News

It is with great sympathy that we share the passing of Arthur “Art” of Winthrop, OAC Class of 1955 on September 25, 2025. He was 94.

After graduating from OAC in 1955, Art worked as Assistant Ag Rep in Huron County, before returning full time to the McKillop family farm. Following in his father’s footsteps, he became a Select Seed Grower, growing, processing and selling Certified Seed to local farmers and as far away as PEI and Manitoba under the trade name R.T. Bolton and Son.

Graduate student Julianna Tindall is exploring how cover crop grazing affects soil health, crop yields, and livestock systems. Her cross-disciplinary research in OAC’s Forage and Service Crops lab impacts agronomy, economics, and animal nutrition to provide Ontario farmers with practical insights for sustainable farming.

Sanctions target ruling elites with economic pressure instead of weapons. Yet they often come with unintended consequences, as they raise food prices and harm vulnerable populations. A concern raised by Dr. S. Kwaku Afesorgbor in his new article in The Conversation.

After two weeks of heavy foot traffic,recent FARE graduate Tim Shuh of Shuh Orchards in West Montrose, Ont., reports as many as 500 pounds of apples have been stolen, prompting the farm to ban wagons, strollers and backpacks. Agritourism Ontario says many farms are having a similar issue with theft.

Read in CBC News: https://apple.news/Afu0uGcbXTbOhIH9-aAl9yg

A healthy agricultural sector starts with a healthy environment. As a PhD candidate in the OAC’s Environmental Sciences program with a collaborative specialization in International Development Studies, Chi Vi is helping farmers build more sustainable practices from the ground up by measuring and reducing greenhouse gas emissions directly on their farms. 

Economic sanctions are widely viewed by academics and policymakers as a better alternative to military interventions to pressure governments to change objectionable policies. The idea is simple: instead of using weapons, squeeze the ruling elite economically until they change their behaviour.

The sheer volume of raw information can be overwhelming for researchers trying to pinpoint which traits will produce the most resilient, high-yielding crops. That’s where artificial intelligence steps in.

The Ontario Agricultural College’s new Master’s in Sustainable Agriculture (MSAg) program launched this summer at the Ridgetown Campus, welcoming its first cohort of students from across the globe. They began their studies with a practical, hands-on semester in southwestern Ontario, engaging directly with the region’s dynamic agri-food sector.

Dr. Biniam Kebede, a newly appointed professor in the Department of Food Science at the Ontario Agricultural College, leads the Food Bioprocessing and Data Science Lab, where ancient fermentation meets cutting-edge digital innovation. 

OAC alumni from the 1970s won the OAC Alumni Decade Challenge, a friendly competition pitting decades of graduates against one another. Held as part of OAC’s 150th anniversary celebrations, the challenge highlighted both OAC pride and the enduring tradition of giving back that has shaped the College since its earliest days. 

At the heart of the friendly competition was a shared commitment: supporting students — today and tomorrow — as they learn, lead and make an impact in agriculture, food, communities and the environment.