Welcome to ChangeMAKErs, a new MAKEManitoba podcast series highlighting research and innovation powered by members of the Faculty of Agricultural and Food Sciences.
In this episode, host and FAFS research facilitator Dr. Chantal Bassett chats with Dr. Anna Rogiewicz, Assistant Professor in the department of Animal Science. Learn about her journey to the University of Manitoba and her studies in poultry nutrition, including the use of feed additives to improve health, productivity and environmental impact.
Welcome to ChangeMAKErs, a new MAKEManitoba podcast series highlighting research and innovation powered by members of the Faculty of Agricultural and Food Sciences.
In this episode, host and FAFS research facilitator Dr. Chantal Bassett chats with Dr. Anna Rogiewicz, Assistant Professor in the department of Animal Science. Learn about her journey to the University of Manitoba and her studies in poultry nutrition, including the use of feed additives to improve health, productivity and environmental impact.
The way we grow and produce food is ever-changing, shaped by consumers and the climate in which we live and farm. Research at all points of our food system is essential for continuously improving foods journey from farm to table . The Manitoba Agriculture and Food Knowledge Exchange explores timely research, innovations and applications that make our food system better than ever. Join us for today's podcast.
Chantal Bassett:Hello and welcome. This is ChangeMAKErs, a Manitoba Agriculture and Food Knowledge Exchange, otherwise known as MAKE podcast series with me, Dr. Chantal Bassett. In each episode, we'll chat with an academic member of the faculty of Agricultural and Food Sciences at the University of Manitoba to find out about the research and innovation they're working on and how this is shaping agriculture and food production in Manitoba and around the world. As the research facilitator for the faculty, I get to work with all our incredible innovators, and I think it's high time for you to also get to know and discover their research as well as get to know the person behind these discoveries. Today I'm joined by Dr. Anna Rogiewicz, assistant professor in the Department of Animal Science. Thanks for joining me, Anna.
Anna Rogiewicz:Thanks for inviting me for this podcast.
Chantal Bassett:Anna, before we get into the details about what you study, can you share how you got to where you are today?
Anna Rogiewicz:It is rather interesting path. I'm actually glad that I went through it, because I graduate from the university in Poland, both my Master and PhD programs, and I studied the peak production and peak nutrition. I was really working with fabulous people, great mentors, and I was really into the science. However, I took a little bit of break, was working for the local municipality government. That was the time when Poland joined the... was about to join the European Union. Therefore, they needed people to write the prep project to deal with this transition. And I liked it. But then I realized that maybe science would be my path to follow. I find out that the English or the lack of the proper English is a limitation for me. Therefore, I moved to England to work and learn and get the break from science with the vision of going back to it at some point. It was fabulous time and it enjoyed so much, I learned a lot. And then, I may say it was a pure coincidence, I got the hint that a professor in Winnipeg at University of Manitoba, was seeking a postdoctoral fellow . So I applied. I'm talking about Dr. Slowinski who invited me to be his associate, and I've been working with him for several years. Then I learned a lot because working with this great mentor is what we really look for and enjoy the benefits. And then Dr. Slowinski retired and I sort of took over the research carried on the existing projects. I started to develop my own projects, my own paths . So here I am. I got the assistant professor appointment and that's what I'm doing.
Chantal Bassett:Well, we're glad to have you here. So have you always been interested in animal nutrition or when did that spark start?
Anna Rogiewicz:I grew up in a farm in Poland. My father was actually a nutritionist, animal nutritionist. He was a manager in the feed mill . And so I was exposed to this, to the rhythm of the farm work since, since I remember. It's too bad, but my father passed away when I was too young to ask the professional questions. I believe right now we would have plenty of things to discuss. My mom also was involved in farm management. So I grew up surrounded by dairy cows , horse, sheep , geese , pigs. That was my playground. So it was sort of the way to go. On the other hand, we spent the summer holidays in my grandma's place. So she was also running a very small farm. I had a horse, 2 cows, couple of pigs and some birds. I was usually in charge of those birds, since a very early age, I was really into agriculture, and I always admired the people who are working. As a lot of people says it doesn't really matter if there's a wedding or funeral in a farmer's family, work has to be done. So the strong work ethic related to agriculture and farming always impressed me. I've got a huge appreciation for these people involved in food producing. That was my playground. That was my life when I was a child, and it seems like that was the way to go.
