Invited Speakers

PLENARY SPEAKERs

Kristen Cumming
Cantos Performance Mangement

Kristen Cumming’s career is focused on improving the connection between people and their work. Her 20 years’ experience in career development and human resources is complemented by a Bachelor of Arts degree in Economics and a Master of Education degree in Workplace and Adult Learning. Kristen instructed eight years with the Bachelor of Management Business Economics program at the University of Alberta – Augustana Campus and for the past 20 years operated a successful consulting practice through which she serves as a speaker, facilitator and trainer on recruitment and retention, leadership and execution. She is a product of an Albertan farm family and develops leadership training for agricultural organizations in Canada and the US. 

Presentation: Bridging the Gap - Labour Supply & Changing Expectations
Wednesday Morning Plenary

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 grew up on a family ranch running cows in Utah and Wyoming. He has worked in the cattle/beef industry in Nebraska, Florida, Oklahoma and Colorado for companies including AgReserves, Inc., Cattle-Fax and the U.S. Meat Export Federation in Denver. For most of the past 20 years he has been running Global AgriTrends, a business he co-founded in 2006. His work there has taken him to six continents researching the global meat and livestock markets. He now advises companies around the world on global agriculture trends with an emphasis on Asia. Brett received an Accounting degree at Utah State University and an Agribusiness MBA degree at the University of Nebraska. He and his wife Amanda live on a small farm with their kids near Preston Idaho.

Presentation: What’s Next in the Global Pork Markets?
Thursday Morning Plenary

Jorge Correa
Canadian Meat Council

Jorge has working for the Canadian Meat Council since 2010. He completed his Masters and Ph.D. in animal/meat science at Laval University in Quebec City (Canada). Before joining the Council, Jorge worked for 10 years at F. Ménard/Agromex today owned by Olymel at the Research & Development Department in Quebec pursuing further research trials, including genetics, animal feeding, animal welfare, food safety and meat quality. In his current role, Jorge manages the technical and regulatory national program that supports company members contributing to the quality and safety of meat produced in Canada and the meat industry competitiveness in domestic and international markets. Jorge also liaises with Federal and Provincial Governments, producer associations and stakeholders in the supply chain to facilitate the understanding of meat processor’s positions on national/international regulatory framework, international trade agreements, market access issues, and anything that may affect Member company’s business priorities.

Presentation: Navigating Trade Challenges in the Canadian Pork Industry
Thursday Morning Plenary

Tyler Smith
Humboldt Broncos Crash Survivor | Amazing Race Canada Winner

Tyler Smith is a 21-year-old survivor of the 2018 Humboldt Broncos bus crash, which claimed the lives of 16 of his teammates, staff members, and coaches. After physically recovering, he returned to the Broncos for ten games but realized that he needed to prioritize his mental health and take a step back from the game. Tyler has since made progress with his mental health recovery, including utilizing self-care tools like counselling. Tyler is now passionate about sharing his story and being a mental health advocate. He co-hosts a podcast called ’Speak Your Mind’ with NHL veteran Riley Sheahan and has also founded a mental health awareness clothing line called ’Not Alone Co.’ The clothing line aims to facilitate meaningful conversations around mental health and donates portions of the proceeds to different charities and foundations across Canada. Tyler hopes to continue public speaking, advocating for mental health, and sharing his stories with those who may need them. He believes in the power of a conversation and wants to build a lasting community focused on vulnerability and conversation.

Presentation: Yesterday’s Change, Tomorrow’s Strength
Thursday Closing Plenary

BREAKOUT SPEAKERS

Jordan Gebhardt
Kansas State University

Dr. Jordan Gebhardt is a native of West Michigan where he grew up on a small family farm and local feed mill. He obtained a Bachelor’s degree in Animal Science from Michigan State University in 2014 and a PhD in Applied Swine Nutrition and DVM both from Kansas State University in 2019. Jordan is an Assistant Professor within the Department of Diagnostic Medicine/Pathobiology at Kansas State University where he is involved with research focused on Applied Swine Nutrition and the safety of the livestock feed supply. The mission of the swine program at KSU involves training future professionals in the swine industry by developing and disseminating knowledge to benefit pork producers.

Presentation: Nutrition to Reach Marketing Goals & Optimize Profitability
Breakout 1: Grow-Finish Management

Charles Grant
University of Manitoba

Dr. Charles Grant is a Senior Instructor and Chair of the Agribusiness Program at the Department of Agribusiness and Agricultural Economics at the University of Manitoba. He teaches agribusiness management, farm management, and financial risk management and conducts independent research regarding the use of technology to automate agricultural operations with the goal of making the operations more efficient, sustainable, and profitable. He takes a special interest in the pig industry.

Presentation: Understanding & Targeting the Grid
Breakout 1: Grow-Finish Management

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: Weight 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

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

Roger Campbell
Jefo

Roger has been involved in global swine industry for over 40 years. Has a PhD in nutrition and physiology and spent half his career as a research scientist and the other half in managing R&D and companies involved with pork production. Famous for his research on energy and protein metabolism which in the early 1990s established the current concepts on energy and protein nutrition of pigs. He worked for 15 years as a scientist with Department of Agriculture in Victoria Spent 11 years as General Manager of Technical Services with Bunge Meat Industries (now JBS Rivalea) Australia’s largest and fully integrated pork producer. Spent 12 months as invited researcher with USDA in Beltsville Maryland where he conducted some of the first work on exogenous growth hormone administration on energy and protein metabolism. This research was ground breaking and made the laboratory famous. Six years running a genetic company in the USA (Ausgene) using genetics from Australia. From 2005 to 2018 Roger was CEO of Pork CRC which invested in R&D and training in areas of competitive pork production and in animal welfare especially in the area of group housing for pregnant sows Since 2018 Roger has run his own consulting company -RG Campbell Advisory. He facilitates Australia’s Bench Marking project for the industry and continually updates some 50 clients on research outcomes they should know about.

