we may receive compensation from retailers and/or from purchases of products through these links the upscale resort town in the Bernese Oberland region of the Swiss Alps becomes increasingly dominated by designer boutiques critics contend that its elemental spirit has been buried beneath the alchemy of modern development over the years Travelers seeking a more down-to-earth experience—that still captures the sensibility of this singular region in the Alps—will find the nearby village of Saanen a delightful alternative Just a five-minute drive from its glitzy neighbor this historic chalet village offers a more intimate refuge allowing visitors to savor the region’s timeless charms without any pretentious frills the fairytale village of Saanen appears frozen in time yet its dynamic appeal lies in its subtlety Beneath Saanen’s old-fashioned exterior lies a crop of memorable meals as well as direct access to the slopes—all centered around the protected heritage site of its historic cobblestone village making it exactly the kind of place locals like to keep to themselves Mauritius Church Saanen in the heart of the village in June 2023 in the nearby town of Rougemont as a gateway for travelers to discover the magic of these lesser-known villages in the Gstaad valley—each located a short drive from each other and connected via the scenic golden pass train (the lucky ones can even book the vintage Belle Epoque train for enhanced cinematic effect) “What makes these villages so unique is their authentic chalet architecture which you can only find here,” Schoellgen says of the traditional wood houses with gable roofs a hallmark of the region which is considered the most genuinely rural and arguably the most beautiful in all of Switzerland While Rougemont is the only officially French-speaking village (the others are German-speaking) giving the region international appeal that has long drawn discerning visitors from around the world Schoellgen purchased the historic Chalet Saanen “Saanen is the heart of it all,” he explains but also because you will find everything you need here and fantastic restaurants.” The 250-year-old chalet once home to the renowned British-American violinist Yehudi Menuhin is a place with deep ties to the region’s history inspired the creation of the celebrated Gstaad Menuhin Festival After a nine-month renovation, Schoellgen opened Chalet Saanen for both short and long-term stays in December 2024 While both of his properties are inspired by local mountain architecture and the Alpine culture of the 1960s and 1970s—and are decorated with a collection of Swiss and French antique finds from his personal collection—they’re also intended to be reflective of their specific location which is a larger mountain lodge located on a big secluded piece of land Chalet Saanen is more aligned with the authentic and traditional “Saanenland” chalet style with the typical low ceilings and old wood “What I loved during my first visit were the many original features such as the original hand-painted doors and wardrobes which we preserved during renovations,” he notes which has already become a landmark stay in Rougemont since its opening last spring Chalet Saanen has similarly begun attracting a new wave of design enthusiasts to Saanan Perched atop a hill with views overlooking the iconic St the location offers an idyllic setting where guests are just a five-minute stroll down a scenic path to the vibrant village A hand-painted door in a bedroom at Chalet Saanen Open fireplaces and cozy seating areas at Chalet Saanen While the most popular accommodations in Saanen are private chalets have a handful of low-key but reliable options for travelers who prefer to stay at a hotel travelers should look to Gstaad for its iconic stays like Gstaad Palace and Le Grand Bellevue.) Perched above the village of Saanen the four-star HUUS Gstaad Hotel’s living room-style lobby and cozy chalet-style rooms and suites maintain a relaxed ambiance though the hotel itself is the most resort-like in town with first-rate hospitality the abundant charms and warm staff at Hotel Spitzhorn surely surpass its three-star rating Rooms combine rustic charms with modern comforts in a way that elevates the guest experience—a seamless integration that’s carried through to its small spa and restaurant Although there are currently no five-star hotels in the village of Saanen the five-star Alpina Gstaad has confirmed that its second location is slated to open in Saanen—a move likely to inspire further hospitality development in the area credited by Michelin as Bib Gourmand for an experience and culinary offering that is both high quality and good value guests can enjoy its barbeque specialities in a casual rustic room wian th artful sensibility as contemporary works by Hebert Buchs hang on the walls diners can choose from a fresh selection of baked goods Pizza and wine at Cherry’s Bistro in Saanen village an impressive exhibition space founded in 2019 by Tatiana de Pahlen and Antonia Crespí Tarmak22 hosts exhibitions in partnership with international galleries while curating its own shows in the summer Saanen is optimally located at the center of the Gstaad/Saanen/Rougemont ski resort which connects various mountains in the area from its own at Eggli/La Videmanette and has thus made winter sports the area’s top attraction—from downhill skiing The neighboring village of Château-d’Œx has also become famous for its Festival International de Ballons an event that has taken place at the end of January for the past 40 years The vibrant festival occurs over the span of nine days Hot air balloons rising above Château-d’Œx during the annual festival While Glacier 3000 located 20 minutes from Saanen offers spring skiing until May, the village of Saanen stays open year-round and has become an especially buzzy summer destination—which is especially apropos as the rising temps of climate change are pushing travelers towards cooler summer destinations “Most people consider this region only in winter but it has far more to offer during the summer and the fall,” explains Schoellgen “From annual events such as music festivals and world-class tennis tournaments and outdoor activities like hiking and swimming in the turquoise lakes [like the famous Arnensee Lake] the region’s hotels and restaurants have been extending their season to almost year-round.” What are you waiting for The Danish Home Lighting Trend That Can Improve Your Mental Health In America’s Cities, Saunas Are Becoming the Hottest Social Spot Millie Bobby Brown Shares Her Favorite Paella Recipe—and Details About Her Wedding to Jake Bongiovi A Day-by-Day Guide to Hiking the Legendary Nakasendo Trail in Japan Never miss a Vogue moment and get unlimited digital access for just $2 $1 per month Metrics details The Saanen breeds are often used as terminal sires for hybridization and play an important role in the global dairy food industry there is still a lack of genomics information on the Saanen dairy goats Whole-genome sequencing offers a promising approach to identify genetic markers associated with economic traits and discover new candidate genes This can effectively utilize genetic resources to accelerate breeding processes and improve lactation performance in Saanen dairy goats we present the genomes of 298 Saanen dairy goats Through rigorous sequencing and quality control we achieved an average sequencing depth of 14.6X with 92.3% of high-quality (Q30 > 90%) data and an average mapping ratio of 99.9% By comparing our data to a reference genome of Saanen dairy goats we identified14.59 million single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) and 1.34 million insertions-deletions (InDels) This dataset significantly contributes to enriching public databases in dairy goats and provides valuable resources for studying genetic diversity Globally and especially in developing countries the production and consumption of goat milk have significant economic and food-related benefits due to its health advantages Systematic research on genetics and phenotype shows promise in improving milk productivity and optimizing the economic benefits derived from goats Although Saanen dairy goats are a significant genetic resource to many local sub-breeds worldwide their genetic improvement has been hindered by a lack of systematic characterization at the genetic level this study conducted whole-genome sequencing on Saanen dairy goats with the objective of unlocking their genetic and breeding research potential Sequencing has been performed at a high depth (average 14.6 X) increasing the power and resolution of genomic analyses To ensure the accuracy of this genetics analysis stringent experimental and quality control processes were employed we present the entire process we used to achieve accurate quality control measurements and procedures from raw data to the final variant call format (VCF) file generation The dataset can further fill the gaps in the genomic resources of Saanen goats This dataset has various research applications exploration of genomic structure and function inference of genetic relationships among populations it facilitates the identification of candidate genes associated with productive traits and developing of SNP genotyping arrays tailored for dairy goat breed identification and breeding purposes this dataset is a valuable addition to the global dairy goat genomic databases and plays a crucial role in studying goat domestication history and population genetics 298 non - littermate individuals of healthy Saanen dairy goat ewes aged 2–3 years were selected Blood samples from 298 goats were collected from two farms in Zhejiang and Shaanxi provinces A volume of 3 mL of blood was drawn from the jugular vein of each individual and stored in anticoagulant tubes at −20 °C All procedures associated with the dairy goats used in this study were approved by the Animal Use Committee of Zhejiang University (No This process is consistent with the variant calling scheme recommended by GATK A universal library was constructed using the NadPrep® DNA library construction kit (Nanodigmbio,Nanjing,China) and the Bioruptor Pico (Diagenode This system randomly breaks down DNA into fragments that are approximately 300–350 bp in size The fragmented DNA was then subjected to end repair DNA fragments of around 300–350 bp were selected using NadPrep® SP Beads (Nanodigmbio,China) PCR amplification was performed on the selected fragments followed by purification using NadPrep® SP Beads to obtain sequencing libraries initial quantification was performed using Qubit 3.0(Invitrogen fragment size analysis was conducted using the Bioanalyzer® (Agilent USA) to confirm the expected fragment sizes Once the size fragment sizes were confirmed sequencing was carried out on a DNBSEQ-T7 sequencer (MGI Tech Shenzhen,China) using a PE150 sequencing strategy Variant filtration was conducted using the Variant Filtration module Specific codes for each mapping and variant calling step can be found in the “Code Availability” section VCFtools v0.1.17(--max-missing 0.2) was used to for final variant quality control filtering out all SNPs with a missing genotype rate exceeding 20% in the samples A total of 14 million biallelic SNPs and 1.34 million biallelic InDels identified on autosomes after quality control were retained for subsequent analysis Boxplots showing the average sequencing depth raw base and raw Q30 for Chinese Saanen samples (n = 298) Statistics for the SNP Fraction in depth (a), neighbouring SNP distance (b). The different colour indicated the various individual. Distribution of SNP and InDels across the whole-genome of 298 Chinese Sannen goat (a) SNP density statistics across the whole-genome (b) SNP and InDel density statistics across the whole-genome and all the steps were performed in the CentOS system The detailed codes and parameters used in this study are provided as follows: Code for trimming: fastp -i {raw1} -I {raw2} -o {r1.qc} -O {r2.qc} -u50-n -q5-w 4 -l 100 -h {outdir}/{sample name}.html Code: bwa mem -t 10 -M -R dairygoat_genome_FINAL.fa“@RG\tID:${sample}\tLB:${sample}\tPL:illumina\tSM:${sample}” /genome.index ${r1.qc} ${r2.qc} > ${sample}.sam Code for sorting and file converting: samtools sort -m10G -S ${sample}.sam -o ${sample}.sorted.bam Code for bam file indexing: samtools index -b ${sample}.sorted.bam ${sample}.sorted.bai Code for sorting and file converting:samtools bedcov ${sample}.sorted.bam ${sample}.depth Code: java -Xms100g -Xmx200g -jar picard.jar MarkDuplicates INPUT = ${sample} Code for the GVCF model generated using HaplotypeCaller: gatk --java-options “-Xmx60g -Xms20g” HaplotypeCaller --native-pair-hmm-threads 80 -R -I ${sample}.rmdup.bam -ERC GVCF -O ${sample}.g.vcf Code for combining GVCF fles: gatk --java-options “-Xmx80g -Xms60g” CombineGVCFs -R Gallus_gallus.bGalGal1.mat.broiler.GRCg7b.dna_sm toplevel.fa --variant sample1.g.vcf --variant sample2.g.vcf Code for variant joint calling: gatk --java-options “-Xmx80g -Xms60g” GenotypeGVCFs -R dairygoat_genome_FINAL.fa -V merge.g.vcf -O merge.vcf (7) Variants extraction and hard filtration: Code for SNP strict filtering:bcftools filter -g 5 -G 10 -o final.vcf -O v hardfilter.vcf Code: vcftools --vcf final.vcf --max-alleles 2 --min-alleles 2 --min-meanDP 4 --max-missing 0.2 --remove-fltered-all --recode --recode-INFO-all --out dp4miss0.2 The initial domestication of goats (Capra hircus) in the Zagros Mountains 10,000 Years Ago The origin of domestication genes in goats Ancient goat genomes reveal mosaic domestication in the Fertile Crescent Whole-genome resource sequences of 57 indigenous Ethiopian goats Current status of global dairy goat production: an overview Devendra, C. & Haenlein, G. F. W. Goat Breeds in Encyclopedia of Dairy Sciences (Third Edition) 77–97. https://doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-08-100596-5.00622-3 (Academic Press Domestic Animal Diversity Information System(DAD-IS) | FAO. https://www.fao.org/dad-is/zh/ Genome wide association studies for milk production traits in Chinese Holstein population Whole genome and transcriptome analyses in dairy goats identify genetic markers associated with high milk yield Genome-wide association study for milk production and conformation traits in Canadian Alpine and Saanen dairy goats Whole genome population genetics analysis of Sudanese goats identifies regions harboring genes associated with major traits Genome-wide association study of conformation and milk yield in mixed-breed dairy goats Genome-wide association studies of lactation yields of milk protein and somatic cell score in New Zealand dairy goats Genome wide association analysis on semen volume and milk yield using different strategies of imputation to whole genome sequence in French dairy goats Genome-wide definition of selective sweeps reveals molecular evidence of trait-driven domestication among elite goat (Capra species) breeds for the production of dairy Whole-genome resequencing reveals candidate genes associated with milk production trait in Guanzhong dairy goats A near complete genome for goat genetic and genomic research Chromosome-level dairy goat genome reveals the regulatory landscape of lactation Capra hircus breed: Xinong Saanen Dairy goat Genome sequencing. NCBI https://ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/bioproject/PRJNA1085880/ (2024) fastp: an ultra-fast all-in-one FASTQ preprocessor SSAHA: A fast search method for large DNA databases SOAP2: an improved ultrafast tool for short read alignment SOAP3: ultra-fast GPU-based parallel alignment tool for short reads Mapping short DNA sequencing reads and calling variants using mapping quality scores clone sequences and assembly contigs with BWA-MEM Fast and accurate short read alignment with Burrows–Wheeler transform From FastQ data to high confidence variant calls: the Genome Analysis Toolkit best practices pipeline The Genome Sequence Archive Family: Toward explosive data growth and diverse data types Database Resources of the National Genomics Data Center China National Center for Bioinformation in 2022 National Genomics Data Center, China National Center for Bioinformation https://ngdc.cncb.ac.cn/gsa/browse/CRA017705 (2025) European Variation Archive https://www.ebi.ac.uk/eva/?eva-study=PRJEB86789 (2025) Base-calling of automated sequencer traces using phred Systematic comparison of three genomic enrichment methods for massively parallel DNA sequencing The Genome Analysis Toolkit: A MapReduce framework for analyzing next-generation DNA sequencing data A framework for variation discovery and genotyping using next-generation DNA sequencing data Three-stage quality control strategies for DNA re-sequencing data Finding the missing heritability of complex diseases Genome structural variation discovery and genotyping Genome structural variation in human evolution Structural variant landscapes reveal convergent signatures of evolution in sheep and goats Download references This work was jointly supported by grants from Biological Breeding- Major Project (2022ZD04017) Zhejiang Key Laboratory of Cow Genetic Improvement & Milk Quality Research Ministry of Education Key Laboratory