Olds College Horizons Fall 2018

08

UFA Invests in Olds College

14

Olds College Launches Smart Farm

Fall 2018

Innovation in Agriculture Fall 2018 1

Planned Giving

Growing Greater Futures By making a planned gift to Olds College, you plant seeds for a brighter future and ensure that opportunities for education and research will be available for years to come.

You have the opportunity to make a significant gift that will transform Olds College for generations to come.

Your agricultural legacy can begin today!

Types of Planned Gifts: • • • •

Bequests through your will Real property such as a farm or ranch Securities including stock, bonds & mutual funds Life insurance policy

For more information, please contact Olds College Development at development@oldscollege.ca or by telephone at 403.556.8232.

2 Olds College Horizons

Table of Contents

Horizons Fall 2018 Edition

04 Stuart Cullum: President's Message 05 Our Social Purpose: Transforming Agriculture for a Better World 06 Olds College Affinity Partners | Conference Services 07 Olds College Alumni Association (OCAA)

08

08 Focus on Innovation: Growing our Partnership with United Farmers of Alberta Cooperative (UFA)

10 The Homestead: Transformation of the Former President’s House | Investing in New Smart Ag Programs

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12 Beer, Mushrooms and Beef: Alumni Tackles Sustainability

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14 Embracing the Future: Olds College Launches Smart Farm

16 Olds College Smart Farm: First Growing Season 18 Smart Farm Partners: Phase One Map 21 Bob Collier Award: Student Award Encourages Innovation in Agriculture

22 22 Brewing Boom: Inspiring Hops Research Project 24 Growing a New Curriculum: Olds College Introduces Cannabis Programming 26 Olds College Campus Housing

Horizons is published by Olds College Corporate Communications & Marketing. The magazine is mailed to alumni and friends of Olds College.

To Reach Us:

Editorial/Advertising/Letters: Horizons, Corporate Communications, Olds College 4500-50 Street, Olds, Alberta T4H 1R6 Ph: 403.507.7717 Fax: 403.556.4704 communications@oldscollege.ca

Address Change:

Olds College, 4500-50 Street Olds, Alberta T4H 1R6 Ph: 403.556.8232 Fax: 403.556.4704 development@oldscollege.ca Toll-free: 1.800.661.6537 Online: oldscollege.ca

Return Undeliverable Magazines to: Corporate

Communications & Marketing Olds College, 4500-50 Street, Olds, Alberta, T4H 1R6

Visit Olds College online at oldscollege.ca

Facebook.com/oldscollege Twitter.com/oldscollege Instagram.com/olds.college Linkedin.com/school/oldscollege Cover photo: Current

Agricultural Management students, Michelle Hoppins and Rebecca Caouette, explore new equipment during Ag Management Field Week.

27 Upcoming Events Publication mail agreement number: 40010029 Fall 2018 3

Stuart Cullum

President's Message At Olds College we believe that agriculture is a key industry to our country’s success. It is served by a breadth of disciplines and Olds College has an important role to play in advancing the education and skills development that is required for our industries’ success.

As a post-secondary institution we recognize the need to stay relevant. To respond to technology, increased global demand, and the needs of our students and life-long learners. We know that in order to be successful we must grow, and continue to evolve in a way that supports our province, our economy, and our learners.

In order to do this, the College has developed a seven year strategic plan. With the launch of our Strategic Plan Growing 2025, we are well positioned and focused for future growth and impact. The plan is focused around seven strategic drivers that we will work to achieve by 2025, including: • Be

a college known for academic excellence and student success.

• Achieve 2,000 full load equivalents (FLE’s) and increase non-FLE enrolment by 50%.

• Increase applied research activity by 100%.

• Be a leader in smart agriculture.

• Increase earned revenue/investment by 60%.

• Be recognized as an employer of choice.

• Be a smart campus.

The title of the strategic plan, Growing 2025, is a wonderful theme that accurately represents the growth we have planned for the College, and the personal growth that we facilitate in our learners during their time with us.

Our Strategic Plan provides a clear blueprint to grow our programming, applied research and partnerships to create an innovative learning environment centred around collaboration between our students, lifelong learners and the agriculture and technology industries. I encourage you to check out our Strategic Plan, Growing 2025, online at oldscollege.ca/strategicplan.

It’s exciting times for Olds College. I hope you enjoy reading about some of the new innovative initiatives that we have underway in this issue of Horizons.