Chantal Bassett:So can you tell me a bit more about what the focus of your research now in terms of your own independent program?
Anna Rogiewicz:I am still following the research approach, which I've developed and I feel very comfortable with. It's really focussed on the nutritional biochemistry, with specific attention to the carbohydrates and the feed enzyme technology. So I've gained expertise in conducting very comprehensive evaluation of the chemical and nutritive properties of the both traditional and alternative feed ingredients and which are intended for monogastric animals. My particular focus is on poultry since I like this animal model and I develop the passion for poultry over the time. Research I'm involved in now is focussed on enhancing the nutritive value of several feed ingredients for poultry and I am working on formulating some nutritional strategies. How to maximize the effectiveness in an annual diet.
Chantal Bassett:Why would we want to explore this as an additive?
Anna Rogiewicz:I should say that we've got quite a variety of the feed ingredients and they will have different properties, depending on different applications, depending on the type of animals. It's age for example. They will have a different function if we're talking about the feeding young, growing broiler chickens versus the mature egg laying hens. This is a very flexible and very complex study and research. Over the past few years, I was involved in a very extensive research on the utilization of canola meal, which is a byproduct of the oil industry. I was working with the utilization of this byproduct for poultry and swine. The point is, canola meal is produced in very large volumes and it's not directly used for human consumption. Therefore it's considered to be an alternative feed ingredients for animals. So in our research we focus on establishing correlation between quality of this byproduct with the processing conditions. Could it be adjusted and the quality enhanced? We also in our research, demonstrated that canola meal has a really good quality and it's a very viable source of protein for poultry and swine. We demonstrated that it actually actually can be used in a larger amount, a larger increased inclusion than was traditionally proposed. And so I may say that we achieved 3 major goals in this project. First of all, the byproduct of the oil industry could be effectively recycled by poultry and swine. Then secondly, protein present in canola meal could be converted to edible protein for human conception. The , third benefit would be that the nutritionist may use canola meal in animal diets, with much better confidence based on the scientific evidence that it's a really, truly viable ingredient. Lately I also was involved in... I utilized my expertise in the determination of the glucose folates in canola meal so that the specific compounds are present in the canola. I utilized this expertise into the development of new infrared prediction model for the measurements of these compounds in canola meal. The models were developed for seeds, not really for canola meal. So it'll serve us a very rapid, efficient tool to quickly assess the quality of canola meal by the industrial feed processors. I am glad that this project is very successful.
Chantal Bassett:So Anna, what additives are you exploring these days?
Anna Rogiewicz:Like I'm many scientist in the field of animal science, my research is dedicated to exploring natural alternatives to antibiotics in poultry and swine nutrition. I'm driven more by a forward thinking mission to identify bioactive ingredients that could actively support health and overall wellbeing of animals. So that's the thing I investigate and I focus on the investigation to release the bioactive compounds from various natural fiber components. I plan to continue working with fiber from feed stuffs such as barley, canola meal byproducts, soybeans and other grains... all seeds. And I also recognize the potential of bioactive ingredients to be sourced from protein as well. So going forward I'm looking forward to exploring this area further. And then in my research, the exogenous enzyme technology and the further processing to release those bioactive ingredients from feed stuffs. This would not only enhance the nutrition value, but also may lead to production of the novel feed ingredients or feed additives. That's why I hope to contribute to animal nutrition, advanceme animal nutrition. The exogenous enzyme may seem kind of strange, but they're commonly utilizing our everyday lives and activities, basically not produced within the body, but instead are added externally to perform their specific functions. I may say they're present in the laundry detergent, they're used in the biofuel production used in the wastewater treatment enzymes are also utilized in food processing like baking, cheese production, clarifying juices, brewing , et cetera . But also enzyme exogenous enzyme are extensively used in the animal production as feed additives.