of Molecular Animal Nutrition Kai Zhang and Jianqing Zhao: Sample collection Jianxin Liu: assisted in designing the idea of the manuscript Hengbo Shi: conceived the research project checked the experimental design ideas and draft-editing All authors read and approved the final manuscript The authors declare no competing interests Publisher’s note Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations Reprints and permissions Download citation DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41597-025-04880-6 Anyone you share the following link with will be able to read this content: a shareable link is not currently available for this article Sign up for the Nature Briefing newsletter — what matters in science Please enable JS and disable any ad blocker It's Eddie's horns that draw visitors' attention executive director of the Natick Organic Community Farm It's his personality that draws the staff's attention He is a very powerful goat," Simkins said of the Saanen "There's one gate Eddie got down," she said pointing to a hole in a fence she passed walking from the farm to the maple sugar shack yesterday morning which nature confines to October through December so offspring can arrive in the relative safety of spring pointing to a neighboring field where the kids are kept with their mothers and several sheep who recently delivered Eddie's pal Rambo's lambs "They all birthed within two days of each other," she said of Eddie's kids born to two fellow Saanens and two mixed-breed does he was enjoying a hay and grass brunch with Lucy he moved closer to the fence when Simkins walked over and his pale yellowish-green eyes took note of visitors He sauntered to the corner of his enclosure when Luke the golden retriever put a paw through the fence The youngsters are being cared for by their moms whose horns had to be taped to prepare for the job at hand "They have a tendency to lift each other up by the bellies (with their horns) The female Saanens have impressive horns that curve toward their backs but they can't quite compete with Eddie in terms of visitor appeal but it's the curving horns most youngsters note They make him look "pretty royal," Simkins said named for the Saanen Valley in Switzerland Female Saanens are prized for their prodigious milk production The butterfat content is typically lower than other breeds' the breed is known for its generally calm temperament CLAIM TO FAME: The breed is featured in the "FarmVille" game popular on Facebook LOOKS: Saanens are cream-colored or white like Eddie Both male and female Saanens have beards and horns SENSORY OVERLOAD: Male goats "have this horrible horrible smell," particularly in mating season It's an aroma humans aren't likely to forget but girl goats find it vastly more appealing than Old Spice aftershave or Axe body spray LIFE CYCLES: Their gestation period is five months The lifespan is similar to dogs' and cats' Bucks' lifespans tend to be shorter than their female counterparts FRIENDS OF EDDIE G.: While he doesn't hang out with his baby-mamas on a regular basis That might speak more to Lucy's character than Eddie's as do the other goats at Natick Community Organic Farm "There's no other way to handle them," said Simkins Particularly if they're prone to knocking down gates SERIOUSLY: When he decides to head-butt his way through a fence Eddie backs up to take a run at the target MENU Mike Salvaleon (2nd from left) shows visitors the Saanen dairy goats that he and wife Leah are raising at their farm in Barangay Paradise The Philippines imports 99 percent of its milk supply as only a few farmers are into dairy production No.: 082 297 4360 editor [at] mindanews [dot] com and I am one of the newest keepers on the Ambassador Animals Team I am going to talk to you about one of the newest behaviors that we are training with our Saanen goats Something you may not know is that to be able to train any animals here at Zoo Atlanta there are different levels of training that we animal care team members have to progress through before we can train new behaviors or do training sessions on our own passing tests over the material we learned in these classes and observing training sessions of our coworkers I am able to assist in training sessions with some higher-level trainers This is something I have been doing with one of our other team members and a behavior she has been training called “station.” Station training is a behavior that can be implemented with many animal species but it can be especially important in animals that live in groups The goal of this behavior is to have an individual animal go to his or her own “station” and stand next to it until they have an all-clear to move our goal is to train our three Saanen goats—Wembley and Bogart—to each go to his own station while they are with the rest of the herd They are the biggest and some of the most dominant animals in our petting zoo herd And I do mean they are big … Saanen males can stand up to 32 inches at the withers and weigh over 160 pounds We work with the petting zoo animals free-contact meaning there are no barriers between us and the animals if we want to work individually with any of the other less dominant goats or sheep in the herd they always want to be right in the middle of things and the less dominant animals do not want to cross paths with the Saanens if each had his own station that was more out of the way it would make it much easier for us to make a path for whichever goat or sheep were trying to work with to get from point A to point B it is important for them to have stations that are easy to distinguish from one another to make it less confusing so they are each a different shape and color Wembley’s station is a yellow circle; Tobias’s station is a blue square; and Bogart’s station is a red triangle the first step to training this behavior was for each goat to learn which individual station was his and to go to that one by himself they learn to distinguish which station is his from just one of the other ones we can add in all three stations for the goat to distinguish between we are moving the stations around and mixing them up so that we are sure that they know their actual stations rather than their just learning to come to us or to a certain spot Once we are confident that they have mastered discriminating which station is theirs we can bring two Saanens into the same space together and work on each of them going to his own station This is the most recent step we have reached so we have begun to bring Wembley and Bogart in together to station at the same time we will add Tobias into the mix to all station at once Δdocument.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value" Bombardier announced that its Global 7500 aircraft is the largest purpose-built business jet to operate out of Gstaad’s Saanen airport in Switzerland – one of the most notable airfields located in the heart of the Swiss Alps requiring short-field performance – showcasing its true four-zone cabin during an event earlier this month before continuing its journey to the Middle-East and reaching Dubai directly from Gstaad Saanen airport “This demonstration strengthens the Global 7500 jet as a jet that simply has no peer in terms of combining size and real-world capabilities,” said Peter Likoray “Not only can it access demanding airfields in hot and/or high locations it also delivers uncompromising value to customers under any conditions without the need for tailwinds and a signature smooth ride through exceptional wing flexibility.” The Global 7500 aircraft’s advanced wing technology generates unprecedented amounts of extra lift on takeoff and approach due to its sophisticated slats and flap system It also maximizes aerodynamic efficiency and increases performance all the while improving safety and offering a smoother ride The Global 7500 jet’s no compromise design makes it the largest business jet with the short-field performance and steep approach capabilities allowing it to operate out of demanding airfields such as Gstaad’s Saanen airport or London City Airport connecting passengers to key regions in Europe and the Middle East non-stop* Beyond being recently recognized as Business Jet of the Year in Robb Report’s Best of the Best 2019 and Grand Laureate winner of the 62nd Annual Laureate Awards in the Business Aviation category the Global 7500 jet offers Bombardier’s signature smooth ride and a spaciousness that is unique among business jets The aircraft offers the most innovative features such as the recently unveiled Soleil lighting system the industry’s most advanced cabin lighting technology Designed and developed exclusively for the Global 7500 aircraft the innovative Soleil lighting system is aviation’s first circadian rhythm-based cabin lighting technology and it introduces the revolutionary Dynamic Daylight Simulation feature The Global 7500 business jet also offers the patented Nuage seat ergonomically-perfected deep recline position – unavailable on any other business aircraft was the best-selling super-midsize market leader which offers customers unrivaled cabin comfort along with Bombardier’s signature smooth ride Continuously improving the segment-defining aircraft Bombardier recently announced a series of enhancements to the Challenger 350 aircraft further underscoring its leadership position in the super mid-size segment These new enhancements include available compact Head-up Display (HUD) and Enhanced Vision System (EVS) class-leading cabin-sound-proofing technology A performance improvement package also allows the aircraft to fly up to 1,500 NM farther out of short runways complementing its steep approach certifications awarded by international regulatory bodies including EASA To further demonstrate its performance capabilities the Challenger 350 set a world speed record in its class flying from Gstaad’s Saanen airport to Malaga in Spain in 2 hours 4 minutes at an average cruise speed of Mach 0.82 This achievement is another example of the impressive speed climb and field performance capabilities of the super midsize Challenger 350 aircraft recognized as the world’s most delivered business jet of the last decade Bombardier is a global leader in the transportation industry creating innovative and game-changing planes and trains Our products and services provide world-class transportation experiences that set new standards in passenger comfort Nuage and Soleil are registered or unregistered trademarks of Bombardier Inc Please sign in with your Snow-Forecast account details below Create a free account to receive instant Snow-Alerts and save your favourite resorts on your personal MySnow page Gstaad - Saanen - Rougemont Weather (Next 3 days): The snow forecast for Gstaad - Saanen - Rougemont is: A dusting of snow turning to light rain (total 2.0mm) on Thu afternoon Freeze-thaw conditions (max 2°C on Tue afternoon Gstaad - Saanen - Rougemont Weather (Days 4-6): Moderate rain (total 14.0mm) Mild temperatures (max 9°C on Sun afternoon Latest snow reports near Gstaad - Saanen - Rougemont: Light rain reported from Sion at 339 metres elevation only 2 kms NW of Veysonnaz-Printse but it is forecast cold enough for snow at higher elevations in the ski area from Veysonnaz-Printse Several North American ski areas that are still open plan to celebrate the unofficial Star Wars Day tomorrow Use our Gstaad - Saanen - Rougemont ski hire interactive map to find exclusive snow-forecast discount codes Get the best value ski and gear hire in Gstaad - Saanen - Rougemont The above table gives the weather forecast for Gstaad - Saanen - Rougemont at the specific elevation of 1887 m. Our sophisticated weather models allow us to provide snow forecasts for the top, middle and bottom ski stations of Gstaad - Saanen - Rougemont. To access the weather forecasts for the other elevations, use the tab navigation above the table. For a wider view of the weather, check out the Weather Map of Switzerland Click here to read further information on freezing levels and how we forecast our temperatures Overall 4.7 Based on 4 votes and 3 reviews Rougemont is a chic and beautiful resort with great skiing Overall: 4.7 Based on 4 votes and 3 reviews Read 2 more reviews of Gstaad - Saanen - Rougemont or submit your own View detailed snow forecast for Gstaad - Saanen - Rougemont at:snow-forecast.com Nonkululeko Ximba’s journey into goat farming began with her son’s need for goat milk and turned into a passion project Nonkululeko Ximba faced a challenging time when her young son’s health required a special kind of nourishment – goat milk The paediatrician’s recommendation seemed simple enough The nearest place to find this precious milk was at a Woolworths store so I had to drive all the way to Newcastle just for milk,” she explained each time wondering if there might be a better way Ximba made the bold decision to start goat farming herself ensuring a steady supply of the milk that had become so vital to her family As the co-founder of an occupational health clinic with two mobile units and walk-in clinics in Heidelberg in Gauteng and Ladysmith in KwaZulu-Natal Ximba found it fitting to combine her passion for health with agriculture they only breed Saanen goats and have a strict diet for them recommended by their vet which also includes Brewer’s yeast supplement “My farming journey began on state land in Ncwadi and I couldn’t install solar or any other solution because I hadn’t received permission even though my family has lived on the farm for more than 30 years,” she explains Asante Saanen is the home of organic farming managing everything from their vaccines to trimming their hooves and I’m currently selling milk to locals in my area.” Ximba’s journey into goat farming began with high hopes but she faced a devastating setback last year “I currently have five goats; 15 of my goats were stolen but… South Africa,” she adds with a sigh Another obstacle Ximba faces is the lack of land which restricts her ability to fully realise her vision made it difficult to manage the daily operations Ximba remains determined and continues to push forward “I have eventually bought land in Utrecht “I’ve obtained a quotation for a fence and I’m hoping to start planting maize and oats in September But I need the department’s go-ahead as I wouldn’t want to invest and then be evicted later.” farming is currently a part-time job but the demand keeps growing which is why she plans to do it full-time next year Her knowledge in goat farming is backed by short courses in goat production and collecting and preserving quality genetics “We also have a hygiene policy that we follow we’re in the process of obtaining ISO/IEC 17021 certification.” With her goat dairy venture still in its establishment phase Ximba recently registered her business legally under the brand Intando Creamery “I’m taking it more professionally now I learned not to sit back and wait for help; I learned to keep moving; help will find me along the way I remain determined and resourceful.” “I have restricted myself to social media as I do not have enough quantity for a large market as yet I don’t want to bite off more than I can chew.” Despite not yet having the agricultural equipment she needs “I’m even considering selling my 60% shares in my healthcare business to purchase a tractor But I cannot buy a tractor without knowing where I’ll use it.” Her expansion plans include diversifying into goat milk skincare products with a soap-making course already on her agenda “Our goat milk products are unique because they not only make you feel healthy but also give you a healthy glow Ximba’s ultimate dream is to make Asante Saanen “the house of goats” where goat milk and mohair are celebrated for their health benefits is also working on goat meat sausages and burger patties My goal is to make Africa understand the health benefits of goat milk READ NEXT: Faith and farming: The power of prayer fuels Dean’s success Get Stories of Change: Inspirational stories from the people that feed Mzansi Tshianeo Mathidi in Venda is cultivating more than just potatoes – he's growing back a family legacy.. With 21 global awards in the first six years of its existence Food For Mzansi is much more than an agriculture publication unashamedly saluting the unsung heroes of South African agriculture We believe in the power of agriculture to promote nation building and social cohesion by telling stories that are often overlooked by broader society Contact usOffice: +27 21 879 1824News: info@foodformzansi.co.zaAdvertising: sales@foodformzansi.co.za Russia has exported hundreds of goats to North Korea for the second time this month amid reports that Moscow plans to supply thousands of goats to Pyongyang over the next three years One expert said the exports suggest the DPRK is promoting goat farming in an attempt to diversify citizens’ diets and click on the confirmation message in it to get subscribed to our Daily News Update Anton Sokolin is the data correspondent at NK News TASS and the Korea Trade Promotion Corporation (KOTRA) Internet Explorer is not compatible with this website Microsoft ceased supporting IE 10 and older in 2016 Microsoft cyber-security chief Chris Jackson has been urging users to stop using the browser since February 2019 Join the influential community of members who rely on NK News original news and in-depth reporting Don't have an account? 