Stuart Cullum, President, Olds College 4 Olds College Horizons

Our Social Purpose:

Transforming Agriculture for a Better World At Olds College this is our social purpose. Everything we do at Olds College is done to advance all aspects of the agriculture industry. By transforming the agriculture industry, we will make the world a better place.

All of our programs and actions align to our social purpose. It is the why behind everything we do.

Fall 2018 5

Rewards and Discounts

Affinity Program All members of the Olds College Alumni Association are able to take advantage of our Affinity Partnerships. That means that every current or former student, staff, or faculty member can take advantage of rewards and discounts with the following partners:

CAB-K Broadcasting Group Cam Clark Ford Olds Canalta Hotels

Hildebrand Motors TD Insurance Meloche Monnex

A special thank you to our newest partners: 582 Patio & Grill, Tamarack Trail Gallery and The Pit. To order your Affinity Card or discuss becoming an Affinity Partner, please contact development@oldscollege.ca or 403.556.8232. Experience more: oldscollege.ca/affinity.

CANALTA H

Tamarack Trail Gallery

6 Olds College Horizons

O

T

E

L

S

2018 – 2019

Board of Directors President: Ed Shaw Agricultural Mechanics, 1971 Past President: Nikki Olsen Land & Water Resources, 2013 Secretary: Vacant Treasurer: Maria Kinsella Office Administration, 2013

Greetings from the

Alumni Association

Director: Jim Stone Agriculture, 1959

Greetings Olds College supporters and alumni,

Director: Brent Thygesen Land Agent, 2012

The Olds College Alumni Association has been busy. We have welcomed new Board Members, had plenty of discussions on engaging our membership, and this summer, as a part of the Alumni Reunion, we were proud to welcome new members to the Alumni Association Hall of Merit and Hall of Fame.

David Doyle (Heavy Equipment Tech, 2007) was welcomed as the newest inductee into the Hall of Merit. David is a dedicated family man, community volunteer, golfer, and Vice President of Business Development and Origination of Netook Construction Ltd, a heavy equipment contractor that has been based in Olds for over 35 years.

David’s contributions to Olds College have been numerous, as he has sat on industry advisory committees, guest lectured to Olds College students, has facilitated a number of personal and corporate gifts to the College, and has been one of Olds College’s most staunch supporters in the community.

Sandra Mackinnon-Jahn (Secretarial Arts, 1985) is a lifelong learner who has been especially dedicated to preserving the history of Olds College. She was instrumental in the development of the Alumni Museum, and has devoted thousands of hours to fashioning, cataloguing, organizing, and welcoming guests to view the collection. Sandra has also volunteered for countless organizations outside of the College.

Congratulations to David and Sandra, our new Hall of Merit and Hall of Fame inductees.

The Alumni Association is working to engage current students and younger alumni to help the Association become vibrant once again, and to re-dedicate the organization to sustainable practices through increasing fundraising efforts.

If you would like to learn more about the Olds College Alumni Association, please visit oldscollege.ca/alumni.

Edward Shaw, President, Olds College Alumni Association

Director: Cole Christie Land & Water Resources, 2016 Director: Keith Kinnear Agriculture Business, 1999 Director: Julia McCrae Agriculture Management, 2018 Director: Brenda A. Knight Agriculture Mechanics, 1991 Olds College Faculty Association Representative: Mike Schell Instructor, AET/HET, 2002 Students’ Association (SAOC) Representative: Brianna McCoy Internal SAOC Vice President Community and Alumni Representative: Lindsay Clausen Olds College Communications & Marketing Fall 2017

Fall 2018 7

(Left to right) Kevin Hoppins, Board Chair, UFA; Carol Kitchen, CEO, UFA; Leona Staples, Board Chair, Olds College; Delanie Knull, Student; Stuart Cullum, President, Olds College.

Focus on Innovation

Growing our Partnership with United Farmers of Alberta Cooperative (UFA) On October 23, UFA announced a $500,000 commitment to Olds College and its focus on agriculture innovation and technology. The five-year financial commitment enables Olds College to create the UFA Innovation Lab, located on campus inside the Smart Ag Innovation Centre, formerly known as the President's House. Construction is expected to be complete in December 2018.