Chantal Bassett:You talked about enzymes. So you're adding enzymes to what effect?
Anna Rogiewicz:The improved digestibility of the nutrients. I may say the improved digestibility of the phosphorus. They're improved digestibility of protein and of carbohydrates, and that would include the dietary fibre. Over the past few years, I have had the great privilege of working with Dr. Ominiski on the development and evaluation of the novel compounds, which are derived from yeast cell walls and also derived from canola meal fibre. The objective was to gain a deeper understanding of how and why yeast or canola based ingredients could improve the gut function in poultry when they are incorporated into the diet. So the work was essential into the development of multi carbohydrates preparations and enzyme pretreated yeast products and also modified canola meal products for poultry. It was done in partnership with industry collaborator, this CBS Bio platforms, which formerly is known as Canadian Biosystems. They play a critical role as an industry partner and they really drive the direction of the research forward. I continue the collaboration with this partner, and I may say, that this collaboration leads to both fundamental science and research. It's very applicable and very practical for the industry and animal nutrition overall. I must say, the fibre is a very complex structure, but it serves the critical role for plants. So it needs to be robust. It needs to be resistant to protect the plants , and provide structural support. First of all, protecting the genetic material in seeds. Consequently, it is relatively challenging for both animals and humans to digest it when it's consumed. Additionally, fibre always wraps around the other nutrients making them less available for digestion and absorption in the digestive system. Breaking down the fibre is a challenge and a tough task. However, as I mentioned earlier, using feed enzymes can help to cut the fibre into smaller pieces. Through this enzymatic action, the substantial portion of the dietary fibre could be broken down into smaller polysaccharides, and therefore their active bioactivity will be enhanced. They serve a very specific physiological role in the gut. They act as a prebiotic in animals. They will improve their overall animal health Particularly the gut health and the dynamics which are going on in the digestive tract . In our research, we demonstrated that developed yeast based and canola meal fibre based proactive , have got this probiotic effect in poultry. Prebiotics are, in essence, the compounds which cannot be digested in our system, but they may be useful for the microorganism that they live in. They have to function in our gastrointestinal track and they will support the growth of beneficial bacteria. The same way they will control the pathogenic organism, which are not really welcomed in a gut. Probiotics may make the birds healthier in 2 ways. First, they will provide the important nutrients for the beneficial bacterias. They will also fight pathogens by making the pH a little bit lower, which pathogenic organisms may not really like, and also they will kind of fill out the binding sites in a gut. So pathogenic bacterias will have no room to really attach and grow in the digestive track, therefore they will be removed. So this is a very interesting part of this bioactivity they exert. Therefore my goal is to find the right combination of enzyme to extract the most useful probiotic components from the fibre, from the various feed ingredients. Recently conducted studies with turkeys and with laying hens as well. The research demonstrated the effectiveness of the bioactives and they positively affected the gut physiology and function in layers and turkeys . We tested 3 different types of yeast bioactives, 1 type of the canola meal bioactive components. They were interesting. They acted in a different way and that was the reason for examining it. One way was to actively remove the bacteria resulting in the decrease of the similar pathogenic bacterias. The second time was to reduce the proliferation of those bacteria, the growth by its action. And the third one was promoting the growth of beneficial bacterias, therefore kind of taking up room from those pathogens and make them not really welcomed in the gut. So those bioactives attempted, through the enzymatic hydrolysis of canola and the yeast cell wall , really provided very interesting results. In one of my current research projects, I evaluate the pre and probiotic properties of organism called symbiotic culture of bacteria and yeast. And it is produced from various biomass material. This is very interesting project. I'm very, very excited about this. It's conducted together with my fellow scientists from University of Calgary, from chemical and petroleum engineering departments. They will explore the conditions and methods of growing and processing this symbiotic organism. And I will then investigate its nutritive value and I will check the ability to include it in a diet for layers . One rather unusual component of this research includes a collaboration with young artists who will then link the science and the art. I'm really looking forward to, to the effect of this collaboration. She's planning to have the exhibition and film to create the film and also some kind of stimulation for the discussion on this cultural level discussion, connecting science and ecology and art . I hope that will be a unique and a surprising perspective.