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SIGN UP Link IconCopy linkFacebook LogoShare on FacebookXShare on XEmailShare via EmailLink copied to clipboardThis weekend let a goat eat your Christmas treeThe Philly Goat Project is having their 5th annual tree recycling festival this Saturday Jan You don’t want your Christmas tree anymore The Philly Goat Project, based at Awbury Arboretum in East Germantown, is hosting its fifth annual tree recycling festival this Saturday granting you the opportunity to donate your past-prime tree to 13 extremely enthusiastic goats there will be farm olympics for small children and a petting area for goats taking a break They need to eat greens to maintain their gut health volunteer coordinator at the Philly Goat Project but there are few tasty options in the winter thus making the festival both a highly Instagram-able and also virtuous experience With their four-chambered stomachs and two sets of teeth goats are basically far superior to humans a social worker and founder of the Philly Goat Project “I wouldn’t try eating a Christmas tree at home if you’re a human,” said Krivit and is currently going without a second breakfast The goats are trained to stand on their hind legs and give kisses; sometimes they’ll lie down Founded in 2018 the nonprofit Philly Goat Project grew out of Krivit’s desire to create opportunities for Philadelphians to interact with nature in delightful ways the project offers animal-assisted therapy » READ MORE: How to recycle and dispose of your Christmas tree in Philly and the suburbs the goats will eat about two to three Christmas trees a day through May The Philly Goat Project teamed up with the Streets Department to turn any extra trees into wood chips for parks and community gardens across the city Some of the leftover tree trunks will line trails at Awbury to prevent soil erosion funds that support the project’s community outreach efforts across the city and there will be a second tree recycling festival on Jan there is a Goat Safari option for people who want to stay in their cars “When you’re making your New Years Resolution don’t do it hoof-heartedly,” reads a little sign Jackson wrote that will greet visitors at the barn on Saturday Merry Lea Sustainable Farm is now home to six new baby goats each had triplets and both families are doing well A Goat Family HistoryRuby and Diamond are five-year old twin sisters They are Nubian-Saanen crosses: Saanens are a Swiss breed known for high dairy production; Nubians contribute a higher butter fat content to the milk tan and brown patterns on her fur represent the Nubian side of her family tree; meanwhile her sister is an all-white goat like their Saanen relatives They both arrived to Merry Lea in the summer of 2017 They were donated by a generous contact through the Goshen Farmer’s market who wanted to find their herd different homes best milkers so the goats could be used for education Ruby gave birth (referred to as kidded) on Sunday May 3 to three bucks Monday May 4 and had one buck and two does The births were smooth and neither needed any assistance from the farm team which is typical for these two hardy goats an assistant professor in the Sustainability and Environmental Education Department (SEED) oversees Merry Lea’s livestock and teaches animal husbandry for ASI Ruth makes sure each of the kids get the hang of nursing before she heads home for the night She remains at the barn until the newborn kids all get a good feeding from their mother “This puts my mind at ease so I can sleep better and not worry about them But I really don’t have any reason to worry Ruby and Diamond are good moms and do a great job at taking care of their kids,” says Ruth Merry Lea provides environmental education for people of all ages to develop knowledge and skills that will contribute to a healthier world Our diverse ecosystems provide opportunities to explore landscapes and natural processes of Northeastern Indiana provoke interest in life-long investigation These experiences in the outdoor world are shaped to help inspire exploration and foster a sense of wonder (260) 799-5869 merrylea@goshen.edu Merry Lea Environmental Learning Center of Goshen College P.O. Box 263 Wolf Lake, IN 46796 Learning Center Hours: Monday – Friday | 8:30 a.m. – 4:30 p.m. Our trails are open every day sunrise to sunset! 2010 12:00 AM EDTSwitzerland may be famous for its banks but not many people know about the one that lies hidden underneath the Alps which is protected round-the-clock by armed men in black fatigues and has blast- and bullet-proof doors is strong enough to withstand terrorist attacks and natural disasters But when it was first carved out below a mountain in the Swiss town of Saanen half a century ago the vault was designed to withstand a different kind of attack — one by the German army like thousands of other old bunkers around Switzerland that had stood empty for decades it now has a second life as something else entirely Although Switzerland had been neutral for four centuries when the Nazis started invading countries to its east and west in 1939 the tiny nation decided to batten down the hatches The Swiss military dug over 20,000 bunkers in the Alps allowing its soldiers to stay hidden — along with their weapons and other supplies — and defend the country in case of an attack (See why the Swiss wouldn’t extradite Polanski.) The government maintained its tight network of militaryfortifications until the end of Cold War it started to sell or rent some of the bunkers to private companies and other civilian organizations Now these underground fortresses are used as everything from hotels banquet halls and seminar centers to museums which during the war served as an Air Force command post knew of the bunker’s existence from his own army days He figured its impregnable cement walls made it the perfect place to store digital data “To build a high-tech data bank with the highest level of security would cost about $250,000,” says Oschwald whose company also runs another digital bank in a former underground military bunker in the nearby town of Zweisimmen “So to use one that was already built made sense.” Oschwald says clients from 30 countries use the underground facility at Saanen to store their digital data “anyone from a student storing files from his computer to an international corporation that wants its data accessed from anywhere in the world.” The Swiss Fort Knox is so secure that European scientists have chosen to store the “digital genome” behind one of its 3.5-ton doors the digital genome has to be locked away securely because of its value to future generations—it’s a time capsule from which scientists will be able to recreate certain types of present-day digital file formats this one used during the war as an artillery stronghold it was converted into a hotel called La Claustra For those not suffering from claustrophobia and the boasting rights that come with staying in a hotel hewn deep into the mountain rock (See how Switzerland’s solar plane came to be.) Other demobilized bunkers — such as those in the towns of Crestwald and Vitznau — provide no-frills group accommodation and give visitors the chance to participate in special events like Swiss Army Nights where participants rough it out on military bunk beds in much the same way as the soldiers who guarded this secret fortress did in the 1940s Still other former army bunkers have been turned into museums displaying the now-obsolete weaponry and rudimentary shelter that discreetly protected thousands of troops for months at a time Some of the old bunkers can’t be rented or sold because they are still used by the military the procurement agency of the Swiss Armed Forces Sievert adds that the price for buying a bunker ranges from several hundred to $2 million “depending on its exploitability.” the country’s official tourist body that promotes some of the military fortresses as unique attractions it’s easy to see why people are still interested in the disused underground caverns “The army and the bunkers are deeply anchored in our tradition and in the history of Switzerland,” she explains And with Switzerland’s now downsized military maintaining the country’s neutral reputation symbols of the nation’s farewell to arms See TIME’s Pictures of the Week. See the Cartoons of the Week. Contact us at letters@time.com Metrics details Adenophorum in relation to the cell cycle and apoptosis of splenocytes in Saanen goats remains unclear 16 Saanen goats were randomly divided into four groups flow cytometry analysis and DNA fragmentation assays showed that E adenophorum induced typical apoptotic features in splenocytes suppressed splenocyte viability and caused cell cycle arrest in a dose-dependent manner qRT-PCR and caspase activity analyses showed that E promoted Bax translocation to the mitochondria triggered the release of Cytc from the mitochondria into the cytosol and activated caspase-9 and -3 and the subsequent cleavage of PARP FasL and caspase-8 showed no significant changes adenophorum treatment induced the collapse of ΔΨm adenophorum induces splenocyte apoptosis via the activation of the mitochondrial apoptosis pathway in splenocytes These findings provide new insights into the mechanisms underlying the effects of E adenophorum might act as an apoptotic inducer in the spleen adenophorum inhibits the growth and induces apoptosis of splenocytes we investigated the cytotoxic effects of E adenophorum on splenocytesin Saanen goats and detected apoptosis-inducing effects at both the cell andtissue levels in addition to examining effects on cell cycle progression to illuminate the potential mechanisms involved in E adenophorum-induced spleen toxicity in goats DNA histogram of the splenocyte cell cycle (A)Saanen goats were treated with different doses of E the DNA histogram of the splenocyte cell cycle was analyzed through flow cytometry with PI staining S% and G2 + M% phases of the splenocytes were analyzed using flow cytometry The flow cytometric histograms are representative of 3 separate experiments Proliferating index (PI) value = [S + (G2 + M)]/[(G0/G1) + S + (G2 + M)] × 100% The data are presented as the means ± SD of three independent experiments adenophorum administration induces apoptosis in splenocytes The splenocytes were analyzed for apoptosis through flow cytometry based on Annexin V and PI staining.The percentage of splenocyte apoptosis(%) adenophorum significantly induced apoptosis in splenocytes (B) MLKL and p-MLKL protein levels were measured to detect programmed necrotic cell death through western blot analysis (C) Detection of apoptotic splenocytes through DAPI and AO/EB staining and TUNEL assays Representative spleen sections from Saanen goats were analyzed in TUNEL assays to detect apoptotic cell death The number of TUNEL-positive cells (black indicated arrows) in the spleen was counted from five random microscopic fields Nuclear morphological changes in splenocytes were observed using a fluorescence microscope after DAPI (200×) and AO/EB staining (400×) late apoptosis(yellow arrow) and necrosis (blue arrow) adenophorum-treated splenocytes was subjected to 2% agarose gel electrophoresis followed by the visualization of bands and photography *p < 0.05 and **p < 0.01 compared with the control group adenophorum-induced apoptosis is mediated through the activation of caspase-9 and caspase-3 -8 and -9 and the cleaved forms of these proteins The expression of apoptosis-related proteins Densitometric quantification of the ratio of procaspases-3 -8 and -9 and the cleaved forms of them to β-actin adenophorum administration induced apoptosome formation Protein extracts from splenocytes were collected and used in immunoprecipitation assays against Apaf-1 The levels of caspase-9 and Cytc were detected through western blotting to indicate the formation of the apoptosome complex The Saanen goats were treated with different doses of E adenophorum for 3 months and mRNA was then extracted from splenocytes and used for qRT-PCR analysis adenophoruminduced the activation of caspases-3 and -9 The BCA assay was used to verify equalamounts of protein and the enzymatic activities of caspases-8 -9 and -3 were measured using the colorimetric assay kit.(E) The concentration of caspases-3 -8 and -9 in splenocytes was measured through ELISA Thesplenocyte apoptosis induced through E adenophorum was mediated through the mitochondrial pathway adenophorum treatment did not promote the cleavage of Bid but did increase the protein levels of Cytc and Bax and decreased the protein level of Bcl-2 The concentrations of Bax and Bcl-2 in splenocytesweremeasured through ELISA adenophorum treatment decreased the relative mRNA level of Bcl-2 but increased the level of Bax resulting in an increased ratio of Bax/Bcl-2 (C) The protein levels of Fas or FasL were measured through western blotting and the results did not reveal any changes (D)The splenocytes were subjected to western blot analysis to detect total and activated PARP adenophorum induced Bax translocation and Cytc release The proteins in the cytosolic and mitochondrial fraction were collected and subsequently detected through western blotting COX IV and β-actin were used as internal controls for the mitochondrial and cytosolic fractions adenophorum treatment induced collapse of ΔΨm The cell suspension was filtered through 300-mesh nylon and then stained with JC-1 These observations provide a rationale for exploring E adenophorum as a cause of splenic toxicity and an inducer of apoptosis in the splenocytes of Saanen goats The results of the present study demonstrated that E adenophorum significantly inhibits the growth of splenocytes through G0/G1-phase cell cycle arrest and the induction of apoptosis promoted Bax translocation into the mitochondria and activated the mitochondria-dependent apoptotic pathway resulting in Cyt c release into the cytosol followed by caspase-9 and caspase-3 activation and PARP cleavage adenophorum induced apoptosis and spleen impairment through the induction of mitochondrial dysfunction in splenocytes mitochondrial dysfunction was considered to be responsible for the apoptosis observed in splenocytes This study provides new insights into the mechanisms underlying splenocyte apoptosis through E All experimental procedures and animal care performed in the present study were approved according to the recommendations of the Guide of the Sichuan Agricultural University Animal Care and Use Committee(Sichuan Agricultural University DKY-B20100805 and all efforts were made to minimize suffering The field studies did not involve endangered or protected species The Saanen goats were housed at the experimental farm of the Animal Nutrition Institute of Sichuan Agricultural University The Saanen goats were fed 1 kg/d of the feedstuffs adenophorumleaves were collected from cropland in Xichang dried and ground at room temperature to generate dry powder Thespleens were immediately removed and minced using scissors to form a cell suspension that was filtered through a 300-mesh nylon screen The cells were washed twice with cold PBS (pH 7.2–7.4) and subsequently suspended in PBS (Cat BD) at a concentration of 1 × 106 cells/ml.A total of 500 μl of the solution was transferred to a 5 ml culture tube After the cell suspension was permeabilized with 1 ml of 0.25% Tritonx-100 for 20 min at 4 °C the cells were washed with phosphate buffered saline and 5 μl of propidium iodide (Cat The cells were then gently vortexed and incubated for 30 min at 4 °C in the dark 500 μl of PBS was added to each tube and the cell cycle phases were analyzed through flow cytometry (BD FACSCalibur The spleens were immediately collected from each of the Saanen goats The cell suspension was filtered through 300-mesh nylon and washed twice with cold PBS and the cells were subsequently suspended in 1× binding buffer (Cat 51-66121E) at a concentration of 1 × 106 cells/mL A total of 100 μL of the solution was transferred to a 5 mL culture tube and 5 μL of Annexin V-FITC (Cat The cells were gently vortexed and incubated for 15 min at RT (25 °C) in the dark 400 μL of 1× binding buffer was added to each tube and analyzed through flow cytometry (BD FACSCalibur) within 1 h it was subjected to 2% agarose gel electrophoresis for DNA fragmentation analysis The splenocyteswere harvested and washed with ice-cold PBS followed by lysis in ice-cold RIPA lysis buffer (Beyotime Inst The protein concentrations were calculated using BCA assay kits (Pierce) A total of 20 μg of the total cellular protein was subjected to 12% SDS-PAGE and transferred to a PVDF membrane (Millipore The membrane was blocked with 5% defatted milk powder at room temperature for 1 h followed by immunoblotting with primary antibodies at 4 °C overnight and then incubation with HRP-conjugated secondary antibodies at room temperature for 1 h the membranes were washed five times with PBS-T for 3 min the blots were developed