8 Olds College Horizons

The lab will be "a dedicated technological hub on campus where students and faculty can gain and share knowledge, build networks and turn innovative ideas into technological solutions that can benefit the agricultural industry,” says Olds College President, Stuart Cullum. "Not only is the donation from UFA an investment in the student experience but it's an investment in the future of agriculture. Students who have a keen interest on solving issues in the industry, now have a place to go. They’ll be able to explore new ideas, test innovative products and processes, and ultimately express their entrepreneurial creativity in ways that will make a positive impact on Alberta’s agriculture sector."

In the spirit of innovation in agriculture, the College will annually host UFA Innovation Day for students. During UFA Innovation Day, student innovators will have the opportunity to pitch their business concepts or product to a panel of experts for the opportunity to receive commercialization support and funding from UFA. UFA President & CEO, Carol Kitchen says the donation makes sense from a business perspective. “At UFA we are committed to investing and supporting technology and innovation especially as it pertains to new solutions for agricultural industries. The investment at Olds College is another example of how as a forward-thinking co-operative, we are focused on collaborating with our agricultural partners to actively engage, learn from and work with young minds in our community. Ultimately, our goal is to support the success of our members and their operations. We are confident that the investment at Olds College will help to do just that today and well into the future.”

In addition to the creation of the UFA Innovation Lab, the donation will help fund the Olds College Smart Farm. The Smart Farm, which was launched earlier this year, uses cutting edge technology to provide a hands-on learning environment for students of the College and an opportunity for industry to develop, integrate and test new agriculture technology and practices.

“The impact of this donation reaches further than the College or even Alberta for that matter,” adds Cullum. “The UFA Innovation Lab and the Olds College Smart Farm create an open environment for collaboration and research among industry and other post-secondary institutions to work together to advance the agriculture industry. Together we are facilitating engagement to address the issues and challenges facing agriculture, in order for our ag sector to produce more while using less.”

Carol Kitchen and Kevin Hoppins stand in front of the new Ag Innovation Centre.

The signing of the agreement brings together two long-standing advocates with rich agricultural history in the province. Founded as an agricultural co-operative in 1909, UFA works to improve the economic and social well-being of its member-owners and their communities. Olds College opened its doors in 1913 as an educational institution and today is one of Canada’s premier integrated learning and applied research communities specializing in agriculture, horticulture, land and environmental management.

Both organizations are excited about this unique partnership and the promise it holds for Alberta’s agriculture industry.

Current Olds College student, Delanie Knull is excited about the investment. “The UFA Innovation Lab and Smart Farm are exciting opportunities for students like me who want to explore technology and try new things. Being able to learn by doing and by experimenting in a hands-on setting is what I’m most excited about. I’m eager to share my ideas and to bring them to life! As an agriculture student, you sometimes wonder what the future of farming looks like. It’s encouraging to know that organizations like UFA place value in investing into my future, which I think looks very bright.”

Fall 2018 9

The Homestead

Transformation of the Former President’s House The heart of any homestead is the farmhouse. On the Olds College campus situated among mature trees and beside the iconic water tower, sits the former President’s House. Built in the 1950’s, the house was used as the primary residence for the Olds College Principal and their family in the early days of the College, and later for the College President and their family. Seven past principals/presidents called the modest bungalow home from the time it was built until 2017.

Today, the former President’s House is being transformed into the Olds College Smart Ag Innovation Centre. A critical component to the Olds College Smart Farm, the Smart Ag Innovation Centre will be used to process all of the data that is collected from the technologies, located in the Smart Farm.

Expected to open its doors in December this year, the centre is being outfitted with the latest technology, and will house several collaboration spaces for students and industry.

“The centre is a nondescript farmhouse from the outside, but inside it is a technology centre, which is what so many farmhouses are going to look like in the future,” said Patrick Machacek, Vice President, Development and Strategy at Olds College.

Jason Bradley, Director, Smart Agriculture at Olds College and James Benkie, Dean of Program Development, Agriculture Technology, both members of the farm integration team whose offices will be located in the Smart Ag Innovation Centre.

10 Olds College Horizons

“The Innovation Centre will be where we find, display, and implement the data that we collect,” continues Machacek. “It will give us the chance to collaborate with industry partners, but more importantly, it will allow us to show our students the results of our data collection and teach them about how we use that data to solve real problems on the farm.”

The Innovation Centre consists of a number of elements, all developed to contribute to academic excellence and student success, bolster our applied research, decrease the environmental footprint of our farm, and be an industry leader in smart agriculture.

