Overview
Biosecurity, animal health and wellbeing, food integrity, provenance, appellation and branding, nutritional and medicinal properties of food.
Agriculture and food systems need to continually evolve in response to political, economic, socio-cultural, regulatory and technological changes. Concerns around land use, agriculture production; sustainability and food security are driving the need for innovation across a broad front. To meet this need the agriculture and food industries require graduates from a wide range of disciplines across sciences, health sciences, commerce and humanities. This paper exposes students from a range of disciplines to agriculture and food systems, outlines the challenges they face and discusses current and future solutions.
This paper focuses on both local New Zealand and global food security in sustainable agricultural production. We will explore various technological advancements used to manage biosecurity and how they are applied in the commercial environment. Students will gain relevant and applicable knowledge of New Zealand food regulations on animal products, agricultural chemicals, veterinary medicine, and food safety.
The students will acquire advanced and holistic critical thinking on the importance of understanding complex aspects related to agricultural production for creating smart and innovative solutions to add value to agriculture produce and by-products and to protect the provenance of produce important for appellation and branding. Case studies on animal- and plant-based production will be given to illustrate the effect of these aspects on product quality (including nutritional and medicinal properties), animal health and well-being, and commerce. The students will do various hands-on activities dealing with animal- and plant-based commodities.
About this paper
| Paper title | Agriculture Production and Food Security |
|---|---|
| Subject | Agriculture |
| EFTS | 0.15 |
| Points | 18 points |
| Teaching period | Semester 1 (On campus) |
| Domestic Tuition Fees ( NZD ) | $1,243.65 |
| International Tuition Fees | Tuition Fees for international students are elsewhere on this website. |
- Prerequisite
- AGRI 221 or 54 200-level points
- Schedule C
- Science
- Eligibility
This paper is suitable for undergraduate and diploma students of all disciplines who meet the prerequisites and are interested in engaging with agricultural production and food security. This paper is a required course for all students majoring in Agricultural Innovation and one of the two required 300-level papers for all students minoring in Agricultural Innovation.
- Contact
Professor Indrawati Oey - indrawati.oey@otago.ac.nz
- Teaching staff
Convener: Professor Indrawati Oey
Lecturers from Food Science, Botany, and Industry.
Plus guest lecturers.
- Paper Structure
AGRI 321 (18 points) will be taught through 26 lectures (26 hours) and six hands-on activities (6 x 3 hours).
- Teaching Arrangements
AGRI 321 will run in the first semester. Two one-hour lectures will be held per week. Students should allocate 12 hours per week to this course over the semester. This time includes lectures, focus group, hands-on activities, completion of reports and independent study.
- Textbooks
No textbooks are required for this paper. Teaching materials will be made available on Blackboard.
- Graduate Attributes Emphasised
- Global perspective, Interdisciplinary perspective, Lifelong learning, Scholarship, Communication, Critical thinking, Cultural understanding, Environmental literacy, Information literacy, Self-motivation, Teamwork.
View more information about Otago's graduate attributes. - Learning Outcomes
Students who successfully complete this paper will gain:
- An understanding of the importance of biosecurity globally and within New Zealand in agricultural production with regards to food safety and security, postharvest quality (including nutritional and medicinal properties) and animal well-being; an ability to address these by working in a group and an ability to respond to challenges around sustainability and food security reflected from their study background.
- An understanding of various technologies used to control the biosecurity for agricultural production.
- Knowledge of New Zealand food regulation on Animal Products Act, agricultural chemicals, veterinary medicine and food safety.
- Understanding of the commercial environment and rationale for the decision-making relating to biosecurity.
- Scientific literacy and an ability to acquire new knowledge from research papers and reports and present this to a general audience in a clear and understandable manner.
- Assessment details
The final examination is three hours in duration and is worth 60% of the final mark with internal assessment accounting for 40%, evaluated through essays/reports and presentation.