From April 8th through 10th, leaders and members within animal agriculture convened at the National Institute of Animal Agriculture’s (NIAA) annual conference at the Kauffman Foundation Center in Kansas City, MO, embracing this year’s theme: “The Next Generation of Animal Agriculture.” The conference brought together a diverse and dynamic group of attendees, including young professionals from industry, government, and production sectors, highlighting a refreshing shift towards inclusivity and forward-thinking. The NIAA, a not-for-profit organization, is an interdisciplinary convening of animal agriculture leaders to network while exploring, discussing, learning, and developing knowledge about innovation and technology that leads to greater collaboration and cooperation, with the vision of being a leading resource to the animal agriculture industry and provides value to all stakeholders in providing safe and healthy food for the world.
The conference kicked off with an impactful panel featuring Kansas State veterinarian (Dr. James Smith) and a dairy veterinarian from the Panhandle in Texas (Dr. Brandon Treichler). They discussed the recent outbreaks of Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza (HPAI), moderated by the Deputy Division Director of the Division of Foodborne, Waterborne, and Environmental Diseases at the CDC (Dr. Megin Nichols), talking through steps taken, how teams collaborated, what was learned and what we should do in the future. This session underscored the critical importance of biosecurity, particularly evident in the poultry and swine sectors, from which beef and dairy can draw valuable lessons.
Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR) remains a formidable challenge in food-animal agriculture, linking directly to the One Health initiative. This requires us to reach beyond our disciplines and collaborate with professionals from varied fields. Such interdisciplinary interactions foster innovation and accelerate the pace of advancements. We are better together in animal agriculture, pooling resources and speaking as one voice, especially with the immense challenges and opportunities we share collectively. We can learn a lot from each other by being in the room and discussing our common goals (One Health, AMR, sustainability, informing the consumer, improving welfare, data, precision livestock farming, and labor). Interspecies knowledge and sharing insight into how the flock’s behavior and welfare can inform about the individual animal in a herd, and vice versa will enable new innovations and advancements that impact the whole of animal agriculture.
The Politics of the Minority capstone project group highlighted a concerning trend from the USDA 2022 agriculture census: only 1.2% of the workforce is directly engaged on farms, a sharp 18.8% decrease over seven decades. Only 9% of our on-farm workforce is under the age of 351. Total jobs related to agriculture and food sectors are roughly 10.4% of all US employment. Attracting new talent, especially at the farm level, is something that needs to be addressed, reinforcing the need to do more to highlight the vast and diverse career opportunities in animal agriculture.
Opportunity to innovate and create new value must be a priority, as I put in my keynote presentation Data’s Value Toward Innovation in Food Animal Agriculture, farm-level data has value. Ensuring this value is returned to the farm level (pay for progress) is imperative, through the model of farm data ownership pre- and post-algorithmic processing. Data infrastructure and tools are becoming more sophisticated and accessible to enable this governance at the farm level, aiding deeper insights, precision decision-making, and value. Quality data from the farm level is imperative for increasing value, but third-party checking and validation methodologies are vital and required for farm-level data, especially for welfare and sustainability metrics and calculations, especially as these outputs begin to be used toward informing the consumer, buyer contracts, and regulations. At the same time, the right to repair remains a contentious issue as farmers navigate the complexities of proprietary technologies and data. Producers can’t be impeded from innovation in their domain if the technology doesn’t work. What types of data has also become important, and with the greater proliferation of data systems in food animal agriculture, there is a need for the development of data and calculation standards for welfare and sustainability, that increase trust, and value of the data, as well as bring down the economic cost of data systems at the farm level.
During the Animal Agriculture Innovation and Investment Working Group it was highlighted that investors’ education and engagement about the nuances of animal agriculture is vital and needed. It was highlighted that 65% of beef and dairy AgriTech come from outside the US. Fostering regional innovation and the importance of diverse funding sources, such as family offices, small-dollar funding, and supporting regional animal agriculture businesses are of top priority.
The NIAA annual conference offers a beacon of hope amidst the challenges we face, allowing a town square approach, where we can discuss the hard topics we need to solve as part of our 2050 sustainability commitments in animal agriculture. By sharing knowledge and resources, engaging in meaningful dialogue, and fostering a community of practice, we can enhance our collective impact. The discussions held here pave the way for ongoing collaboration, which is crucial as we prepare for the future of animal agriculture.
Conclusion
The NIAA is proactive in attracting a diverse group of participants, including students, startups, industry, and investors to discuss and collaborate with the challenges and goals within animal agriculture. As we look forward to the next conference, it’s clear that this is an essential gathering for those dedicated to advancing our industry. I urge more producers to get involved—your insights are invaluable as we continue to innovate and evolve. Thinking and innovating together enhances our ability to meet Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and improve welfare in food-animal agriculture while attracting and preparing the next generation of animal agriculturists as replacements at the farm level and throughout the industry. At the next conference, let’s continue to unite our efforts for a brighter, more sustainable future where food-animal agriculture takes the lead on sustainability by 2050. On a final note, veterinarians in the US upon graduating take an oath, and part of that oath is to uphold animal health and welfare, public health, and conservation of animal resources. A commitment that could extend to encompass the environment more broadly through One Health. Maybe this oath should also be extended to the other disciplines within animal agriculture, igniting the next generation and innovation under the banner of animal agriculture.
The Oath
Being admitted to the profession of veterinary medicine [and/or Animal Agriculture]*, I solemnly swear to use my scientific knowledge and skills for the benefit of society through the protection of animal health and welfare, the prevention and relief of animal suffering, the conservation of animal resources, the promotion of public health, [sustainability]* and the advancement of medical [and Animal Agriculture]* knowledge.
I will practice my profession conscientiously, with dignity, and in keeping with the principles of veterinary medical [and/or Animal Agriculture]* ethics.
I accept as a lifelong obligation the continual improvement of my professional knowledge and competence.
*Amendments for the broader animal agriculture community