UFA Ag Innovation Lab Fitted with a 75” touch screen computer interface, a glass whiteboard with an e-beam interface that can capture your work into a document, whiteboard walls and table tops, and a 4K 55” touchscreen Google Jamboard, the UFA Ag Innovation Lab will be a leading interactive creative workspace that will allow for teams including Olds College staff, students, and industry partners, to use the powerful collaboration tool in meetings and breakout sessions.

Data Centre The Data Centre will be a homey, yet technologically advanced workspace that will be available for students, instructors, and the Smart Farm Integration Team to meet, collaborate, and learn. The space will feature a waist height work station with table top touch screen computer, a wall of 45” computer display monitors, and a fireplace to help everyone feel more comfortable.

Ag Investment Lab The Investment Lab is another project room for student groups, faculty, staff, and industry use. The Ag Investment Lab includes Google Meet hardware that can access apps that investors can use to connect with startups that are coming out of the Smart Farm Ecosystem. Through the Investment Lab, teams can meet remotely, hosting virtual meetings with potential investors or partners.

Lower Level The lower level of the centre will include a number of offices for Smart Farm employees, as well as two meeting spaces that will be potential touchdown spaces for industry partners and producers, along with the Smart Farm Integration Team.

The Smart Farm Integration Team is a group of Olds College instructors, instructional assistants, farm staff members, and applied researchers. The team has been finding the best ways to integrate the Olds College Smart Farm with curriculum, including finding projects that students can work on with faculty members to expose them to the real world problems of the Olds College Smart Farm.

Agriculture Technology Education

Investigating New Smart Ag Programs With the launch of the Smart Farm at Olds College, and working with our industry advisory committee, the College has identified a need to develop new programming in agriculture technology. To lead this project, the College has welcomed James Benkie into the new role of Dean, Program Development, Agriculture Technology.

“We are developing three agriculture technology credentials at Olds College that will complement existing programming and align it to growing industry demands,” explains James Benkie, Dean of Program Development, Agriculture Technology.

“We have seen a convergence in the agriculture and technology sectors in recent years, and the next generation of students will be the catalyst of change across both industries.”

Work began on developing these new programs nearly two years ago, College faculty and staff have been planning, researching, engaging with industry and government, and gathering feedback from stakeholders to ensure that the Agriculture Technology programs that we offer in the future will meet the needs of students, and those of employers.

“According to the Government of Canada’s Barton Report, by 2030, up to 50 percent of farm tasks have the potential to be disrupted by automation,” Benkie explains. “It is important that we develop programs that will help our students continue to develop soft skills such as collaboration and teamwork, communication, customer service, business principles, and sales tactics, while understanding systems thinking, technology integration, data management, and the basic natural sciences.”

More details on the new Agriculture Technology credentials will be available in the coming months. The Government of Alberta has a formal process for reviewing and approving any new post-secondary credential, the College will be working within this process to get approval of their new agriculture technology programs.

Fall 2018 11

Beer, Mushrooms and Beef

Alumni Tackles Sustainability Olds College Brewmaster and Brewery Operations Management program alumnus Alex Villeneuve has gained international media coverage in recent years for his revolutionary system of using spent grains from breweries as a substrate to be used in the expedited growth of gourmet mushrooms. While constantly revising and improving upon his mushroom growth process, Alex has expanded his operation to include a way to take his used substrate and produce a new, mycelium enhanced livestock feed product. This livestock feed product is high in protein and more nutritionally available to animals because of the mushroom root’s digestion of the brewer’s grain.

Before arriving at Olds College, Alex was a culinary student and professional chef. Having developed a passion and curiosity for brewing, Alex was accepted into the Brewmaster and Brewery Operations Management program and immediately noticed a problem within the industry. A lot of grain goes into the production of beer, and there was no efficient way to upcycle or re-use the leftovers from the process.

12 Olds College Horizons

With no efficient and cost effective means of disposal, the spent grains are considered a waste product by breweries. The disposal costs of these grains can also be very high depending on the location of the brewery. To find a way to save breweries money and eliminate thousands of pounds of waste in the process, Alex decided to experiment with using spent grains as a substrate for mushroom growth.

“When I saw all that grain being shoveled into garbage bins, it was heartbreaking,” Alex recalls. “I thought, ‘how can we turn this into something good – a local, sustainable product for Albertans. I took some of the spent grains back to my room in Olds College student housing, ordered a starter culture, and began experimenting with growing mushrooms in my dorm room closet.”