using the enhanced chemiluminescence (ECL) system (Pierce) Four Saanen goats from each group were euthanized after a formal trial of 3 months Spleen samples: After harvesting the spleens rapidly frozen with liquid nitrogen and maintained at 2–8 °C after melting The samples were then homogenized using grinders and centrifuged for 20 min at 2500 rpm and the supernatant was removed 8 and 9 in the spleen were assayed using a double-antibody sandwich enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) (R&D Systems was analyzed using the JC-1 Mitochondrial Potential Detection Kit (Biotium Inc. The cell suspension was filtered through 300-mesh nylon washed twice with cold PBS and stained with 5,5′,6,6′-tetrachloro-1,1′,3,3′ tetraethylbenzimidazolcarbocyanine iodide (JC-1; Molecular Probes) in PBS for 15 min at room temperature in the dark Caspase activity was measured using colorimetric assay kits (BioVision according to the manufacturer’s instructions the splenocytes were harvested and incubated in ice-cold cell lysis buffer for 30 min on ice The supernatants were collected and the protein concentrations were determined using the BCA Protein Assay Reagent (Pierce Equivalent amounts of proteins for each sample were incubated with the appropriate caspase substrate protease activity was determined at 405 nm using a microplate spectrophotometer (Bio-Tek Instruments The spleen tissues were fixed in 4% paraformaldehyde embedded in paraffin and cut into 6 μm sections A TUNEL assay was then conducted to examine DNA fragmentation using an in situ cell death detection kit (Vazyme USA) according to the manufacturer’s instructions the nuclei were counterstained with DAPI and the sections were observed at ×1000 magnification under a Nikon microscope (Nikon Inc. The spleens were harvested and minced using scissors to form a cell suspension that was filtered through a 300-mesh nylon screen the splenocytes were fixed with 80% ethanol at room temperature for 30 min The fixative was then removed and the splenocytes were washed 3 times with PBS and subsequently incubated with DAPI (1 μg/ml) for 45 min at room temperature in the dark unfixed cells were loaded using 100 μl of freshly prepared AO/EB staining solution (100 μg/ml) and immediately observed under a Nikon fluorescence microscope (Nikon Inc. All data are expressed as the means ± SD of three independent experiments Statistical analyses were performed to compare the experimental groups with the control group through one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) followed by the Tukey-Kramer multiple comparison test with an equal sample size All statistical analyses were performed using a commercially available statistical software package (SPSS15.0 adenophorum induces Cell Cycle Arrest and Apoptosis of Splenocytes through the Mitochondrial Pathway and Caspase Activation in Saanen Goats Progress and prospects in research of an exotic invasive species Isolation of a compound from Eupatorium adenophorum (Spreng.)[Ageratina adenophora (Spreng.)] causing hepatotoxicity in mice Clinical efficacy of botanical extracts from Eupatorium adenophorum against the Sarcoptes scabiei (Sarcoptidae: Sarcoptes) in Rabbits The acaricidal efficacy of aqueous neem extract and ivermectin against Sarcoptes scabiei var cuniculi in experimentally infested rabbits 11-dehydroageraphorone extracted from Eupatorium adenophorum in vitro Antioxidant potential of essential oil and cadinene sesquiterpenes of Eupatorium adenophorum Toxicological & Environmental Chemistry 95 The Antitumor Activity in Vitro by 9-oxo-10 11-dehydroageraphorone Extracted from Eupatorium adenophorum Anti-inflammatory potential of ethanolic leaf extract of Eupatorium adenophorum Spreng Evidence-Based Complementary and Alternative Medicine Proceedings of the Third International Symposium Short-term toxicity studies of Eupatorium adenophorum in Swiss albino mice Hepatotoxicity of Eupatorium adenophorum to rats Hepatotoxicity in rat induced by partially purified toxins from Eupatorium adenophorum (Ageratina adenophora) Hepatotoxicity and cholestasis in rats induced by the sesquiterpene Journal of biochemical and molecular toxicology 15 Splenectomy and sepsis: the role of the spleen in the immune-mediated bacterial clearance Toxicity Assessment of Cadinene Sesquiterpenes from Eupatorium adenophorum in Mice Anti-Inflammatory Potential of Ethanolic Leaf Extract of Eupatorium adenophorum Spreng Evidence-Based Complementary and Alternative Medicine 2011 Targeting apoptosis pathways in cancer therapy Apoptotic cell removal in development and tissue homeostasis Distinct caspase cascades are initiated in receptor-mediated and chemical-induced apoptosis p53 induces apoptosis by caspase activation through mitochondrial cytochrome c release Bcl-2 and adenovirus E1B 19 kDA protein prevent E1A-induced processing of CPP32 and cleavage of poly (ADP-ribose) polymerase Induction of apoptotic program in cell-free extracts: requirement for dATP and cytochrome c Prevention of apoptosis by Bcl-2: release of cytochrome c from mitochondria blocked Bcl-2 heterodimerizes in vivo with a conserved homolog Annexin-V and TUNEL use in monitoring the progression of apoptosis in plants Control of mitochondrial permeability by Bcl-2 family members Biochimica et Biophysica Acta (BBA)-Molecular Cell Research 1644 Corosolic acid induces apoptosis through mitochondrial pathway and caspases activation in human cervix adenocarcinoma HeLa cells Echinocystic acid induces apoptosis in HL-60 cells through mitochondria-mediated death pathway Possible use of Spreng (Eupatorium adenophorum) in animal feeding Early redistribution of plasma membrane phosphatidylserine is a general feature of apoptosis regardless of the initiating stimulus: inhibition by overexpression of Bcl-2 and Abl The BCL-2 protein family: opposing activities that mediate cell death Bax-induced caspase activation and apoptosis via cytochromec release from mitochondria is inhibitable by Bcl-xL induces Bax nuclear translocation and apoptosis in human hormone-resistant prostate cancer PC-3 cells Different patterns of apoptosis of HL-60 cells induced by cycloheximide and camptothecin Evaluation of feeding value of Eupatorium adenophorum in combination with mulberry leaves Expression patterns of chicken Toll-like receptor mRNA in tissues Veterinary immunology and immunopathology 104 Analysis of Relative Gene Expression Data Using Real-Time Quantitative PCR and the 2− ΔΔCT Method Swainsonine Activates Mitochondria-mediated Apoptotic Pathway in Human Lung Cancer A549 Cells and Retards the Growth of Lung Cancer Xenografts International journal of biological sciences 8 Download references This research was financially supported by grants from the Science and Technology Support Program of Sichuan Province(Grant No the Special Fund for Agroscientific Research in the Public Interest(Grant No 201203062) and the Chang-jiang Scholars and Innovative Research Team for Universities(Grant No Key Laboratory of Animal Disease and Human Health of Sichuan Province Key Laboratory of Resource Biology and Biotechnology in Western China performed the synthesis experiments and characterization analyses contributed to the analysis of the experimental data The authors declare no competing financial interests Download citation Review the PTI Terminal Automation & Training C-Level Networking Conference and purchase your delegate ticket Saanen gained worldwide recognition after his design and realisation work on APMT’s MVII terminal and was subsequently nominated for the Dutch engineer of the year award He is currently in charge of business development and all commercial activities within the company and holds an MSc in Systems Engineering and a PhD on the design and simulation of robotised container terminals Saanen told PTI: “Terminal automation is something that should concern any terminal in the world more reliable and more environmentally friendly handling services for ports and terminals As well as being a well-known and respected industry figure, Dr Saanen is one of PTI’s most prolific and popular contributors and will be speaking about the TBA-supported Port Technology training portal His appearance at the last year’s conference saw him present the world-exclusive launch of the portal which is now being adopted by ports across the globe Read his latest technical paper, an update from the PTI Hardback Edition 72, 'Entering the Maritime Sector: Logistics 4.0' Saanen said of the event: “This event clearly stands out from the large amount of port related events by the quality of the speakers and attendees and the dynamic structure of the program “The issue I'm looking forward to discussing most is the on-going challenges of standardisation in terminal automation the increasingly complex integration puzzle between all system components and the task to bring training to the level in our industry that it deserves “I'm excited to share my experiences with automation TBA is a partner and sponsor of the conference and has supported the event in being truly interactive Audience members will be able to put their questions to our panel digitally Saanen is a professor at the Rotterdam School of Management teaching Maritime Economics and Logistics and lectures about terminal design by means of simulation His work is published regularly in scientific magazines and business magazines Saanen concluded: “As much as automation seems the area of robots and computers more intelligence is required from humans in designing implementing and using the automated systems.” View speakers announced by PTI so far. Watch Saanen discuss the next big topic of brownfield sites in his latest video with PTI below: DP World is set to implement OneStop Modal and the OneStop Vehicle Booking System (VBS) DP World, in partnership with Asian Terminals Inc. (ATI), has announced the completion of major The US House of Representatives has voted to overturn the Environmental Protection Agency‘s (EPA) 2023 In March 2025, global schedule reliability surged to 57.5 per cent, the highest level recorded Container throughput at the Port of Melbourne totalled 267,000 TEUs in March 2025, reflecting a Cover image: ©Associated Press The death toll has risen to at least 70, with more Volume 8 - 2021 | https://doi.org/10.3389/fnut.2021.680683 This article is part of the Research TopicThe Future Food AnalysisView all 29 articles Large variations in the bioactivities and composition of milk fat globule membrane (MFGM) proteins were observed between Saanen dairy goat and Holstein bovine at various lactation periods and 248 MFGM proteins were characterized in colostrum and mature milk for the two species by Q-Orbitrap HRMS-based proteomics techniques KEGG pathway analyses displayed that differentially expressed proteins in colostrum involved in galactose metabolism and an adipogenesis pathway and the differentially expressed proteins in mature milk associated with lipid metabolism and a PPAR signaling pathway These results indicated that the types and functions of MFGM proteins in goat and bovine milk were different and goat milk had a better function of fatty acid metabolism and glucose homeostasis which can enhance our understanding of MFGM proteins in these two species across different lactation periods and they provide significant information for the study of lipid metabolism and glycometabolism of goat milk the MFGM proteome is also affected by species Despite the poorly worldwide production of goat milk compared with the bovine there has been more and more interest in the in-depth characterization of its protein composition This analysis was focused on MFGM proteins from two mammals (bovine and goat) and different lactation periods (colostrum and mature milk) to characterize the composition in conjunction with biological activity and molecular function of MFGM proteins differences related to lactation The purpose was to reveal the differences of nutritional value and physiological states of these two species across different lactation periods to provide potential directions for infant formula and functional food development as well as expand our current knowledge of MFGM proteome The sample collection and preparation were shown in Supplementary Figure 1. The samples were collected, followed by the method reported by Sun et al. (16) The samples were collected at the Holstein bovine and Saanen dairy goat farm in Xi'an Ten bovine colostrum (0–5 days postpartum) 10 mature-milk (1–6 months postpartum) 10 goat colostrum (0–5 days postpartum) and 10 mature-milk (1–6 months postpartum) samples were obtained from 20 healthy bovines and 20 healthy goats in the first lactation All of the 40 animals were aged between 1 and 4 years old and the animals of each species were under identical environmental conditions Each sample of bovine and goat milk was collected twice a day and then mixed to dispel the effect of the sampling time of milk samples These samples were transported to the laboratory on ice and stored at −80°C Ten milk samples of each group were mixed to refrain from the influence of individual differences on MFGM protein in various lactation stages before the analysis All handling practices involving animals carefully followed all the recommendations of the Directive 2010/63/EU of the European Parliament for the protection of animals for scientific purposes The extraction of MFGM proteins was conducted as described by Lu et al. (17) with minor modifications 50-ml milk samples were centrifuged at 12,000 × g for 40 min at 4°C The supernatant (top layer) was transferred to another centrifuge tube and washed three times at 25°C for 10 min with 0.1 mol L−1 PBS (pH 6.8) and centrifuged at 10,000 × g for 15 min at 4°C subsequently to remove residual whey proteins and caseins using ultrapure water to dislodge the residual salt ions sonicated for 1 min and centrifuged at 10,000 × g at 4°C for 40 min to separate the fat fraction The MFGM proteins were collected in the aqueous phase (bottom layer) and their concentration was measured by BCA assay (Thermo Scientific Pierce BCA protein assay kit The MFGM protein was reduced, alkylated, and digested, and followed the method reported by Lu et al. (18) three independent biological replicates were made 10-μL MFGM protein was dissolved in 100-μL 100-mmol L−1 dithiothreitol was added and incubated at 56°C for 30 min the MFGM protein was alkylated with 15 μL of 55-mmol L−1 iodoacetamide in dark for 30 min at room temperature and then adding sequencing grade-modified trypsin to digest the MFGM protein at a ratio of 1:100 enzyme/protein for 16–18 h at 37°C and terminated the reaction by adding 1% formic acid the peptides mixture was desalting by Oasis HLB cartridges (Waters Cooperation dried by a vacuum centrifuge and then resuspended in 40 μL of 0.1% (v/v) formic acid Peptide separation was performed by EASY-nLC 1000 system (Thermo Scientific equipped with a C18-reverse phase column (75-μm inner diameter 3-μm resin; Thermo Scientific) at 200 nL/min and 35°C for a total run time of 100 min Solution A (0.1% formic acid in water) and solution B (0.1% formic acid in 80% ACN) were used as eluents for the peptide separation according to the following elution gradients: 5–35% solution B for 50 min; 35–100% solution B for 25 min followed by 15-min washing with 100% solution B re-equilibration during 9.9 min with 5% solution B The peptide eluted from the column was ionized by a Q-Exactive (Thermo Fisher Scientific The m/z scan range of single MS scans of peptide precursors was m/z 300–1,700 at a resolution of 70,000 (at m/z 200) The top 20 most intense precursor ions with charge ≥2 determined by MS scan were used to obtain MS/MS data at a resolution of 17,500 by using a higher normalized collision energy of 27 eV The AGC was 1 e5 and the maximum injection time was 50 ms In order to avoid superfluous fragmentation the dynamic exclusion time was set to 30 s The raw LC-MS/MS files with three replicates were obtained for MFGM proteins of each milk group Two proteins identified from three biological replicates of each milk group were used for subsequent analysis The data analysis was carried out using the MaxQuant software (Max Planck Institute of Biochemistry with Andromeda as a peptide search engine (Matrix Science and searched against the database of Caprinae (67,040 entries 02/08/2019) and Bos taurus (64,796 entries 02/08/2019) organism group with reverse sequences generated by MaxQuant Search parameters were a first search peptide mass tolerance of 20 ppm and main search peptide mass tolerance of 4.5 ppm Methionine oxidation and protein N-terminal acetylation were defined as variable modification and carbamidomethyl of cysteine defined as a fixed modification for both identification and quantification A trypsin/P was adjusted as a proteolytic enzyme with a maximum of two missed cleavages A maximum of 0.01 false discovery rates (FDRs) and at least two unique peptides for each protein were demanded for reliable identification and quantification Label-free quantification (LFQ) was enabled in MaxQuant with the DEMPs displayed by proteomic data used as input Statistical differences were proclaimed