Lactation a Transition is Made
Breakout 6: Sow Management

Gilles Langeoire
Gilles Langeoire Consulting

With more than 50 years only dedicated to pig production, Gilles Langeoire is a consultant and swine nutritionist, advising feed compounders, home mixed farmers and feed additive companies. During his career he has worked as technical manager for the major nutrition companies in France working on the inner pig feed market and abroad (mainly South Europe & Asia). His major contributions on swine nutrition include Net Energy and digestible protein-amino acid needs for growing pigs and sows; the use of fibres describing their inert and fermentable fractions for any swine physiological stage; mode of action and use of enzymes, acidifiers, polyphenols as pig feed additives; due to the different bans on antibiotics as growth promoters and the medicated zinc oxide, he worked specifically on various strategies to reduce the risk of post weaning diseases. He is a specialist in pig nutrition and was member of the Scientific Committee of IFIP (French Institute for Pig Production) and keeps in close contact with the main INRA and IFIP researchers.

Presentation: European Strategies for Reducing Medicated Zinc Oxide & Antibiotics in Weaned Piglet Feed
Breakout 7: Nursery Management

Dave Van Walleghem
Solvet

Dave’s passion for Agriculture began on his family’s Dairy farm and while managing it he completed his Degree in Agriculture specializing in Animal Science at the University of Manitoba. After leaving the farm he continued to work with various animal species in production settings while enhancing his knowledge and further education. He started focusing specifically on Biosecurity 20+ years ago seeing the need for it and the results while working hands on. It has led him to an amazing career where he is able to trouble shoot challenged barns and lecture to distribute not only his scholastic knowledge but also his down to earth approach of difficult concepts and the economic benefits of Biosecurity investments.

Presentation: The Clean Start
Breakout 7: Nursery Management