After some successes in his dorm, Alex met with experts at the Olds College Centre for Innovation and discussed his idea. Through entrepreneurship training and research assistance provided by the College, and warehouse space in which to begin growing, Alex set up his operation. Soon, Alex would establish his company, Ceres Solutions, and begin growing mushrooms for market.

Since establishing the growth operation, Alex has spent countless hours modifying his system to improve growth efficiency and harvesting processes, developing a system that helps increase the amount of waste grain he can collect, and improving upon his livestock feed quality. His operation initially consisted of grow tents, but recently Alex has constructed new automated mushroom growing chambers, installed commercial substrate processing equipment and has worked to develop more efficient cultivation techniques. Once this system is fully operational Ceres will incrementally increase production to the facility's capacity of approximately 1,500 pounds of mushrooms every week.

In addition to the successes of the new mushroom grow system, feed trials of the mushroom enhanced livestock feed product, Mycopro™, will soon be completed. Thanks to collaboration with the Olds College Technology Access Centre for Livestock Production, tests have been completed that demonstrate the feed value of Mycopro™. The product will soon undergo further third party testing to gain approval from the Canadian Food Inspection Agency. As a result of increased mushroom production from the Olds College facility, several tons of Mycopro™ livestock feed will be produced each week.

“Once we have finished refining our process, we will be able to bring more products to market,” explains Alex. “Once this stage of development has been successfully completed, Ceres plans to move its operations to the Calgary area and open a full scale production facility.” This full scale system could upcycle up to 12,000 pounds of local spent brewer's grains, while producing 2,400 lbs of culinary mushrooms every single day.

For more information on Ceres Solutions, visit ceres-ab.com.

For information on how the Olds College Centre for Innovation can help your business, visit oldscollege.ca/research or call 403.507.7970.

Close up view of one of Ceres Solutions Oyster Mushrooms.

Fall 2018 13

Embracing the Future

Olds College Launches Smart Farm

Imagine being able to diagnose the health of a crop by simply uploading a picture of the plant. The picture is then cross-referenced on an artificial intelligence (AI) platform with other data, such as weather and soil data gathered from sensors in the soil. Within seconds a diagnosis of the crop health is provided and real time solutions are available through a device or connection with a crop expert. Now imagine doing all of that in the middle of a field, where the wifi internet connection is the same strength as an office building in downtown Calgary. This is the future vision for the Olds College Smart Farm.

In June of this year, Olds College officially launched the Olds College Smart Farm, an exciting new initiative that will see the College transform their existing farm operation into a farm of the future.

14 Olds College Horizons

Working with industry partners in the agriculture and technology sectors, the College is installing the latest technologies aimed at improving productivity while efficiently and sustainably using resources.

“The Smart Farm creates a cutting edge learning environment for our students and life-long learners, by providing a handson venue for industry to develop, integrate and test new agriculture technology and practices,” says Stuart Cullum, President, Olds College. “It also creates an open environment for collaboration and research among industry and other post-secondary institutions to work together to advance the agriculture industry.”

The Olds College Smart Farm will be implemented in phases.

Phase one of the Smart Farm (that was launched in June) focuses on crops. Phase two will focus on livestock and leverage the applied research that is already being done through the Technology Access Centre for Livestock Production who works closely with industry to address issues around production efficiency, animal health and welfare, and environmental sustainability, through new technology based solutions.

“The Olds College Smart Farm is a venue for us to address challenges that the agriculture industry needs to solve so that we can produce higher yields, using less resources. This will ensure that the agriculture sector in Alberta and Canada remains competitive in a global marketplace,” adds Jason Bradley, Director, Smart Agriculture, Olds College.

“By involving our students in the Smart Farm, we are exposing them to a side of the agriculture industry that they will need to navigate, interact with, and manage if they want to become contributors and leaders in the sector,”continues Bradley.

Providing students with hands-on demonstration and applied research environments for the advancement of agriculture was embraced from the moment Olds College was first established as the Olds Demonstration Farm, and it remains at the forefront of the College landscape today. The Smart Farm is the next iteration in the evolution of the College’s demonstration farm that was originally founded in 1913. While the technology and practices have changed a lot over the last century, the College’s pioneering spirit to advance the agriculture industry remains.

Fall 2018 15

Olds College Smart Farm

First Growing Season

Stuart Cullum, President, Olds College and Catalina Oitzl, Student plant a soil and crop evaluation sensor into the Olds College Smart Farm at the launch event in June.