significantly if p ≤ 0.05 In this study, 331 MFGM proteins in goat colostrum (GC), 250 in goat mature milk (GM), 182 in bovine colostrum (BC), and 248 in bovine mature milk (BM) were identified and quantified using LC-Q-Orbitrap mass spectrometer (Supplementary Table 1). These proteins spanned more than six orders of magnitude. As shown in Figure 1 and 78 uniquely expressed MFGM proteins identified in goat colostrum The uniquely expressed proteins in goat colostrum included calreticulin and methanethiol oxidase in goat mature milk included FA complementation group I phosphatidylethanol-amine binding protein 4 sodium-dependent phosphate transport protein 2B indicating that goat milk was a substitute for bovine milk to some extent in the research and development of infant milk powder and functional food and also providing an orientation for the further functional development of goat milk Venn diagram analysis of the identified MFGM protein components from bovine colostrum The other identified immunoglobulin proteins included IGL@ protein (IGL@) which indicate the robustness of the methodology Before chemometric analysis of MFGM protein preprocessing of LC-MS/MS data was implemented The correct normalization of each milk group can eliminate the systematically differences between features the total peptide ion signals necessary to perform LC-MS/MS were distributed over several adjacent runs it was necessary to know the normalization coefficient (N) of each fraction to sum the peptide ion signal Based on the least overall proteome variation the quantities of proteins can be determined via a global optimization procedure after the intensities were normalized to a normalization factor as free variables the total intensity of a peptide ion P was defined as where the index k covered all isotope patterns of peptide ion P in sample A A triangular matrix containing all paired protein ratios between any two samples was constructed This matrix corresponds to the overdetermined system of equations for the protein abundance distributions in the sample A subsequent least-squares analysis was performed to reconstruct the abundance profile based on the sum of squared differences in the matrix via the optimal satisfaction of individual protein ratios Then the whole profile was rescaled to the cumulative intensity of the samples, thereby retaining the total summed intensity of the protein over all samples, which was the “LFQ intensity” (22) illustrating that the PCA model was stable and predictable PCA and PLS-DA analysis of MFGM proteins in bovine and goat milk (A) Principal components analysis (PCA) scores based on intensities of proteins (B) Partial least squares discrimination analysis (PLS-DA) scores based on intensities of proteins The Y-intercept of R2 and Q2 was 0.165 and −0.711 which ensured that the PLS-DA model was not overfitting Three hundred and thirty-one MFGM proteins were identified in goat colostrum and 182 in bovine colostrum. T-test and fold change analysis were used to analyze the difference of the MFGM proteins in colostrum of goat and bovine, and the MFGM protein with p < 0.05 and at least two-fold was considered as the cutoff criteria of differential expression. As shown in Table 1 among 74 common proteins in colostrum of goat and bovine We found out that there were 22 upregulated and 27 downregulated MFGM proteins in goat colostrum The levels of sodium/nucleoside cotransporter and fatty acid synthase were higher in goat colostrum and vitamin D-binding protein were higher in bovine colostrum DEMPs in colostrum of goat and bovine (p < 0.05 DEMPs in mature milk of goat and bovine (p < 0.05 Lactose synthase activity and structural molecule activity were also significantly represented Gene ontology (GO) of DEMPs in colostrum of goat and bovine (A) Others were involved in very-low-density lipoprotein particle remodeling The MFGM proteins were highly enriched in extracellular exosome which was similar to the DEMPs in colostrum of goat and bovine Other enriched origin categories were Golgi lumen The prominent molecular functions were structural molecule activity A KEGG pathway was employed to analyze the main pathways of MFGM protein differentially expressed in colostrum of goat and bovine. As shown in Figure 5A, the DEMPs mainly involved in the pathways of the phagosome, a PPAR signaling pathway, proteoglycans in cancer, ECM-receptor interaction, and galactose metabolism. As shown in Figure 5B the DEMPs in mature milk mainly involved in the pathways of viral myocarditis The KEGG pathways of DEMPs colostrum and mature milk of goat and bovine (A) PPI analysis of DEMPs in the colostrum and mature milk of goat and bovine was implemented to obtain a color-coded network, revealing the correlation between DEMPs (Supplementary Figure 2) The final network of colostrum consists of 49 nodes (proteins) and 99 edges (interactions) and the PPI enrichment p-value was lower than 1.0 e−16 indicating that the 49 DEMPs were biologically connected Most highly interacting protein nodes in colostrum were divided into five communities the final network of mature milk consists of 63 nodes (proteins) and 148 edges (interactions) local clustering coefficient and p-value were 0.575 and lower than 1.0 e−16 indicating that the 63 DEMPs were biologically connected these highly interacting protein nodes were divided into three communities in light of the bioinformatics analysis of proteomics the MFGM proteins in colostrum might be led to the intervention of related health issues while the bioactivities of MFGM proteins between goat and bovine might be different the data from our study not only provide a comprehensive understanding of the MFGM protein compositions among the four milk samples but also reveal the differences of MFGM proteins among different species of mammals The results exhibited a scientific basis for the development of functional products The existence of antimicrobial proteins in the colostrum of goat and bovine milk explained that the protection from milk was necessary for newborn mammals and varies across species LPL and APOE as the critical enzymes that participate in the triglyceride catabolic process were higher in mature milk of goat than that in bovine goat milk which confirmed that the regulating lipid metabolism in MFGM proteins of the goat was superior to that of bovine MFGM proteins and CD36 play key roles in the PPAR signaling pathway and the abundance of these proteins in goat milk is higher than that in bovine milk which indicated that goat milk has better function of fatty acid metabolism and glucose homeostasis Due to the different functions of MFGM protein the MFGM protein expressed in different lactation periods of bovine and goat provided significant information for functional food and infant formula According to the nutritional needs of different lactating infants functional proteins can be added to the corresponding formula which is conducive to the health of infants Regulation of fatty acid biosynthetic could inhibit hepatic steatosis and lipid accumulation Our study described a more specific strategy to provide insights into proteome differences between GC Bioinformatics analysis displayed that these DEMPs in colostrum significantly regulated glycometabolism through the pathway of galactose metabolism and the DEMPs in mature milk regulated lipid metabolism through the pathway of fatty acid biosynthesis These trials and results could reveal the differences of nutritional value and physiological states between bovine and goat at various lactation periods and provide direction for the application of goat milk in infant formula food and functional food Further study on the exact role of these significant difference proteins and the specific mechanism of activating the regulation pathway of galactose and lipid is necessary and could potentially help to determine the new biomarkers or establish the optimized formula of goat milk-based functional food The original contributions generated for the study are publicly available. This data can be found here: https://zenodo.org/record/4638812#.YHbYPOhKiUm RZ: data curation and writing- original draft preparation All authors contributed to the article and approved the submitted version This research was financially supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (No Scientific Research Program Funded by Shaanxi Province Education Department Key Research and Development Program of Shaanxi (No and Science and Technology Project of Weiyang District The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest The Supplementary Material for this article can be found online at: https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fnut.2021.680683/full#supplementary-material Comprehensive characterization of neutral and polar lipids of buttermilk from different sources and its milk fat globule membrane isolates The interfacial properties of various milk 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This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY) distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted provided the original author(s) and the copyright owner(s) are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited in accordance with accepted academic practice distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms *Correspondence: Wei Jia, amlhd2VpQHN1c3QuZWR1LmNu; Lin Shi, NDUwOUBzdXN0LmVkdS5jbg== Disclaimer: All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations Any product that may be evaluated in this article or claim that may be made by its manufacturer is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher 94% of researchers rate our articles as excellent or goodLearn more about the work of our research integrity team to safeguard the quality of each article we publish Handmade sweaters were helping baby goats Denali Nicodemus and Navajo stay warm Saturday in April's chilly weather The three male kids are the first to be born this spring at the Carl Sandburg Home barn This year goats are being named for national parks education coordinator for the National Historic Site in Flat Rock “We wanted to get some national park names in (for the anniversary),” Cox said Denali was born Wednesday night to Saanen doe Darcy; twins Nicodemus and Navajo were born Thursday morning to the Nubian doe Nala The three kids played in the sunshine Saturday while park guests and volunteers watched them frolic occasionally jumping in place for no apparent reason while the twin Nubians were content to bumble around one of only a few born at the Sandburg barn in the past 30 years Saanens' coats are typically totally white; Denali has the gray markings of what is now recognized as a separate breed “The Sable Saanen is caused by a recessive gene — it's pretty rare to see them,” Donovan said “The breed is still considered acceptable by the American Dairy Goat Association.” Goats at the National Historic Site barn represent the three breeds Lilian Sandburg raised while she had a dairy operation at Connemara: Saanen are based on a goat sweater pattern modified to be sleeveless by Russell who leads a group of hand knitters creating sweaters for the Sandburg baby goats who gave birth to quadruplets a couple of years ago the baby goats are confined to the birthing stall “We'll bring them out after a couple of days,” she said Carl Sandburg Home NHS is located at 1800 Little River Road in Flat Rock Reach De Bona at beth.debona@blueridgenow.com or 828-694-7890 Staff Reporter at Port Technology International – PTI sat down for an interview with Yvo Saanen The conversation centred around global logistics and technological developments at terminals Saanen discussed the complex relationship between technological initiatives and terminals while emphasizing the long-term demand and solution for marine sustainability YS: Portwise, which was previously part of TBA group founded 27 years ago, started as a consultancy company. TBA has grown to a much larger company doing software next to the consulting part. Since 2022, the whole software part has been sold to Konecranes and Portwise has been carved out of the TBA group starting as a new venture We are a company of 25 people working globally We have worked for more than 250 terminals worldwide doing all kinds of design process improvement and now these days a lot of focus is on electrification making the energy transition for terminals and assisting with our capabilities I’ve been managing this from day one so I’m one of the founders of TBA and one of the founders of Portwise and currently one of the two Directors of Portwise I oversee mostly the commercial side of the business but I’ve also been involved in many design projects across the world which have been realised based on our design capability One of the points where we add something special to the mix is our capability to simulate existing running terminals as well as future designs Portwise serves 9 out of 10 of the biggest terminal operators in the world on an almost ongoing basis I think we have one of the most reliable and most validated sets of models in this industry READ: Port of Rotterdam constructs new site at APMT Maasvlakte II YS: Clearly one of the areas where a lot of terminal operators are concerned is achieving energy saving at their facilities with the implementation of reduction of emissions and GHGs in the terminal environment and in the supply chain where the focus first is on green energy I still think it’s very important to focus on using less energy Sustainability is a trend that is getting stronger and stronger The second trend is the implementation of more automation technology but also in the search of doing that in an easier and better way using proven technology and implementing automation in a gradual way instead of a big bang type of approach The third trend is the focus beyond the terminal A lot of terminal operators are acquiring assets outside their regular scope Think of developing port-centric logistic concepts and freight forwarders to get a larger footprint around their main assets and to grab more control over the supply chain I think well-designed automated terminals show that they work at higher berth occupancy and higher levels of equipment deployment because of the lack of the need for drivers and hence also more operating hours per year Some lesser-well-designed container automated container facilities deliver low performance As they are less flexible than conventional sites it’s also more difficult to get the performance to a higher level don’t take the right things into consideration you may end up with a facility that is not able to perform and I think when I look at the automated terminals that we have helped and would typically outperform their conventional peers READ: FERNRIDE reports low to moderate levels of automation among global terminal professionals YS: I would say it’s a complicated relationship Terminals are full of technology and full of equipment When I look at the purchase of key cranes or yard cranes It’s very exciting to buy that kind of equipment a lot more doubt and a lot less capability to implement it there’s a love/hate relationship with those kinds of technologies I see a lot of technology that is searching for a problem Rather than problem searching for a solution in technology I see technology being pushed to find a problem to solve which means there’s not always value in that I think starting with looking for value and then finding the right solution is the path to take Just deploying technology in operations is not the full story You really need to look at how to keep it up-to-date very soon technology is out of date or not useful anymore I remember once a project that we did with a very large terminal they had all kinds of GPS and position detection logic on their equipment They asked us to visualise that in one overview and when we put the first visualisation live half of the equipment was shown in the water because it was never calibrated They had to go back to the vendors to get it calibrated they implement something once and then it’s left alone Technology requires constant attention to really remain in focus READ: Port of Rotterdam the new base for quantum technology project YS: I think that with this urge to make terminals more sustainable there are clear objectives defined by port and terminal operators themselves, which are not easy to reach, especially the 2040 and 2050 targets to really get to net-zero terminal operations is not an easy task there’s a lot of technology coming onto the market Think of battery trucks and all kinds of battery vehicles combined with different charging technologies along with the potential limitation of available electricity A lot of ports suffer from a lack of electricity to the facilities to come up with good investments we can provide enormous value to solid investments beyond our regular practice of terminal design and terminal automation That is really one of the areas where we want to expand and provide our knowledge to the market where I see the future going is continuing the operational efficiency path the integration of terminal operations in the supply chain