Presentation: Recent Advances in Nursery Pig Nutrition & Management
Breakout 7: Nursery 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

Martyna Lagoda
University of Saskatchewan

Dr Martyna Lagoda holds a B.A degree in Science, Zoology, and an M.Sc degree in Animal Behaviour and Welfare. Following the completion of her Ph.D in Sow Welfare (focus on sow chronic stress and its implications for piglet prenatal stress) at Teagasc, Ireland, in collaboration with the Institute of Genetics and Animal Biotechnology, Poland in 2022, Martyna worked as a research technologist on the “Tail Bite Advice” project in Teagasc, aiming to develop algorithms to accurately monitor tail biting behaviour, and to create a data-driven PLF decision support tool to actively advise farmers on how to reduce tail-biting occurrences. Martyna currently works as a Post-doctoral Research Fellow in the Swine Ethology and Welfare research group at the Western College of Veterinary Medicine, University of Saskatchewan. Martyna’s main research interest includes using behaviour to gain insights into welfare states, as well as developing housing environments which promote species specific behaviours. In her current role, Martyna continues to work towards improving the welfare of swine.

Presentation: What is Animal Welfare? Let’s Talk About It!
Breakout 8: Welfare

Kurt Preugschas
Precision Veterinary Services

Kurt was born and raised on a pig farm near Barrhead, Alberta, which sparked his passion for swine production and medicine. He graduated with his DVM in 2010 from the Western College of Veterinary Medicine in Saskatoon. Kurt is a founding partner of Precision Veterinary Services, based in Red Deer, which is a member of the Swine Vet Partners group. He is currently the Past President of the Canadian Association of Swine Veterinarians and a director of the Red Deer Swine Technology Workshop. Kurt and his wife Tanja have their home near Lacombe with their 4 children.

Presentation: Welfare & Health - A Veterinarian’s Perspective
Breakout 8: Welfare

Nicolas Herrera
Sunterra Farms

Nicolas Herrera, Production Manager for Sunterra Sunwold Farms LTD, Rimbey Division, with over 16 years of experience in the Pork Industry, directly involved in production and day to day operations, passionate about wellbeing and humane handling of animals. Obtained a bachelor’s in science degree as an Agronomist Engineer in Livestock Systems by the Autonomous University of Chapingo, Mexico 2007. On his free time, volunteers as a Firefighter, loves hiking and spending time in the mountains with his wife and 3 daughters.

Presentation: Welfare in Action - A Producer’s View
Breakout 8: Welfare

Yolande Seddon
University of Saskatchewan

Yolande Seddon is an associate professor in swine behaviour and welfare at the University of Saskatchewan’s Western College of Veterinary Medicine, and previously was the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council (NSERC) Industrial Research Chair in Swine Welfare. Yolande leads a research group in Saskatoon and provides animal welfare consultation for swine industry groups. Her academic training is in applied ethology (animal behaviour) and the scientific assessment of animal welfare, with a PhD in finisher pig health management (Newcastle University, UK). Focusing on pigs, she spent time working on indoor and outdoor swine production units in the UK before moving to Canada in 2012 for a postdoctoral position at the Prairie Swine Centre. She joined the Western College of Veterinary Medicine in 2016. Her research mandate is to contribute science to help develop lasting solutions to swine welfare challenges and support sustainable farming practices. Her areas of research include management of gestating sows in group-housing, the economics of higher welfare free-farrowing systems, weaner transport, environmental enrichment, assessment of swine welfare. Yolande is a member of the Code of Practice 2024 review scientific committee.

Presentation: The Science of Animal Welfare - How Can it Benefit You?
Breakout 8: Welfare

Jen-Yun Chou
Prairie Swine Centre

Dr Jen-Yun Chou is a research scientist at the Prairie Swine Centre and adjunct professor at the University of Saskatchewan in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada. She is leading the ethology and welfare group at the Centre and a part of the Swine Welfare research team. Jen-Yun’s background is multidisciplinary at the interface of applied animal behaviour, animal welfare and social science. She obtained her PhD degree in Clinical Veterinary Sciences at the University of Edinburgh in 2019 and holds an MA in Science, Technology and Society. She has experience working as an animal welfare advisor at international non-profit organisations and has conducted research at various research institutes across Europe and North America. Her research projects collaboratively explore issues surrounding ending piglet painful procedures and providing pigs with a better physical and social environment. She is also interested in subjects such as One Welfare, welfare at transport/slaughter and on-farm euthanasia. She has ongoing research collaborations with partners in the US, Europe and Taiwan, where she is from. Her goal is to show animal welfare can be beneficial and profitable for all stakeholders and to contribute to improving pig welfare globally. She did a postdoctoral research project from 2020-2021 at the Swine Teaching and Research centre at the University of Pennsylvania, USA, focusing on sow housing in early gestation. She was also a Marie Skłodowska Curie postdoctoral fellow at the Pig Development Department, Teagasc and the Institute of Animal Welfare Science, University of Veterinary Medicine, Vienna, Austria, investigating social behaviour and social network in pigs.

Presentation: The Science of Animal Welfare - How Can it Benefit You?
Breakout 8: Welfare