Farmscape for May 2, 2007  (Episode 2472)

Officials of the Manitoba Livestock Manure Management Initiative are looking to expand their research mandate beyond hogs to include other livestock commodity groups.

The Manitoba Livestock Manure Management Initiative was established in 1998 to address environmental concerns related to livestock  production.

It's mandate is to foster sustainable development of the livestock industry in an environmentally sound and community friendly manner, through research, development, and demonstration.

Executive director Brandy Street says, while the initiative's efforts have primarily involved the hog industry, officials would like to expand it's efforts to also include the beef, dairy and poultry sectors.

Clip-Brandy Street-Manitoba Livestock Manure Management Initiative 

Right now we are very hog focused and that's primarily because there is a pause in effect in the hog industry and it is under close scrutiny right now.

We want to get other livestock commodity groups involved because this is everybody's problem.

What has happened to the hog industry could easily happen to any other animal or livestock industry tomorrow and, with that in mind, we need to be proactive right now in addressing the issues in those groups.

As of right now we're just at the stage where we're going out and meeting with these groups, getting to know them a little better, getting them more familiar with the MLMMI, our organization, just so they can get a feel of what we're all about and what our goals are.

From there we're inviting them to participate in our board in the future so that they can get a better understanding of the workings of our organization and hopefully from there they would be more interested in joining up with us and doing research in there own areas.

Street says right now representatives of these groups are being asked what types of research they would like to see undertaken.

She says the hope is that some of these organizations would become involved with the initiative at the board level within the next couple of months and that research tailored to meet their needs could be underway within the next year.

For Farmscape.Ca, I'm Bruce Cochrane.

       *Farmscape is a presentation of Sask Pork and Manitoba Pork Council