The role of a terminal operator is closely connected to the shipping line but very poorly connected to the hinterland supply chain because there’s no contractual relationship This means truckers show up unannounced at the terminal to pick up or drop off a container Terminals are sitting on a huge pile of data and not translated into day-to-day continuous improvement There’s a lot of potential that is not disclosed by proper tools but also by proper integration into daily decision making there is the need to further densify terminals Volumes keep rising globally and that will continue There are many places where there’s a lack of space and we can only do that by implementing more dense solutions Think of high bay warehouses for containers, like the BOXBAY solution, but there are various solutions in the marketplace that can be applied, and it can also be higher RTG stacking or other types of automated container stacking technologies to better use the footprint of existing terminals. Yvo Saanen is one of the founders of Portwise. He is currently the Managing Director of the company, responsible for all port terminal-related initiatives worldwide, including the development and optimisation of container terminals using simulation and emulation. In this role, Saanen has worked on a variety of initiatives, including long-term development, process improvement, terminal extensions, and handling system overhaul, as well as greenfield terminal design. Volume 13 - 2022 | https://doi.org/10.3389/fgene.2022.862838 This article is part of the Research TopicLactation Genomics and Phenomics in Farm Animals: Where are we at?View all 10 articles Genomic prediction of breeding values is routinely performed in several livestock breeding programs around the world but the size of the training populations and the genetic structure of populations evaluated have limited the increase in the accuracy of genomic estimated breeding values and genomic data from genetically related populations can be a feasible strategy to overcome this limitation the success of across-population genetic evaluations depends on the pedigree connectedness and genetic relationship among individuals from different populations this study aimed to evaluate the genetic connectedness and population structure of Alpine and Saanen dairy goats from four countries involved in the European project SMARTER (SMAll RuminanTs Breeding for Efficiency and Resilience) These analyses are paramount for assessing the potential feasibility of an across-country genomic evaluation in dairy goats 9,855 genotyped individuals (with 51% French genotyped animals) and 6,435,189 animals included in the pedigree files were available across all four populations The pedigree analyses indicated that the exchange of breeding animals was mainly unilateral with flows from France to the other three countries Italy has also imported breeding animals from Switzerland and consistency of the gametic phase revealed that French and Italian populations are more genetically related than the other dairy goat population pairs Canadian dairy goats showed the largest within-breed heterogeneity and genetic differences with the European populations The genetic diversity and population connectedness between the studied populations indicated that an international genomic evaluation may be more feasible Further studies will investigate the accuracy of genomic breeding values when combining the datasets from these four populations Combining data from different countries could contribute to improving the accuracy of genomic predictions by increasing the size of the training populations for economically important traits across-country genomic predictions could be even more beneficial to countries that do not currently carry out genomic evaluations there is a need to assess the genetic connectedness and population structure of dairy goats from France and Switzerland to evaluate the feasibility of an across-country genomic evaluation the main objectives of this study were 1) to investigate the historical exchanges of genetic material between these four countries based on pedigree recording (genetic connectedness) and 2) to evaluate the genomic relatedness of these four populations based on genome-wide levels of LD consistency of the gametic phase across population pairs This study was carried out in the framework of the “practical selection tools to benefit from international harmonisation and cooperation” work package of the SMARTER project (www.smarterproject.eu/) and Switzerland) have shared 9,941 raw genotypes and pedigree information from Alpine and Saanen dairy goat populations The animal identification (ID) was standardized in each country partner and was formed based on four components: three letters indicating the breed of the animal (ALP for Alpine and SAA for Saanen) + three letters indicating the country of origin (CAN respectively) + one letter indicating the sex of the animal (F for female and M for male) + 16 characters with the animal identifier (including the animal birth country code in two letters and the remaining characters after adding the animal ID completed on the left side by as many 0 as needed) the final identification of an Alpine female with local ID 5248383 and raised in Switzerland would be ALPCHEF0000000FR5248383 Imported animals may have multiple identifiers (one from the country of origin and another one in the importing country) up to three aliases could be provided by the partners in addition to the ID of the animal This identification is important to enable tracing the origin of the curated data but also useful for finding the connections between the different pedigrees Various quality control filters were implemented in these datasets. First, the format of each animal’s identification included in the pedigree files was verified for consistency, including checking that all the animals present as sires or dams were also registered as individuals in the pedigree. After removing or correcting these inconsistencies, 6,435,189 animals remained in the pedigree files (Table 1) Number of animals after the quality control included in the pedigree and genotype files shared by each country (Canada Figure 1 shows a density plot of the birth years of Alpine- and Saanen-genotyped animals in each country An important point to highlight is that the genotyping activities did not start at the same time across partners The oldest genotyped animals were born in 1997 Number of genotyped animals according to the birth year for Alpine (A) and Saanen (B) breeds in each country (France The legend represents the breed (ALP for Alpine and SAA for Saanen) and country (CAN for Canada The pedigree connection evaluations were conducted by pairs of countries comparing a source pedigree and a target pedigree The goal was to extract animals from the source country in the target pedigree and seek to find them in the source pedigree (for example French animals from the Swiss pedigree were found in the French pedigree) 12 comparisons were made to find all the connections These analyses were performed using Python scripts prepared by the authors The verification of the proposed animal matches based on this approach was carried out manually This approach enabled the identification of animals with typos at the time of registration The LD between markers was measured for each pair of SNPs within a chromosome The distance between two SNPs ranging from 0 to 1 Mb was categorized into 50 classes of 20 kb The average LD was obtained by calculating the average r2 for each class each class was named based on the median distance in each interval The LD decay plots were also created for each breed within the country In addition to linkage disequilibrium and consistency of the gametic phase, we investigated inbreeding of genotyped animals. Pedigree-based inbreeding was estimated by inbupgf90 software (Misztal et al., 2002). Genomic inbreeding was estimated in two steps by PLINK 1.9 software (Purcell et al., 2007) The first step was to prune SNPs with the options –indep; then inbreeding was estimated on the prune dataset with the options –het and –ibc We tested k values ranging from 2 to 8 as it would be a more representative value of the expected number of subpopulations in our dataset Only results with a k value equal to 4 will be presented because it yielded the lowest cross-validation error Italy was the only country that imported animals from both France (9,037 animals) and Switzerland (1,095 animals) 1,863 French animals were not found in the French pedigree (859 Alpine and 1,004 Saanen) This number corresponds to 309 for French animals in Switzerland and 495 for Swiss animals in Italy Pedigree connectedness for Alpine and Saanen populations between pairs of four countries The native country is provided in each animal’s name; it is possible to check if a foreign animal in a pedigree is found in its native pedigree (found in local pedigree) or not (missing in local pedigree) Since the majority of animal exchanges occurred between France and the other three countries, we have identified Canadian, Italian, and Swiss animals with French parents to estimate the importance of their descendants in the host country. Table 3 presents the number of Canadian which represented 7.2% of the Italian pedigree This proportion was lower for the Swiss (1.54%) and Canadian (0.58%) populations we observed lower numbers: 3,932 (1.6%) Italian animals and Swiss (CHE) animals with a French (FRA) sire for the Alpine (ALP) and Saanen (SAA) breeds according to the sex of the animals (M for male and F for female) The proportion of animals relative to the native pedigree is given in parentheses Table 4 describes the number of animals that are both genotyped and present in at least two countries There is some overlapping when counting animals across countries because French animals The animal count ranged between 53 and 449 for Alpine breed and between 15 and 258 for Saanen breed The number of genotyped animals used in several countries remains limited (less than 1% whatever the country) when compared to the native pedigree Count of genotyped animals recorded in several countries for each national pedigree independently of the origin of the animals The proportion of these animals compared to their native pedigree is represented in the columns %native_pedigree Table 5 describes the average pedigree-based and genomic inbreeding observed for genotyped animals the averaged pedigree inbreeding is close for Switzerland (0.019) and Italy (0.021) and lower in Canada (0.015) We observed different trends in Saanen with high inbreeding in Canada (0.048) and then in Italy (0.036) The averaged genomic inbreeding is higher than pedigree inbreeding whatever the country for both breeds with differences (genomic – pedigree) from 0.023 (Alpine in Switzerland) to 0.101 (Alpine in Canada) Average and standard error of pedigree-based and genomic inbreeding within each country and breed for genotyped animals The average LD calculated in Alpine (A) and Saanen (B), for each country separately and for multiple countries (ALP or SAA) or multiple breeds (All breeds) as a function of the SNP distance, is presented in Figure 2 the average LD was higher in Canadian than in the other goat populations The average LD at 50 kb was 0.17 for Alpine and 0.19 for Saanen The differences of LD values between Canada and the other countries were higher for the Saanen breed the average LD at 50 kb ranged between 0.16 (Italy) and 0.17 (France and Canada) The average LD was quite close between Canada and France regardless of the distance between SNPs and the r2 values stabilized around 0.10–1 Mb The average LD for the Swiss and Italian populations was also very similar and stabilized around 0.07–1 Mb Average linkage disequilibrium (LD) in (A) Alpine (ALP) and (B) Saanen (SAA) breeds according to the distance between SNPs for each country evaluated: Canada (CAN) and Italy (ITA) and Saanen from the four countries together (All SAA) Alpine from the four countries together (All ALP) and both Saanen and Alpine goats from the four countries (All animals) the range of LD values at 50 kb was wider than in the Alpine breed with an average LD at 50 kb between 0.15 (Italy) and 0.19 (Canada) Canadian populations had a higher LD than in the other countries LD values for Canadian and Swiss populations were close (0.18 and 0.19 at 50 kb respectively) before differentiating for distances greater than 90 kb The maximum difference was observed at 810 kb with an average LD of 0.09 in Swiss and 0.12 in Canadian goats The consistency of the gametic phase according to nine classes of distances between SNPs is shown in Figure 3. Figures 3A,B present the consistency of the gametic phase between pairs of countries within the Alpine (A) and Saanen (B) breeds. Figure 3C presents the consistency of the gametic phase between the Alpine and Saanen breeds within each country. Within the Alpine breed (Figure 3A) the consistency of the gametic phase values was the highest between France and Italy and ranged from 1 (distance of (0 The lowest values were obtained when comparing Canadian and European populations (ALPCAN_ALPITA the consistency was on average 0.97 for a distance of [0 1 kb] and dropped to 0.11 for a distance of [500 The intermediate consistency of the gametic phase was obtained when comparing Switzerland to France or Italy (ALPCHE_ALPFRA and ALPCHE_ALPITA) with an average consistency of 0.97 for a distance of (0 1 kb] and a drop to 0.17 for a distance of (500 Comparison of the consistency of the gametic phase for nine classes of distances between SNPs with comparison between Alpine populations (A) and Alpine and Saanen from the same country (C) Breeds are represented by Alpine (ALP) and Saanen (SAA) while countries are represented by Canada (CAN) The trends observed in Alpine were also found in the Saanen breed (Figure 3B) but with slightly lower values than in the Alpine breed the consistency of gametic phases varied between 0.99 for a distance of (0 1 kb] and 0.60 for a distance of (500 the consistency of the gametic phase values for all pairs of countries ranged between 0.06 and 0.60 Figure 3C shows the consistency of the gametic phase within country when comparing Alpine and Saanen populations The consistency of the gametic phase is similar for all countries for short distances with an average consistency of 0.92 for (0 kb the consistency between French and Swiss goat populations is similar across all distance intervals with an average difference of 0.01 The highest differences were observed between Canadian and Italian populations with an average difference of 0.10 across all distance intervals Figure 4 presents the projection of each individual on the first two principal components of the PCA (PC1 and PC2) The first two components allow separate individuals according to their breed (PC1 3.26%) with the Alpine animals on the left and the Saanen on the right and according to their country (PC2 2.32%) with the Canadian populations at the bottom and the European populations at the top The French and Italian populations largely overlap and are indistinguishable for both breeds The Canadian Saanen population is the most differentiated and does not group with the other Saanen populations The few individuals present between the Canadian Saanen and the European populations are in fact animals with at least one French parent The Swiss Saanen population is also more differentiated from the other European Saanen populations than the Alpine there is an overlap of individuals for France which is not the case in Saanen with a more homogeneous cluster Principal component analysis (PCA) with all genotypes for each breed (ALP Switzerland) on the two first PCA components (PC1 to PC2) This cluster is present at 0.41 in Switzerland for Saanen but is almost absent in Canadian Saanen (0.06) Breed composition per animal for each breed-country population estimated by the Admixture software when considering k = 4 (ALP We also have disproportional datasets with larger amounts of data in France in comparison to the other countries. This situation has also been reported in the framework of Interbeef for the Limousin cattle breed (Bonifazi et al., 2020) in which the numbers of French animals (2,942,297 animals) were higher than in the other countries (between 30,843 and 172,229 animals) The authors evaluated the within-country rankings of the top 100 animals for age-adjusted weaning weight (AWW) for both international and national evaluations They observed that the majority of the animals in the top 100 were French (between 84% and 100%) for the international evaluations while they vary between 19% and 77% (100% being obtained in France) for the national evaluations This is a situation that can potentially be reproduced in the international for dairy goat evaluations and could encourage the disproportional use of French breeding stock trade between countries has been mostly one-sided with France exporting to all partner countries more research needs to be conducted to elucidate the best options for short- and long-term international and national genomic evaluations for the