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18 June 2019 | Story Leonie Bolleurs | Photo Leonie Bolleurs
Dr Christine Engelbrecht from the Agricultural Research Council
Dr Christine Engelbrecht from the Agricultural Research Council presented the keynote lecture on climate dynamics, predicting that El Niños will double in frequency towards the end of the century.

The world will need nearly double the current food supply by 2050 to feed an ever-increasing world population. This is a mammoth, almost impossible task.

Building on knowledge

According to UFS Rector and Vice-Chancellor, Prof Francis Petersen, if we approach challenges such as these with scientific level-headedness, systematically build on knowledge and experience gained, and draw on similar inputs from other specialist fields, the seemingly impossible becomes possible.

“To what extent do we integrate our knowledge across sectors – within the university and outside the university; on the continent as well as globally?” he asked the 300-plus delegates, which included animal scientists, students, and various other role players in the livestock sector, at the 51st South African Society of Animal Science (SASAS) congress on the Bloemfontein Campus of the University of the Free State (UFS). 

Willingness to adapt to new strategies


The theme of this year’s congress was: Managing the ecological footprint of livestock through efficient production. The congress provided a platform for discussions on the impact of livestock production – bringing in elements of critical thinking, as well as the willingness to adopt new strategies. 

During the congress, workshops on topics such as silage, predation management, intensive sheep production, prickly-pear utilisation, and animal welfare provided delegates with the opportunity to discuss challenges faced by the South African livestock producer.

Dr Christine Engelbrecht (Meteorology) from the Agricultural Research Council presented the first keynote address, focusing on climate dynamics. 

“We have high-impact weather systems across Southern Africa. It is projected that strong El Niños are to double in frequency towards the end of the 21st century,” said Dr Engelbrecht. 

She further predicted temperature increases of between 4 and 7 degrees Celsius in the interior before the end of the century. Over the Free State, Northern Cape, and North-West Province, we can expect shorter frost seasons, significant increases in maximum temperatures for both summer and winter, as well as more frequent El Niño-induced droughts. 

Ecological footprint of food

Improved production outputs need to be achieved by using less land, water, and available energy, while ensuring that the degradation and pollution of natural resources are limited. A scientific approach would be a viable option to improve the efficiency of livestock production.

SASAS President, Prof Este van Marle-Köster from the University of Pretoria, pointed out that all food had an ecological impact.

Dr Frikkie Maré, Head of the Department of Agricultural Economics at the UFS, presented a keynote lecture on managing the footprint of beef through efficient production. Comparing the water footprint of different cattle breeds, his question was what could be done to reduce this. 

Animal welfare was introduced to the congress for the first time. Prof Cathy Dwyer from Scotland’s Rural College presented a session on, ‘Can animal welfare contribute to improved production efficiency?’

The oldest conception of animal welfare is the five freedoms adapted to the five welfare needs of animals, namely a suitable environment, a suitable diet, exhibiting normal behaviour patterns, being with or being apart from other animals, and protection from pain, injury, suffering, and disease. Studies demonstrate that animal welfare can be an important and effective part of production efficiency, and that animal welfare should be seen as an integral component of improving the sustainability of livestock. 

Prof HO de Waal from the Predation Management Centre at the UFS presented a session on the impact of predation on livestock production, with the tile: The need for coordinated predation management in South Africa – quo vadis? He said: “The current approach to predation management is fragmented and uncoordinated. Solutions for the management of human-wildlife conflict require a South African institutional memory. Most of the information on predation and the hunting of predators is held by specialist predator hunters and farmers. In a system of coordinated predation management, farmers and government are equal partners, each with specific responsibilities.”

News Archive

Student receives international award in microbiology
2008-01-24

A postgraduate student at the University of the Free State (UFS) received an exceptional honour last month when he received the first prize for his presentation in the Biochemistry and Industrial Mycology session of the Asian Mycology Congress (AMC) held in Malaysia.

Desmond Ncango (24), a Ph.D. student from the Department of Microbial, Biochemical and Food Biotechnology received the first prize for his presentation on the inhibitory effects of non-steroidal anti inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) such as aspirin on fungi.

This suggests that commonly used aspirin may be used as a cheap antifungal to combat yeast infections. Desmond also exposed novel lubricants that are used by yeasts for water-propelled movement. This may find application in nanotechnology in the lubrication of nanorobots, which are manmade miniature machines, invisible to the naked eye, which may in future be used to combat diseases such as cancer.

The conference, which was attended by more than 300 representatives from 27 countries, is a platform for mycologists (who are experts in fungi) around the world to come together and share their knowledge and research. “Many interested researchers listened to my presentation and were impressed by the novelty and scientific depth of my work,” said Desmond.

“The presentation was selected as the best because of its novelty, academic depth as well as applicability. The meticulous preparation and presentation style also contributed to the success,” said Prof. Lodewyk Kock, head of the Lipid Biotechnology Group at the department and main promoter of Desmond’s Ph.D. studies.

“I cannot really explain the feeling when my presentation was selected as the best as it was presented in a very difficult category and many senior researchers and professors also participated. I plan to use all the knowledge and skills I have learnt from Prof. Kock, who is my role model, especially to the benefit of disadvantage communities in South Africa. I want to follow an academic career at a tertiary institution when I have completed my Ph.D. studies,” said Desmond.

Desmond went to school in Botshabelo, Bloemfontein and completed his Grade 12 in 2000 with a distinction in Mathematics. He enrolled for a B.Sc. degree at the UFS, majoring in Microbiology and Physiology. After obtaining this qualification, he joined the postgraduate research group of Prof. Kock. He completed his M.Sc. degree with distinction last year and was privileged to have this research published in and on the cover of the Canadian Journal of Microbiology, a journal accredited by the Institute for Scientific Information (ISI).

He was one of six postgraduate students from the Lipid Biotechnology Group who attended the AMC conference in Malaysia. The students’ attendance was funded by the South African Fryer Oil Initiative (SAFOI), which is housed in the UFS Department of Microbial, Biochemical and Food Biotechnology. This initiative, steered by Prof. Kock, currently monitors edible oils in the food industry in South Africa and makes a quality seal available to the manufacturers and distributors of these edible oils.

“SAFOI’s income is used to fund my own research on various kinds of oils (including yeast oils) to enable postgraduate students to attend international congresses and to partially fund international scientific symposia and congresses,” said Prof. Kock.

 

Media Release
Issued by: Lacea Loader
Assistant Director: Media Liaison
Tel: 051 401 2584
Cell: 083 645 2454
E-mail: loaderl.stg@ufs.ac.za 
24 January 2008

 

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