PLAIN CITY, Ohio— For more than four decades, Select Sires Inc. has
supported research efforts to benefit the dairy and beef industries through the
Competitive Research Grants Program. Overseen by the cooperative’s board of
directors, the intent and overall goals of this program have remained largely
unchanged since its inception.
“We
hope that this program continues to allow for the dissemination of novel
research to collectively benefit agriculture, train future scientists for
public and private settings and positively impact the production and efficiency
of the cattle industries,” says Bo Harstine, Ph.D, director of research at
Select Sires Inc.
The
principle investigators of the three proposals selected for funding in 2020 are
Mark Hanigan, Ph.D., Jordan Thomas, Ph.D., Pedro Fontes, Ph.D. and Tomer
Avidor-Reiss, Ph.D.
- Hanigan is a professor in the
dairy science department at Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State
University. His research project is titled, “A system to assess feeding
efficiency on commercial robotic dairies.”
- Thomas
and Fontes will collaborate as co-investigators on their proposal titled,
“Enhancing control of the estrous cycle among Bos indicus-influenced beef
cows.” Thomas is an assistant extension professor in the animal sciences
department at the University of Missouri, while Fontes is an assistant
professor at the University of Georgia’s animal and dairy science
department.
- Avidor-Reiss is a professor in
the department of biological science and the department of urology at the
University of Toledo. His research project is titled, “Molecular markers
for centriole remodeling in bovine reproduction.”
Select
Sires Inc. congratulates these esteemed recipients of the Competitive Research
Grants Program. As an active member of the scientific and agricultural
communities, Select Sires Inc. designates resources to fund basic and applied
research in academic settings for the advancement of cattle reproduction and
genetics. Throughout the previous decades, the findings from these studies have
allowed Select Sires to better serve customer-owners and ultimately, ensure the
success of dairy and beef producers around the world.
Based
in Plain City, Ohio, Select Sires Inc., is the largest global A.I. cooperative
and is comprised of six farmer-owned and -controlled local organizations in the
United States. As the industry leader, it provides highly fertile semen, as
well as excellence in service and programs to supply dairy and beef producers
with the world’s best genetics.