partner countries to maximize the benefits of the collaboration genotyped animals represent only a small portion of shared animals between countries Strategies for improving connections between countries need to be considered before implementing a multi-country genetic evaluation Inbreeding estimated in our population was also consistent with previous estimation found in the literature. For example, in Canada, Brito et al. (2017) reported an average pedigree inbreeding equal to 0.021 in Alpine (against 0.015 in our study) and 0.040 in Saanen (against 0.048 in our study). In France, Carillier et al. (2013) reported a pedigree inbreeding of around 0.02 for both Alpine and Saanen breeds which is consistent with our estimation it seems that no report was available that estimates inbreeding in these populations this level of LD will likely require larger training populations in comparison to less genetically diverse populations to obtain similar GEBV accuracies there are no high-density SNP chip panels available for goats The availability of a second version of the Goat SNP50 BeadChip did not add enough SNP to get a significantly higher density of SNPs across all the goat genomes multi-breed or single-breed genomic evaluations yielded similar GEBV accuracies the number of genotyped animals was significantly smaller in their study In the context of an international genomic evaluation the interest of a multi-breed multi-country genomic evaluation will have to be evaluated in comparison to a single-breed multi-country evaluation which could significantly increase the training population size per breed the current genotypes provided by the partners are both unbalanced in number and in the years of birth of the animals between Italy and Switzerland for both breeds there is almost no overlap in the birth year of the genotyped animals the first one that was carried out on such data for these two countries Further analyses should be performed with larger genotyped populations to confirm our findings The results of the PCA and admixture analyses contribute to determining the genetic relationship of the animals The only populations with no clear distinction are French and Italian goat populations for both breeds Italy is the country that imports most animals from France which may explain the genetic proximity between these two populations the Canadian and European populations are more genetically distant This might be explained by the little exchange of animals and the geographical distance that separates Canada and the European countries these results are consistent with the results observed on the connections between countries based on pedigree information The comparison of Alpine and Saanen genotypes within one country is well-documented more than international comparisons of these breeds. Denoyelle et al. (2021) is one of the few examples of an international comparison, which was carried out as part of the VarGoats project (www.goatgenome.org/vargoats.html) This project sequenced goats of different breeds from all over the world including Alpine and Saanen from France They studied the phylogeny of these breeds using a neighbor-joining tree constructed with 100,000 SNPs our results are in agreement with their study where a close relationship between France and Italy (for both Alpine and Saanen) and a greater distance with the Swiss goat population were observed The first two components of the PCA represent less than 6% of the total variation Even if we observe two different clusters between European and Canadian populations these populations seemed close enough in order to blend all genotypes and to analyze genotypes conjointly Further investigations on differences along the genome between animals from different countries could be interesting to detect genomic regions specifically selected in each country This work aimed to combine and analyze pedigree information and genomic data from four countries. Our analyses showed that an international evaluation would be most beneficial to the European populations that are genetically closer. However, it is necessary to verify the impact of Canadian data into international genomic evaluations, especially if other European dairy goat populations are added such as Yorkshire dairy goats (Mucha et al., 2015) Yorkshire goats represent a composite population potentially more similar with Canadian dairy goats due to more similar crossbreeding events Pedigree connectedness and genotype analysis remain the first step before implementing an international genomic evaluation The following steps will be to combine and analyze the phenotypes commonly recorded among the different country partners of the project and genotypes will enable the estimation of genetic and genomic parameters between breeds/countries that will be potentially used in future genomic evaluations The genetic diversity and pedigree analyses performed in this study showed that the French and Italian populations are both the most genetically connected and more genomically similar for the Swiss and Canadian dairy goat populations the genetic connections are limited to the importation of a few French animals they are genomically more distant than the other populations The genetic diversity and population connectedness between the studied populations indicate that an international genomic evaluation might be more feasible for French and Italian goats Ethical review and approval was not required for the animal study Data were collected during routine care in each country Written informed consent was obtained from the owners for the participation of their animals in this study and drafted the first version of the manuscript and BB provided the datasets and information on the current genetic evaluations in their respective countries and CR-G interpreted the results and improved the manuscript The authors declare they do not have any competing interests The first author received financial support from the European Union’s Horizon 2020 Research and Innovation Programme under the grant agreement No 772787 (SMARTER) and the French Research National Research Institute for Agriculture Food and Environment (INRAE—Animal Genetic division) The author BB was employed by the company Qualitas AG The remaining authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations Any product that may be evaluated in this article or claim that may be made by its manufacturer is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher The authors are grateful to the CTIG (Centre de Traitement de l’Information Génétique) of INRAE Jouy-en-Josas The authors would also like to acknowledge Laurent Maignel from the Canadian Centre for Swine Improvement (CCSI Canada) and Erin Massender (University of Guelph Canada) for their help in preparing the Canadian phenotypic and genomic datasets The Canadian partners acknowledge that this research received partial funding from the Ontario Ministry of Agriculture Canada) through the Ontario Agri-Food Innovation Alliance as well as Virginie Clément (Idele-GenEval) and Isabelle Palhière (INRAE-GenPhySE) The Swiss partners would like to acknowledge Steffen Werne (Research Institute of Organic Agriculture FiBL Cord Drögemüller (University of Bern Christine Flury (Bern University of Applied Sciences and Erika Bangerter (Schweizerischer Ziegenzuchtverband The Italian partners would like to acknowledge Silverio Grande (AssoNaPa Fast Model-Based Estimation of Ancestry in Unrelated Individuals PubMed Abstract | CrossRef Full Text | Google Scholar Assessment of Accuracy of Genomic Prediction for French Lacaune Dairy Sheep PubMed Abstract | CrossRef Full Text | Google Scholar International Genetic Evaluations for Feed Intake in Dairy Cattle through the Collation of Data from Multiple Sources PubMed Abstract | CrossRef Full Text | 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January 2022; Accepted: 03 May 2022;Published: 17 June 2022 Copyright © 2022 Teissier, Brito, Schenkel, Bruni, Fresi, Bapst, Robert-Granie and Larroque. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use *Correspondence: Marc Teissier, bWFyYy50ZWlzc2llckBpbnJhZS5mcg== Disclaimer: All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article or claim that may be made by its manufacturer is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher. 94% of researchers rate our articles as excellent or goodLearn more about the work of our research integrity team to safeguard the quality of each article we publish. an organization that advocates for modern farming methods Courtesy of Muhammad Livestock FarmPeople are going crazy for the aesthetically pleasing animal. According to Fadzir, it’s really the hair on top of his head that makes him special. “He has his own style,” Fadzir told TIME. Some on Twitter and Facebook are even comparing his looks to K-pop stars We can all take a lesson or two from this handsome goat who clearly knows his angles and has now joined the ranks of the shapely starfish and the selfie-ready gorillas Write to Rachel E. Greenspan at rachel.greenspan@time.com Saanen goats born at the City Farm of VDNKh are named Veterok and Zvyozdochka. The 'space' names for babies were chosen by popular vote on the exhibition's official Instagram page. The double addition took place at the City Farm in mid-March Saanen goat Strelka became the mother of Zvyozdochka a guest favourite billy goat at the City Farm The kids have taken white colour after him the baby goats were proposed to be named after planets and satellites closer to the end there were four options left: Veterok users decided to name babies after Soviet space dogs in honour of the dogs who went into space (similar to their mothers' names) Zvyozdochka's space flight took place in 1961 The author of the winning names for both Saanen baby goats will receive a certificate for a free visit to the City Farm for two people Two more users who suggested naming the baby nanny goat Zvyozdochka will get souvenirs Now the kids occupy a separate enclosure continuously supervised by zoologists Specialists hand-feed them mother's milk from bottles Saanen goats are a dairy breed most common in farms Unlike typical representatives of the species they are quite large: adult billy goats can weigh about 100 kg Withers height of adult animals is about 90 cm High content of milk proteins is good for making many healthy dairy products There are three breeds of goats living in the City Farm at VDNKh: Saanen Anglo-Nubian (goats giving high-fat milk; bred in the UK they are very popular now) and Cameroon dwarf goats VDNKh's grounds are temporarily closed to public due to the spread of COVID-19 you can walk around its pavilions and watch insightful videos online Video tours will tell what VDNKh's territory looked like in the early 1940s and what the first cosmonauts had to do with it netizens will find out about favourite foods of sharks Visit VDNKh’s Instagram account to watch the City Farm's daily routine join children's master classes to make a birdhouse and theatre masks July 5, 2018 Livestock The American Dairy Goat Association’s 2018 National Show was held last week at the Ohio State Fairgrounds The event ran from June 23 to 30 and drew exhibitors from across the country It was among the largest national dairy goat shows ever with nine breeds represented “We are so excited to have people here in Ohio. We have more than 3,200 animals entered from across the country it is the biggest we’ve ever had,” said Robin Saum, the American Dairy Goat Association (ADGA) president from Fairfield County “It rotates around the country and our local group has been planning this show for over two years People from all over the country attend and this is the largest entry we have ever had in a National Show Oregon — we have really covered the country and highlighted the breeds here at the show.” Saum and her family had 13 dairy goats at the show from their farm Since returning to the Saanen breed in 1991 the Saum family has enjoyed extensive success at the local “I was born and raised in Fairfield County My mother and grandmother both raised dairy goats so it was a natural extension for me to raise dairy goats,” Saum said “I got my judge’s license at a fairly young age and from there I went on to be an ADGA director and then ADGA president off an on for a total of 11 years I love meeting people at events such as this The progress dairy goats have made over the years has been tremendous in terms of numbers and the quality of the animals We are always striving for a better production animal.” One of the judges for the National Show this year was pleased that it was being held in Columbus because of his Ohio roots He grew up showing dairy goats in 4-H in Henry County but now lives in Washington “Dairy goats started as a 4-H project that never ended This is my fourth National Championship that I have been elected to judge in I am really excited to come back to Ohio and it is really nostalgic to be at the same venue I showed in as a kid Ohio has hosted the National Championship three times but has not been to Ohio since the 1970s,” Baden said “This is showcasing the finest for hobbyists and commercial producers making milk products fluid milk and cheese and byproducts like soap It is a community that can all come together for education and networking and they can actually see the animals in person rather than looking at a computer screen It really can up the game for producers all around the country.” Ohio’s central location proved to be suitable for the National Show “This is the largest dairy goat exhibition show in the United States This is three times the size of even large state fair shows This show had the record entry for Nigerian Dwarfs that has ever been exhibited for a single breed with over 660 entries The Nigerian Dwarf goats can be no larger than 22.5 inches at the withers The other breeds are over 26 inches,” Baden said “The next largest number of breed entries is Nubians The smallest breed is the Sable breed and they had just under 200 entries.” Baden said the Ohio location is also ideal for youth exhibitors in the state interested in dairy goats to have the opportunity to participate in more than a local competition and raise the bar for them and motivate them to want to stay with agriculture into adulthood,” he said “We hope this motivates them to network with others It is great when everyone can see the best animals competing.” Columbus is also a great location to attract people who may be interested in agricultural production on small acreage “I never thought I would be able to get $15 for a gallon of goat milk The market is changing and Americans are willing to eat goat products now and incorporate that into their lives,” Baden said dairy goats can be a good opportunity to get into agriculture It is more affordable to have dairy goats than cattle.” Kirt Schnipke of Ober-Boerd Dairy Goats in Hamler was at the show and excited about staying much closer to home for this year’s National Show He had the Reserve Grand Champion Oberhasli at the competition My parents wanted us to learn the value of hard work and responsibility and to care for something every day,” Schnipke said “My sister and I quickly decided that we wanted to show at more than just the county fairs so we started going to open class shows As we got more competitive we started going to bigger shows and eventually the Ohio State Fair.” As the shows got bigger and his goats got better Schnipke made the leap to the national level “We went to our first national show in 2004 and I have gone to as many as I can since then This is the first national show back in Ohio and being able to exhibit in my home state at my state fairgrounds is really exciting,” he said “I specialize in the Oberhasli breed but I do have a few Saanen goats as well We selected Oberhasli because of their unique color They have to be a rich bay color with specific black markings to be registered with the ADGA My dad and I specifically saw that and fell in love with their striking appearance and decided that is what we wanted to breed Later we decided to add the all-white Saanens to have something different to look at I brought 17 of my Oberhasli to this show and then we have three Saanens here.” Schnipke was impressed with the high quality of animals and exhibitors at the National Show “It has been exciting to exhibit some beautiful animals and see the other beautiful animals from around the country You can see the passion from other breeders and what they are bringing forward,” Schnipke said “This can be a breeding tool to help you know what you should be using in the future and maybe buying stock from a different herd to help improve your own.” For more results from the show, search ocj.com for “National Dairy Goat” and visit nationalshow.adga.org/show-results/ Luke Schulte of Beck’s Hybrids goes through the tradeoffs for early planted soybeans as stands … You must be logged in to post a comment 2025 — Another mostly cloudy and damp day over Ohio We continue to sit under the back-side circulation of a low pressure cell drifting slowly northeast… Ahead of his appearance at Gstaad Menuhin Festival we talked to Notre-Dame