Dr. Mark Ferguson with neXtgen Agri
Mark has spent his career in the livestock industry in Australia and New Zealand. He's the founder and CEO of neXtgen Agri - an innovation and consulting company that has clients across Australia and New Zealand. He is also a cofounder of Genesmith a company dedicated to bringing the power of Artificial Intelligence to the livestock industry. Mark has a Bachelor of Agricultural Science, a PhD in sheep genetics and a passion for enabling farmers to implement effective strategies to get the most out of their livestock. He is also the host of the Head Shepherd podcast. Mark grew up on the family farm in Northern Victoria, Australia, and now lives with his wife and three teenage children in Christchurch, New Zealand.
Steve Beadle, P. Eng. Engineering Specialist: Sheep & Swine Housing, Farm Buildings |Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Agribusiness
Steve earned his Bachelor of Engineering Science and Master of Engineering Science degrees in Structural Engineering at the University of Western Ontario. Prior to joining OMAFRA in 2015, Steve served 6 years in the Canadian Forces (Army) as a Combat Engineer and subsequently worked in the geotechnical engineering field for 2 years. He was then employed for over 10 years as the Senior Structural Engineer for a consulting engineering firm in Sarnia, Ontario. There he gained considerable experience with codes & standards, practical structural design, project management and contract administration in the industrial, commercial and institutional sectors.
Based at the field office in Ridgetown, Steve’s current role with OMAFA is to identify and evaluate engineering systems that contribute to a healthy environment, food safety and public welfare, while fostering innovation, economic opportunity and sustainability for the sheep and swine sectors. Steve is the Ministry’s expert on codes and standards related to farm buildings, and is involved in the development of safe, practical code requirements.
Dr. Michael Rogers, Professor and Tier 11 Canada Chair in Food Nanotechnology at the University of Guelph
Dr. Rogers is a Professor and Tier II Canada Chair in Food Nanotechnology at the University of Guelph, where he studies the underlying mechanisms that facilitate the self-assembly of small molecules. His work appeared on the Covers of Chemical Society Reviews, Langmuir, Nanoscale and Soft Matter and includes >110 peer-reviewed publications, 20 book chapters, and more than 80 conference proceedings. With an H-Index of 44, he has appeared on the World’s Top 2% Scientists by Stanford University since 2021 (https://ecebm.com/2023/10/04/stanford-university-names-worlds-top-2-scientists-2023/). He has been awarded the Young Scientist Awards through the International Union of Food Science and Technologists and the American Oil Chemists’ Society. He was awarded the inaugural Directors Award for Scientific Excellence from the New Jersey Institute of Food Nutrition & Health (IFNH). By mimicking natural structures, he develops a fundamental understanding of how to control the assembly of small molecules into complex materials with applications ranging from foods to biomaterials. On the flip side, research also focuses on understanding how food structures regulate digestion - as they say, you are what you eat. He has held faculty appointments at Rutgers University (Department of Food Science (2011-2015)) and the University of Saskatchewan (Department of Food and Bioproduct Science (2008-2011) before joining Guelph (2015- present). He is the Editor-in-chief of Food Biophysics (2024 - 2029).
Dr. Andrew Peregrine, Veterinarian and Clinical Parasitologist at the Ontario Veterinary College, University of Guelph
Andrew Peregrine obtained his DVM and PhD from the University of Glasgow, Scotland. He then worked for 9 years at the International Laboratory for Research on Animal Diseases, Nairobi, Kenya, where he carried out research to improve control of tropical parasites of cattle and small ruminants. Since 1997 he has been an associate professor in clinical parasitology at the Ontario Veterinary College, University of Guelph, where he teaches DVM students. In addition, his research interests currently include sustainable control of parasites in sheep and emerging parasite infections of animals and people. He is a diplomate of the European Veterinary Parasitology College and the American College of Veterinary Microbiologists.