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Smart Farm

Technology 110 acres of our current cropland have been transformed into the Smart Farm by: • installing stationary soil monitors,

• installing digital weather stations,

• evaluating soil and crops

using spectroscopy and multispectral imaging along with artificial intelligence neural nets to help determine the differences in healthy and unhealthy plants, and the causes for health deterioration,

• installing wireless grain bin sensors,

• installing a wireless mesh network that will provide wifi to the entire farm,

• equipment monitoring and control for best practice precision agriculture, including the use of monitors and controls on contractor equipment to gather data,

• the use of UAVs

(unmanned aerial vehicles),

• installing rural narrowband

connectivity to ensure high quality internet connectivity,

• incorporating farm

management software platforms that gather, store, and visualize production and management data,

• utilizing data analytics,

machine learning, and AI to turn data into information, and information into knowledge, and

• partnering with expert

agronomists who serve as agronomic coaches to help analyze the data.

Fall 2018 17

Thank you to our Olds College Smart Farm Partners

Phase One of the Smart Farm Map

Hops Yard

Water

Sheep Pasture

Wetland Conservation

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Experience more: oldscollege.ca/smartfarm Rural Connectivity Smart Farm Partner(s):

In-Yard & Bin Sensors Smart Farm Partner(s):

Wireless Mesh Network Smart Farm Partner(s):

Agronomic Coaching Smart Farm Partner(s):

Data, Analytics & Machine Learning Smart Farm Partner(s):

Farm Management Software Smart Farm Partner(s):

Faculty & Student Instruction Smart Farm Partner(s):

Spectroscopy/AI Soil & Crop Evaluation(s) Smart Farm Partner(s):

Community Engagement Smart Farm Partner(s):

Weather Monitoring Station(s) Smart Farm Partner(s):

Olds College Smart Farm Design Smart Farm Partner(s):

Stationary Soil Monitor(s) Smart Farm Partner(s):

Equipment, Monitoring & Control Smart Farm Partner(s):

UAV Smart Farm Partner(s):

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YOUR

GR W

CAREER

Attend Preview Days 2019 Equine: February 1 Animal Science: February 8 Business, Hospitality & Brew: March 1 Fashion: March 7 Agriculture & Trades: March 22 Horticulture & Land: April 5

Offering programs in: • • • • •

Agriculture Animal Science Business Equine Fashion

• • • •

Horticulture Land & Environment Tourism, Brew & Meat Trades & Apprenticeships

Experience more: oldscollege.ca/visit 20 Olds College Horizons

Bob Collier Award

Student Award Encourages Innovation in Agriculture Bob Collier grew up near Castor, Alberta, on a mixed farm that eventually became a grain only operation.

After receiving his Electricians and Diesel Mechanics certifications, he returned to the farm to work the summers while working as an electrician in the winters. Bob eventually entered the real estate industry, investing in properties in Calgary, where he took care of all maintenance issues himself. Bob still owns the farm today, and his family takes care of the operations and management. Bob Collier never attended Olds College as a student, but gained an appreciation for the grounds and the forward thinking nature of the College by attending events with the Alberta Flying Farmers, a group of farmers who were pilots by hobby.

Through annual Flying Farmers events held at Olds College, Bob experienced the positive impact Olds College had on the agriculture industry.

“As everything evolves, so does agriculture,” explains Bob. “We need innovative thinkers to develop new ways and opportunities in agriculture.”

Bob’s background in the agriculture industry, along with his entrepreneurial spirit, has led him to establish the Bob Collier Award at Olds College.

The Bob Collier Award was first presented at the 2018 Night of Distinction. The award is allocated to five students enroled fulltime at Olds College, in any program that is two years or longer in duration. Recipients must portray excellence in innovation, creativity and an entrepreneurial aptitude in relation to the farming and agriculture sector. Each recipient is awarded $6,000.

A total of 57 essays were submitted for the Bob Collier Award, with ten selected to present their ideas to a group of industry experts. After the finalists made their presentations, the panel selected the five Collier Award Recipients. Congratulations to the five recipients:

Allana Beuermann (Bachelor of Applied Science, Agribusiness) - Verified Carbon Standard (VCS) Calf Feeding System Shawn Chenard (Agricultural Management, Production Major) - Self Leveling Grain Auger Emma Hanchuk (Equine Science, Breeding & Production Major) - Mare Lactation Induction Simon Kouwenberg (Bachelor of Applied Science, Agribusiness) - Tillage Depth Control Brooklyn McDonald (Animal Health Technology) - Hemp Bedding

Congratulations to the five Bob Collier Award recipients, and thank you to Bob Collier for supporting our students, and innovation in agriculture.

