30/05/2013: Animal feed from flies; OSU develop monitoring technology; sunken grain pit makes for easy access

The simple, cheap, but effective idea of harvesting maggots and turning them into livestock feed has garnered a Cape Town agricultural company the Innovation Prize for Africa worth US$100 000.

AgriProtein Technologies beat ten other finalists from across the country to scoop the prize by developing a way to create livestock feed out of the bio-waste thrown out by abattoirs.

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Researchers at Oregon State University have helped develop new environmental monitoring technology that will allow farmers thousands of miles away, in west and central Asia, to save millions of dollars while more effectively combating a pest that is threatening their wheat crops.

Twenty million acres of wheat in parts of Asia and North Africa are threatened by the 'Sunn pest', a bug that can destroy the value of wheat.

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A ready-made sunken grain pit has been designed to allow for easier installation whilst providing ready access to the conveyor within the grain handling sector.

The Dry Pit system from Jema Agro is supplied in bolt-together sections to fit a rectangular concrete casing with vertical sides.

"The self-supporting steel hopper is suspended from the top of the concrete lining and sits 140mm from the floor," explains Mark Unitt of Jema distributor Danagri-3S.

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English: Odontotarsus grammicus, Scutelleridae. A sunn pest. This photo was taken on September 30, 2009 in Ansião, Leiria, PT. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Event: IDF World Dairy Summit 2012

IDF World Dairy Summit 2012: Managing Emerging Food Safety Issues
The Food Safety Conference at the World Dairy Summit 2012 in Cape Town, South Africa, will focus on emerging food safety issues of a microbiological or chemical nature that may pose a threat to consumers of milk and dairy products globally if not managed appropriately. Invited speakers who are experts in their specific field will present the latest developments now and potential future developments.
Presentations will focus on two topics i) The risk of food associated pathogens in dairy products and ii) The risk of chemical contaminants in dairy products. This conference targets the whole dairy chain from farm to processing and final products and will be of interest to all stakeholders in the dairy chain that have an interest in milk and dairy product safety and quality.
This conference will take place on November 6, 2012 during the IDF World Dairy Summit.  
Register before September 15, 2012 to get the early registration rate. 
More information...

Central Cape Town from Lions Head (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Extended deadline for IDF submissions

The deadline for abstract submission the IDF World Dairy Summit 2012 has been extended to May 31, 2012. 

The IDF World Dairy Summit is an outstanding opportunity for all participants to discuss latest developments in key areas including: 

Emerging dairy sectors; 

Nutrition and health;

Sustainability and green economy; 

Dairy science and technology; 

Animal health and welfare; 

Food safety;

Dairy policies and economics;

Methods of analysis.

 

The event will be held in Cape Town, Suoth Africa from November 4-8, 2012.

Detailed information can be found online.

The Global Miller, published and supported by the GFMT Magazine and the International Milling Directory from Perendale Publishers. And blogs are written by the staff of Grain & Feed Milling Technology daily. Get your copy of 'PPLAPP', our mobile web application which will allow you to view this blog and other useful information while on the move.

Legislation relieves regulation on agricultural transportation

A bill introduced by Senator Pat Roberts, that is intended to ease the pressure and exempt those who transport agricultural products from costly regulations that will stifles their ability to carry out their business quickly and effectively

"Eliminating this endorsement is a common sense way to provide more flexibility for these industries that are already weighed down with too many needless regulations," said Roberts "This is just another example of an overly burdensome regulation that needs to be eliminated, and I will continue my fight to review and repeal other oppressive regulations that negatively affect agriculture and our economy." Read more ...

This blog is written by Martin Little, The Global Miller, published and supported by the GFMT Magazine and the International Milling Directory from Perendale Publishers