Chantal Bassett:It does sound like a unique perspective. It's not often that you see an interplay between the social, the natural sciences and the arts.
Anna Rogiewicz:So we'll see how it goes. I am actually exercising my collaboration skills in a sense and learning new things. As I mentioned, I'm very excited about this project, but I'm mostly excited about the collaboration with other researchers. I am always hungry for inspiration. I'm always hungry for other perspectives, learning something new. I'm looking forward to working with some individuals who've got the various expertise and may compliment my research expertise. Also benefit from something which I can bring on to the table. I'm really looking forward to it. Over the years I may say I developed quite a network of friends, colleagues and collaborators. We call them colleagues in crimes. So I'm really aiming for the collaborative projects that I'm in . I'm talking about colleagues from Canadian universities, this institution, but also from other places, like the United States. I've got close collaborators in Poland and Denmark, and I'm developing some collaboration with scientists from Spain. But of course I'm thinking local too. I will be I'm more than happy taking the opportunity of collaborating with my colleagues, with in my department and within the faculty and maybe beyond. So that's me. I'm not a lone wolf. I really would like to share and collaborate. Also for me, it's the way of making the research more applicable and more interesting as well. And I may say that the research is never done by 1 person. It's never just me. I'm very privileged working with great associates and great graduate students. I always enjoy having undergrad students and get them more into the science and the hands-on work. So it's been very nice journey. I work with very nice, professional people.
Chantal Bassett:Who's in your team?
Anna Rogiewicz:I am feel a little bit empty nested now because my 3 grad students just defended this season. Though I will keep one as a technician. I work with a really good colleague of mine, Stella , she just defended her PhD. She was very much involved in this canola project. Very professional. I enjoyed working with her. She has great knowledge and I've got another research associate, and I will hire more students as the projects are progressing. I like teaching, I like to be with students. I like having hands on . That was my previous life as well. I spent lot of time in the lab, so I really know how science works and I kind of miss it a little bit. So I should be more in the lab.
Chantal Bassett:Too much time in front of the computer or in meetings?
Anna Rogiewicz:Oh yeah. I have to ask, "maybe there's some cleanup needs to be done". Yeah, so this is a great stimulating environment in the lab. Other technicians, other students from other researchers groups are a really great addition to our research and I admire them . I wish them all the best. I believe they will all succeed after they graduate.
Chantal Bassett:So in terms of your lab space, you must have a main laboratory, but then do you rely on faculty resources? Where do you conduct the actual animal trials?
Anna Rogiewicz:I am a director of the small animal research facility. We've got the 2 rooms in our department basement. There, I may also run very simple or quite comprehensive annual studies with broiler chickens. We may conduct studies to determine digestibility of nutrients and the availability of energy. We may check the efficacy of the enzyme preparations for the growth performance of birds. I've got the biochemistry lab well furnished and well established already in the department of animal science. I may have the expertise in, as I mentioned earlier, in the evaluation of the chemical composition with some quite unique expertise. The determination of non-starch polysaccharides, which is a large part of the dietary fibre. I may say it's a quite unique and I process it . It leads me also to collaborations with other scientists because I may offer this expertise. I also collaborate with other professors within our departments if we're doing some swine projects. Dr. Nyachoti or Dr . Rod Gonzalez will be the person to work with. I do also some studies with Dr. Chengbo Yang, and I'm planning to Dr. Derakhshani more involved in the studies I'm planning. So I'm really looking forward to more busy time.