Fall 2018 21

Brewing Boom

Inspiring Hops Research Project With the exploding popularity of the craft beer market in Alberta, producers have seen a substantial demand for the increase of locally sourced ingredients - specifically hops. While adhering to a simple supply and demand model seems logical, the hops plant is known for its delayed growth — sometimes taking years to mature. To help support the increasing demand, Olds College Centre of Innovation has undertaken The Alberta Hops Project to help potential hops producers get into the game.

“Every brewer I talk to wants to go as local as possible when it comes to sourcing their ingredients,” explains Olds College Brewery Brewmaster Jason (J.P.) Popesku. “Right now there are only a handful of commercial hops growers in Alberta, but more are talking about entering the market.”

Dr. Paul Tiege, Field Crops Research Scientist from the Olds College Centre for Innovation.

22 Olds College Horizons

The Alberta Hops Project is focusing its research on helping producers know which cultivars of hops are best equipped to grow in Alberta climates and biomes, the best conditions in which to grow them, and how long it will take for hops crops to mature under these conditions so producers can see a return on their investment.

“As hops take three to four years to reach peak production, this information is crucial for growers who are considering growing hops,” said Popesku. “The Alberta Hops Project will involve the evaluation of many publicly available varieties of hops, to determine which are the best strains to use in the Canadian brewing industry.”

Over the last year, the Olds College Brewery used nearly 350 kilograms (over 750 pounds) of dried hops pellets in brewing over 70,000 litres of beer. The bulk of hops used by the brewery, as with other breweries in Alberta, are grown in the Yakima Valley in Washington, roughly 150 miles southeast of Seattle. According to a statistical report released in January 2018 by the Hops Growers of America, of the 56,210 acres of hops grown in North America in 2017, 68.4 percent of them were grown in Washington, with only 0.76 percent (424.5 acres) grown in Canada. Of that, Alberta was not listed as producing any substantial quantity. Regardless of the numbers, there continues to be a growing demand for Canadian grown hops amongst Canadian brewers — as long as quality crops can be produced economically.

“With our research, we are hoping to answer a number of questions,” explains Dr. Paul Tiege, Field Crops Research Scientist from the Olds College Centre for Innovation. “We are hoping to help producers find the most effective and efficient ways to produce hops plants, improve profitability for growers, and create quality products that brewers will want to buy.”

The hops plant quality for brewing is dependent on the resins found within the cone of the plant. The development of these cones is influenced by growing conditions, plant nutrition, growing practices, pests and a list of other factors.

As part of the project, Olds College researchers are examining which strains of hops provide the highest yields and highest quality final product, along with how growing conditions such as soil type, temperatures, and pests affect plant growth. They are also working to identify which nutrients can be most effectively delivered to the plants, if hops can be grown indoors, and even examining crop cycles and processing mature plants. This multi-year and multilayered project will also include a variety of experiments that will look at conventional hop production outdoors, and indoors in greenhouses.

As hops require tall trellis structures to grow, the research will be taking place in two 18 foot hop yards that have been established on the Olds College campus. The yards, one conventional and one organic, each take up roughly half an acre, and will house eight varieties of hops. Each strain will be tested in a variety of ways, to help gain an all encompassing understanding of the plants.

Indoor growing brings the possibility of producing more than one crop per year. In addition to the full sized hops yard, researchers have established a small trial to evaluate vigor and yield of hop plants grown in a glass house. The hop plants are the same as those planted in our outdoor hop yard, so researchers will be able to compare the per plant yields of indoor and outdoor systems, determining if indoor growth can be viable moving forward.

“This is an important opportunity for Olds College,” claims Tiege. “We are already a leader in so many areas, including brewing education, that it only makes sense for our institution to be undertaking research that could help introduce hops as a more viable crop for producer growth. Given the growth of the craft brewing industry, Alberta could find itself as a leader in hops production soon, if we discover ways to ensure the affordability of producing this crop in our climate.”

“I hope we see some positive results with the hop yard,” explains Popesku. “I would love to use them in our brewery, but it all depends on the quality and if we can produce usable hops in our climate.”

Olds College Brewery

Retail Beer Store

Tues to Sat: 12 - 6 p.m.

