Sensory demonstrations, drones, hand hygiene, colostrum quality and sensors for horticultural production are among the demos that visitors to the Teagasc stand at the BT Young Scientist & Technology Exhibition, which takes place at the RDS, Dublin, during January 12-14, 2017. Visit Teagasc at stand W7 in the World of Science and Technology.
The theme of Teagasc’s stand is ‘The Future of Farming and Food’ and is based on the five research prioritisation areas identified in Teagasc’s Technology Foresight 2035 exercise: Plant and animal genomics; human, animal and soil microbiota, digital technologies; new technologies for food processing; and, transformation in the food value chain. Visitors to the stand will be asked to use the interactive stand to give their ideas on technologies for the future.
According to Lance O’Brien, Teagasc’s Foresight and Strategy Manager: “Investment in exciting new technologies will play a decisive role in enabling the Irish agri-food sector to sustainably intensify food production and to grow output, exports, and jobs while respecting the environment”.
Eating is among the most pleasurable and multisensory experiences in our everyday lives. However, people don’t often realise that the satisfying sensations they perceive while eating are derived from a complex multisensory interaction between each of the five senses – sight, smell, touch, taste and hearing. Throughout the event Teagasc food sensory scientists will demonstrate how our flavor experiences and enjoyment of food can be enhanced by stimulating all of our senses.
Think your hands are clean? On Thursday morning, Teagasc researcher Kaye Burgess will be using glow lotion to show bacteria present on hands and contamination potential in a food safety demonstration.
On Thursday afternoon, Teagasc Soft Fruit advisor and researcher Eamonn Kehoe will demonstrate a hand-held sensor that takes the guessing work out of horticultural production. The sensor can be used to quickly detect water and feed levels in plant pots, saving producers resources and time.
On Friday morning, Teagasc researcher Stuart Green will be on hand to demonstrate drone technology, offering a virtual flying lesson to visitors. Teagasc researchers are currently using this technology to survey soil vegetation and drainage in Irish fields.
Ensuring newborn calves get enough high-quality colostrum, the first milk a cow produces after calving, shortly after birth is critical to their development and their ability to fight disease and infection.
On Saturday morning, Emer Kennedy will give visitors an opportunity to use tools to rapidly assess the quality of colostrum.