Chantal Bassett:So our listeners may have heard that the University of Manitoba partnered with Manitoba Egg Farmers and received funding from the province of Manitoba through Manitoba Agriculture for a new , uh, Manitoba Egg Farmers learning and Research complex. Do you envision utilizing that space for your research?
Anna Rogiewicz:I've been waiting for this facility to be open for some time. It is great place. It is great place not only for the public, for students to be trained, for kids to learn where the eggs are coming from, but also it's a good place to run the research. So I already got a few projects that I'm planning to run there and I will definitely look forward for more though it. It is absolutely fantastic. Layers are a great animal model. It's so nice to work with them. I've got a soft spot for this. Okay, ladies? Sometimes the only problem is the studies with laying hens may be in for long time. So grad students who've got, usually limited time, two years, it may be a little issue. But, but still, that just what we have to live with. It's an absolutely great facility and I hope it'll be so busy that we'll fight over the room to run the research there .
Chantal Bassett:And Anna , some of our listeners and I actually only learned this in the last couple of years, for myself, working with the faculty, you mentioned broilers, you mentioned layers. Like there's different types of chicken?
Anna Rogiewicz:Yes, there is . Because the chickens, those are the one which we grow for basically to produce the meat. So they're fast growing , they don't really reach the maturity. What we call layers , which we also usually call chickens. Those are the mature ladies who are laying the eggs. And we keep them for over the year. And they will eat and lay eggs , that's the thing. There are also breeders. Those are the flocks which are designed to really lay the eggs , which then will be hatched. And produce the growing animals which are future layers.
Chantal Bassett:A producer would be probably feeding different feeds to different animal groups. And so that's the need for a nutritional biochemist such as yourself.
Anna Rogiewicz:Exactly. It is to really evaluate the end goal. That's exactly how it is because the digestive tract of the young animals will be different than mature ones, age, production stage that the young layers , which we call poulettes, which are still growing and not laying eggs yet will be fed differently from those which are already laying. Calcium for example, they will need much more calcium to deposit in the eggshell. It is well established , the needs , the nutrient requirement, it is all well established. We just have to make sure that those nutrients are actually properly released from the feed ingredients. And animals will get whatever they really need.
Chantal Bassett:In terms of the animal nutrition field, you're saying that we've had some longstanding research on the actual nutritional requirements of some of the animals. It continues to be explored, but where the real true research and innovation is in ensuring that we're bioengineering these diets so that they're releasing the nutrients when we need them, and that perhaps feed needs to be modified throughout a lifespan.
Anna Rogiewicz:The science is really needed to provide the evidence. We cannot declare that this works. Something works because it works. We have to provide the evidence to build the trust. The feed industry have to be very confident of using certain approaches of providing some changes. And the animal producer, they have to trust the nutritionist that... okay, we not really putting anything at risk. Most likely we not putting the animal wellbeing and the health at risk. So the scientific evidence is critical here and this is what we are equipped to provide. Plus we also have to address certain aspects related to environment, to make sure that we feed our animals the best possible way. And we also need to understand how it may affect the environment for them moving forward. Because we have to be really, really confident that we are minimizing the footprint of the animal production without compromising animal health and wellbeing. Also we still ensure producers provide enough good quality food for people.
Chantal Bassett:What I'm hearing is that producers are not, I mean, they obviously care about production and growth, but that there are ways to incorporate different elements to enhance their feed and therefore enhance the animals that they're producing. But then you also talked about, that there's other, that we could be using more byproducts from other sectors of the agricultural community. How can research enhance this is in different animal feed diets?
Anna Rogiewicz:The problem with byproducts is that they may be produced in a large volume and usually they've got some aspect which makes them a less viable . That may be less protein content, less energy content or excessive fibre as an example. That's why we have to come up with ideas how to utilize it and how to mitigate those limitations. There are still products with huge potential to be animal feed . It's not like we're feeding animal waste, right ? Otherwise animals will not eat. But this is really balancing the agriculture and animal production. This plays a very critical role in the recycling of some of byproducts, giving the extra value to to them and also providing available ingredients for their diets. Of course, the diets are composed of various ingredients, and that's also another part of the art to balance them, to make them so that animals are happy to take them and they are healthy. There's not really much room to provide huge improvements in the production. That's a success for the animal breeders. That's a huge credit that goes to the producers themselves for their management skills and everything. But we have to make sure that animals are really having a life worth living. They're in general healthy and they comfortable where they are are, and they provide their sources of protein.