Fall 2018 23

24 Olds College Horizons

Growing a New Curriculum

Olds College Introduces Cannabis to its Continuing Education Programming With the country busy coming to terms with legalization of cannabis, Olds College has once again led the charge in providing its students with the necessary tools required to navigate the complexity of this new and exciting industry through the introduction of two new cannabis programs.

First offered to students was the Cannabis Production program, which consists of four online courses — Introduction to Horticulture Production; Introduction to Crop Production and Facilities; Cannabis Legislation and Documentation; and Horticulture for Cannabis Production. The online portion is then followed by a one week field study where students receive handson experience at one of our cannabis producer partners. Currently the College has two partners that students can choose to do their field study with, Sundial Growers Inc. located in Olds, AB or Acreage Pharms, located in Peers, AB.

“With the delivery of this program being online and having two different locations for the field study, this program is very accessible to students all over Alberta and Western Canada,” comments Debbie Bailey, Manager, Continuing Education. “As more of our partners receive their licence for production, we will continue to add location options for our students to complete the field study component.”

The second program offered was the Introduction to Retail Cannabis program, which took place in October 2018. The Retail Cannabis program consists of a four-week online course that prepares students for employment in the cannabis retail industry.

Developed in partnership with 420 Clinic — a resource centre that connects patients to education on medical cannabis — students in the program are introduced to a scientific and biological framework for understanding cannabis, a variety of product knowledge and the regulations required to operate successfully within a Canadian retail cannabis outlet.

As part of the development for both programs, a Cannabis Education and Research Industry Advisory Committee, made up of representatives from industry and the College, was created to develop new programming and research opportunities that support the cannabis sector and provide new learning opportunities for students.

“The students who are taking these courses are enthusiastic and highly engaged in what the industry is doing,” continues Bailey. “The feedback we've heard most often from the students is about how much they've learned about the science and horticulture practices behind growing healthy plants.”

Due the tremendous success of the programs, the Cannabis Production Program has a number of offerings through the winter and spring. The next Introduction to Cannabis Retail is scheduled for February 2019.

“The courses were created with industry to fulfill a need that was identified in creating skilled workers to support this new sector,” explains Bailey. “At the College, we’ve been supporting the horticulture industry for over 50 years, it was a natural evolution for us to work with industry to support this new sector.”

Through the introduction of two new cannabis programs to its Continuing Education offering, Olds College continues to demonstrate the importance of adapting and evolving curriculum to meet the needs of the modern world.

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Upcoming Events Broncos Scholarship Breakfast

Olds College Alumni Rodeo

December 3, 2018 7:30 - 9:30 a.m.

Frank Grisdale Hall Gymnasium

February 2, 2019

Join the Broncos student-athletes at the first annual Broncos Scholarship Breakfast on December 3, from 7:30 to 9:30 a.m. in the Frank Grisdale Hall Gymnasium at Olds College. Support your Broncos by spending your morning enjoying a hot breakfast served by student-athletes, with special guest speaker, Women’s Hockey Olympic Gold Medalist, World Champion, Clarkson Cup Champion, and Head to Head Olympian ambassador — Brianne Jenner. All proceeds go towards supporting studentathlete tuition scholarships. Tickets: $75 Alumni & Children under 12: $65 Table of Eight: $500. To purchase tickets or for more information, please visit oldscollege.ca/broncosbreakfast.

Canadian Intercollegiate Rodeo Association Rodeo March 16 - 17, 2019

Olds College Rodeo - Team Barrel Racing Jackpot Series November 16, 2019 February 1, 2019 Finals: March 15, 2019

Program Preview Days

Equine: February 1, 2019 Animal Science: February 8, 2019 Business, Hospitality & Brew: March 1, 2019 Fashion: March 7, 2019 Agriculture & Trades: March 22, 2019 Horticulture & Land: April 5, 2019 For more information on Program Preview Days, visit oldscollege.ca/visit, email info@oldscollege.ca, or call 403.507.7715, or Toll Free 1.800.661.6537, extension 7715.

HOMESTEAD Save the Date: April 12, 2019 Tickets on sale January 3!

The Studio at Olds College ETC Studio is a full service Video Production house focused on creativity, technical proficiency, and a high level of customer service.

• Producing • Directing • Concept Development

• Script Writing • Storyboarding • Producing and Production Management

• Editing • Voice Over • Graphics and Animation

For more information: thestudio@oldscollege.ca | 403.556.8277

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August 13 & 14, 2019 Olds College www.ag-smart.ca

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28 Olds College Horizons