Chantal Bassett:Have you ever seen any evidence of diet impacting the wellbeing, the health, in the behavior of animals?
Anna Rogiewicz:That's not an easy measurement. It may be seem simple. If they don't like it, they will not eat it. If they have no other choice and they will eat it, they will not produce. There is some evidence of let's say , swine for example, diarrhea or some kind of anti-nutritive effects. We have spent the time. We know that nutritionists know, scientists know , how to avoid it. Most of the anti-nutritive factors, which could be present in the feed ingredients are very well known. But definitely it is all about balancing how much of the certain feeds to use in a diet, not to overuse it. I call it the "art of diet formulation" because it's quite an art. And I still have to also give huge credit to all the nutritionists in the industry. Those are really real professional people. They know their craft. So we, scientists, we're not necessarily discovering something new, but we're trying to identify the mechanism and improve certain knowledge. As I mentioned earlier, to give the map going forward with some confidence.
Chantal Bassett:That's great to hear. So you're discussing with industry members on a fairly regular basis, hearing what their challenges are, hearing what they have, what they're working on in terms of improving the diets for their variety of clients that they are supporting. But then you having the opportunity to go and explore and continue to work on some innovations. So what kind of messages are you hearing and how is that impacting the research decisions you might be doing in the next few years?
Anna Rogiewicz:It very much impacts , because I cannot just do research for the sake of doing research. It has to have the meaning and it comes from basically addressing the industry need . The poultry industry in Canada is really nice to work with because it is supply managed and we may have a close collaboration or at least discussion about the priorities with the board members of this organizations related to poultry production. Therefore the representative voice of the producers and concerns the industry faced. The sort of other issues related to avian influenza related to some improvement of the air quality in the barn and so on. This research is also needed, but still every farmer, every producers has to have the vision and Plan B , what if, how to utilize feed ingredients. If there will be shortage of, let's say wheat or soybean. These main ingredients could be distributed more for human consumption as an example. So this , there are always questions that need to be answered and addressed. And the processor in industries which really are dealing with the byproducts. They have to have a plan, what to do with them. So if let's say canola production is planned to expand, there will be likely more canola meal or other byproducts generated. We have to deal with this and address the quality of these products and so on. Our research is not only directed towards the health of animals and their production, the entire prebiotics research and bioactives also leads to the food safety because if we are producing the pathogenic bacterias in the gut, we're ultimately producing more safe food for human human consumption. So it does not really end at the animal level. It goes way, way beyond .
Chantal Bassett:So Anna, are you making a prebiotic or are you adding one?
Anna Rogiewicz:I'm actually making the prebiotic throughout the processing of the feeding ingredients of fibre, like from the yeast cell wall or canola, it is further processed with the collaboration of our industry partner, which I mentioned, and therefore it could be added to the diet as a novel product.
Chantal Bassett:Is there a difference between prebiotic and probiotic?
Anna Rogiewicz:Prebiotics will be basically the feed for the probiotics, which should be present in the gut.
Chantal Bassett:Additive such as that, would it be added regularly or would a producer choose to have kind of a baseline diet and they could make modifications on a case by case ? Or if they're seeing things evolve within their facilities?
Anna Rogiewicz:Oh yeah, very good question. It could be added as a feed additive along with other feed additives, which are enhancing the production, but also depends on the needs of the producers. They may be used also as an intervention when some issue, and could be added. Some of those prebiotics may be water soluble, so therefore the application also interesting. It could be added in the water. So there's a great potential, this is under research and yes, it could be used on a regular basis. It could also be used as an intervention.
Chantal Bassett:So as an alternative to antibiotics?
Anna Rogiewicz:That's the general idea, because antibiotics, they worked , they controlled the pathogenic bacterias not only to support animal health, but also to provide more safe food at the end. So by controlling the pathogenic bacterias with the prebiotics and probiotics which are beneficial bacterias, we just make it better for animals and humans.
Chantal Bassett:So when gut health is impacted due to antibiotic use, let's say the diets that you're formulating can enhance the gut health of animals?
Anna Rogiewicz:Definitely. That is the ultimate goal. If there is some microbiota in a gut enhancing the microbiota in the poultry gut, make it more functional and benefit the health, that's what the prebiotics could help to achieve.
Chantal Bassett:So Anna, you mentioned that you work with many collaborators across Canada and around the world, and also some industry partners, but you have one main industry partner. Tell me about this partnership.
Anna Rogiewicz:Yes, I'm collaborating with a company called CBS Bio Platforms, formerly known as Canadian Biosystems. This collaboration started years ago and was fostered by Dr. Solminski. I'm happy to continue this collaboration with them. CBS Bio Platform provides the enzymes, other additives for the diet for poultry, swine and cattle. Very driven, innovative company. They're very keen on supporting not only research, but also education of the highly qualified personnel . Many graduate students were supported by them and are now working in the industry or creating prolific scientific careers. So a very supportive company.
Chantal Bassett:Tell me about one of the projects that you're working on together.
Anna Rogiewicz:Right. There are several projects. We are working together towards the development of those bioactives from yeast cell walls and from canola meal. And I'm looking forward to further collaboration with CBS Bio Platforms in order to develop different types of bioactives ingredients for annuals . The goal is really to gain a deeper understanding of how or why those ingredients would improve the gut health of poultry when they are incorporated into the diets.
Chantal Bassett:Anna, who are the true users of your research?
Anna Rogiewicz:Our research really benefits the animal producers, poultry and swine. Because they will get more scientific evidence related to using the products. They definitely will have advanced knowledge in what enzymes can do in the gut when they add it. So this goes really beyond just improving digestibility of nutrients. So the enzyme technology is not the really novel technology that has been used in the animal nutrition industry for years, but they're constantly improving. There are new enzyme activities and there are new organism producing enzymes. This is very developing branch of the industry.
Chantal Bassett:So, Anna , about how about finishing off by telling us one thing about yourself that's unrelated to your research?
Anna Rogiewicz:One thing is not enough, no. I've got my life, I may say a part of the research, my life is my family - my husband, my son. I love them. And I like the dynamic in our house. We, me and my husband is really into the music. So we've got quite a crazy collection of vinyls albums and our conversation always goes around the music rather than the science. My son is getting into this as well. I've been thinking about this lately that sometimes we plan to teach our kids or learn how to play music, but quite often we forget how to listen and analyze. Some kind of very unique way of paying attention to the details, to the sounds , to the tunes, to the arrangements. So quite often I'm not focus about the certain artists. I focus about the achievement of the music producers. Those are the people we follow. I enjoy it very much. I wish I could have more time reading, reading book for reading books and novels. I belong to the book club. I may be fired for not really fulfilling the wine in depth . I have always been interested in the arts and music. I've got a small collection of posters, that's my favorite art type. My house is rather artistic, rather than scientific.
Chantal Bassett:So that's beautiful to hear. Idon't know, sometimes we think scientists and like blank, you know , walls very cold.
Anna Rogiewicz:And sometimes we are, but those other people are keeping u s grounded, right? Yes. On the ground and in real life.
Chantal Bassett:So Anna, thanks so much for chatting with me. This has been Dr. Chantal Bassett, joined by Dr. Anna Rogiewicz, assistant professor in animal science at the University of Manitoba. And that's it for today's episode of ChangeMAKErs, the Faculty of Agricultural and Food Sciences Research and Innovation podcast. Join me in future episodes to hear about other fascinating research being led by agricultural and AgriFood innovators at the University of Manitoba.