organist Olivier Latry about the challenges and opportunities that come with playing different organs around the world For his recent appearance at Gstaad Menuhin Festival, Olivier Latry traded Notre-Dame Cathedral’s French symphonic organ (which is sadly undergoing repair, since the devastating fire at the Cathedral in April) for the German Baroque organ of Saanen Church in Switzerland It turns out that preparing for a concert of organ works in a new town, city, country or continent isn’t as simple as rocking up to the keyboard and using muscle memory to reel off Bach’s finest fugues or Widor’s wildest arpeggios it’s not like being a pianist who might have to take into account slight variations in an instrument’s touch or pedal weights There are huge differences and it’s not the case that an organ by any other name would sound as sweet… Further reading: More could be done to prevent disasters like the Notre-Dame fire, says organist Olivier Latry “The sound is different, especially the attack of the bite,” Latry explains. “The German organ is very precise on the attack of the note, whereas the French symphony organ has an inertia like that of a symphony orchestra. “It’s comparable to the French language where we do not have so many articulations or consonants as in Germany where they have consonants everywhere And whereas a flautist and violinist can bring their own instrument to a new venue and a pianist will be greeted with a pretty familiar situation when they sit at a new piano an organist can be confronted with any number of keyboards different stops and entirely different ranges of octaves “In Saanen, the German organ has many high stops and is based vertically, and the sound is lighter. On a French organ, the sound is darker and it would be a more horizontal set-up. In terms of sound, it’s like the difference between a quartet (German Baroque) and the Berlin Philharmonic (French symphonic).” “It’s like driving a car where the indicator control is no longer on the left where you expect it it’s like driving a car where the accelerator is on the side that you expect the break to be we have to be very careful all the time.” Read more: The world’s most spectacular organs > Olivier Latry is the French organist who has worked at the Notre-Dame Cathedral in Paris since 1985 He studied organ with Gaston Litaize and composition with Jean-Claude Raynaud “We had what was called tea time: we turned the organ off went into the room behind it and heard all these stories about Paris in the 1920s and 30s ‘my greatest chance in life was to be 20 during the 30s in Paris’ and I have always remembered that Knowing all these stories told by someone who lived that time just brings it to life Olivier Latry is Professor of Organ at the Paris Conservatoire Read more: These are absolutely the best organ pieces in existence > The Menuhin Festival in Gstaad was established by violinist Yehudi Menuhin in 1957 following visits to the region in the previous two years in which he had been scouting out suitable locations for a summer residence “Local tourism officers motivated Menuhin to have a look in Saanen Church and to bring his violin,” Gstaad Menuhin Festival director “He played some notes here and he fell completely in love with the church. He decided in a very spontaneous moment to organise two concerts on 2 and 4 August 1957, with his friends Benjamin Britten and Peter Pears.” From this illustrious trio – sounds like a set of dream dinner party guests to us – the festival continued and grew around this ethos of making beautiful music with friends in a stunning part of Switzerland “This group was the birth of the Gstaad Menuhin Festival and a manifest for the spirit for the event,” Christoph explains “He invited friends and played chamber music with them in the relaxed atmosphere here and he was artistic director for forty years until 1996.” Gstaad Menuhin would become one of the most important festivals in the Alps and by the 1990s was the second largest festival in Switzerland (after Lucerne) Today, the festival has expanded to the Gstaad Menuhin Festival Academy, the Gstaad Menuhin Festival Orchestra and the Gstaad Digital Festival for those who can’t make it over to Switzerland This year’s theme is Paris and along with Latry, highlights have included performances from soprano Patricia Petibon and pianist Bertrand Chamayou, with concerts from the likes of pianists Gabriela Montero and Yuja Wang, and cellist Gautier Capuçon Watch the videos above and visit gstaadmenuhinfestival.ch to find out more See more Discover music Ravel See more Best classical music See more Classic FM Live Playlists See more Browse by See more Mood See more Occasions Einaudi Events Paderewski Classic FM Hall of Fame and many Kitsap candidates have already submitted their names for the numerous local seats… the BI Metro Park and Recreation District and the BI Parks &… One of Washington’s largest skill-building centers saw a massive funding increase this legislative session We’ve seen animals achieve online fame for their looks in fact Instagram is full of animal influencers but this handsome Saanen goat in Malaysia is the first to reach online celebrity status for looking like a Korean pop star an 11-month-old billy goat at Muhammad Livestock Farm in Perak went viral last week after his owner posted photos of him on the farm’s Facebook page People instantly fell in love with his blonde hairdo and goatee and some social media users even compared his beauty to that of a K-pop star told local reporters that the handsome goat loves getting photographed and turns to pose for the camera whenever he sees one Fadzir said that he fell in love with Ramos the moment he laid eyes on him He was in Terengganu shopping for female goats because goat milk had been in high demand recently so he paid another farmer RM750 ($183) for him without hesitation The proud owner started posting photos of his handsome goat on Facebook but he was surprised by the overwhelmingly positive feedback “I did not expect the photos to go viral. I have more than 17 Saanen goats. This one, however, is a good-looking one as he has a ‘jambul’ (crested hair) and smiles when I take pictures,” Ahmad told the Harian Metro “Some people asked me if I want to sell Ramos I have to politely decline and will offer them other goats from the same breed instead.” The proud owner added that it wasn’t easy raising Saanen goats as they require proper maintenance and a clean environment Their still not as high maintenance as human K-pop stars Ramos’ social media popularity quickly attracted mainstream media attention as well, and reporters flocked to Muhammad Livestock Farm in Perak to photograph and film the handsome star while volunteering at Carl Sandburg Home National Historic Site in Flat Rock who has a strong affection for animals and can seemingly forge a bond with them almost instantly she didn’t really know how to connect with goats But just like a dog or cat has that one particular spot where they like to be scratched and Harris found out pretty quickly where Addie’s sweet spot was “She just loved getting itched between the toe-sies,” Harris said recently while grabbing Addie’s hoof to demonstrate Addie now lives with Harris at her cabin in Mountain Home and is just one of the many goats that have been auctioned or sold from the Sandburg Home over the last few decades now making a life for themselves outside the confines of the National Park System Owners like Harris are giving these goats not just a warm home What started off as a few scratches between the toes turned into a warm welcome anytime Harris would show up at the goat barn “She just started to look forward to seeing me come and she'd raise her foot right off the bat,” Harris said "By that time everybody knew that me and Addie were like full buds," Harris said always tries to find the perfect home for the Sandburg goats are sold outright as pets if they have a defect or grow old but most are sold through a closed-bid auction to the highest bidder owner of Whispering Pines Farm and Dairy in Mauldin South Carolina was the highest bidder on Mocha popped out after Mocha sneezed during labor The buck that was delivered next came out tail first and was aptly named Butler by Webster’s daughters Webster often mentors new goat and sheep owners and even offers classes on how to keep goats and sheep which makes Whispering Pines — a licensed grade A dairy and cheese-making facility — the perfect home for the Sandburg Home goats “We've hosted tours from the Sandburg staff and volunteer groups who are so happy to see their old friends doing well here at Whispering Pines,” Webster said Bids for goats typically range between $200 and $600 and proceeds support the barn operations But the opportunity to bid on these prized goats isn’t open to just anyone — it’s by invitation only “We are very careful about who we send the bids to,” Donovan said noting she receives as many as 30 or as few as 10 bids for each goat they’re required to visit the Sandburg Home to learn how to care for them Donovan also insists that they have a companion so they would basically be miserable if they were by themselves," she said Donovan and Sandburg Home staff will go on the occasional field trip to visit goats at their new homes so they can meet the offspring and see how goat and kids are fairing She’s also always open to stay in contact with owners especially if one calls with a question or concern “I'm open to them to call about anything,” she said “That's part of my job — to give advice and help them understand all about goats.” But caring for goats isn’t easy and there’s a lot that has to be considered before taking on the responsibility there are owners who find themselves a bit in over their heads and have to return them "A couple times I've had that,” Donovan said 'Can you find somebody else to buy this goat?'" Harris was panicked the day she brought Addie and Trinity She felt an immense pressure to do everything right “It was like bringing home a new baby or something." She put a fence up with help from fellow Sandburg Home volunteers and she converted a shed on her property into a comfortable barn for her goats to sleep in She understood that she would have to trim their hooves and ensure they received their yearly injections Harris was also well aware of all the things that could harm Addie and Trinity especially the threat mountain laurel and rhododendron posed which was important since the two plants were growing on her property though safely on the other side of the fence She figured as long as the fence separated the goats from the potentially harmful plants the goats managed to escape and eat some of the laurel and rhododendron Harris returned home from work one day and found Addie and Trinity in their barn on the verge of death "It sounded like a serial killer had come to my house and murdered No one could come to Harris’ home right away to help which was try to make the goats vomit with a turkey baster full of brandy but eventually a veterinarian arrived and pumped the two goats’ stomachs Harris took a full week off of work to care for Addie and Trinity and nurse them back to health and though Harris extends an open invite to friends and neighbors to come and hang out with her goats anytime it does come with one caveat — they must lock the gate owner of Sanctuary Brewing and founder of Sweet Bear Rescue Farm it was love at first sight for her and the 2-week-old Toggenburg goat named Shadow she met at the Sandburg Home six years ago “I fell in love with her on the spot,” said McDonald who volunteered at the Sandburg Home for three years McDonald was able to buy Shadow and brought her to her animal rescue farm in Hendersonville even taking over a pig’s living quarters for herself they’ve proven to be great ambassadors for Sweet Bear greeting human visitors and bonding with other residents like Charlotte a chicken who was rejected by its flock and is species-blind Addie and Trinity have also made themselves right at home at Harris’ cabin in Mountain Home Trinity enjoys lounging on the screened-in front porch curling up on the couch in Harris’ living room for a nap “I was really stoked the first time she walked through the front door,” Harris said about Addie Baby's first steps into the house.’ And then the first time she hopped onto the couch to kind of kick it The laurel and rhododendron are gone and the goats coexist happily with Harris’ cats Big Boy and Jimmy and they all seem to put up with her ferrets Harris still scratches Addie between the toes and does her best to balance the competing desires for attention all her animals seem to vying for from her Kenya News Agency has been breeding dairy goats to eke out a living and he is set to become the beacon of change In his 1/8 acre home compound tucked near Kondele Primary School located in Migosi Ward-Kisumu Central Sub-County Musa is earnestly urging area residents to take a cue and follow in his footpath for economic sustenance As he ushered KNA journalists into his home for the exclusive interview a vivid picture of a hardworking farmer hits us Five men were performing different roles on the newly harvested bags of maize which were spread for drying in the compound Musa said began by keeping 30 local goat breeds but one day only three came back after herding in the evening He promptly decided to keep them and do zero grazing within the compound “I used to look around for leaves to feed them because I didn’t want to see my goats loitering around and that’s when the idea of keeping dairy goats cropped up in my mind,’’ he revealed he ditched the local breeds which were less profitable and began mixing dairy goat breeds like Alpines and Toggenburgs in 2003 But he later switched to purely dealing with Saanen which he received from the World Vision who had imported them from South Africa “As a caregiver,” he explained; “I became a beneficiary of two goats (a female and a male) to support one child who was enrolled in the organization’s programme I immediately sold the local breeds and fully embraced the dairy goats.’’ He further clarifies that he switched because if a farmer needs a typical Saanen you are out of the market The mixed breed will betray you as they produce low milk the same as a typical Alpine which produces two to three litres of milk daily These are some of the reasons why he decided to realign the same breed of Saanen He recalls that there was a time when the county gave him some Toggenburgs with the hind side; the nose and legs being white they range between three to four litres a day Musa clarified that a typical Saanen is white its demand and milk production are very high The first Saanen which was imported to Kenya was taken to Homabay and Kirinyaga (Central) are now buying from them and for the animals to survive in cold regions he offers that a farmer should buy the ones between three to six months adjust the temperature in the units and reduce ventilation for them The dairy goats always shade their skin to adjust to the given area they are reared In cold areas they are always bushy to adjust to the temperature,” he remarked “Why did I choose a dairy goat and not a dairy cow?’’ he posed the question as he demonstrated to us how to milk a dairy goat Musa informs that unlike the other two breeds the exotic Saanen produces between five to six litres per day after normal milking in the morning and evening while those that are over six months fetches between Sh20,000 to Sh25,000 Alongside the age which is used to determine the pricing other factors include whether the females and males are already mature and served led him to secure a deal with Agricultural Development Corporation (ADC-Kitale) to offer a good Buck (Male) for their new programme known as ‘Goat AI’ and to also market them “You know you can’t be selling semen and you don’t have the quality animal to showcase to the farmers you can get a mature buck like that one which goes between Sh 30,000 to Sh 50,000,” Musa observed as he pointed to one kept in a pen He offered some insights that a Goat AI is an Artificial Insemination procedure whereby experts extract semen from a Buck and get a Billy (female goat) They do proper timing and through special equipment they plant it into the Billy during the heat cycle period lasting 17 days “I always sensitize people and build other farmers I normally invite my neighbours and prepare tea for them to drink Next time they buy a half or a litre and I continue to receive referred people from different areas,” he happily narrated he has been invited by institutions and groups like one in Kajulu Hills Area-Kisumu East where he has created more awareness on the benefits of using Saanen compared to Alpines which they were breeding he also convinced a lady neighbour who is currently doing dairy goat farming and initially she used to produce about five litres daily they put their milk products together and supply them to nearby health facilities like Jaramogi Oginga Odinga Teaching and Referral Hospital (JOOTRH) “There are patients who were told to take goat milk because they are very nutritious and heavy compared to cow milk but goats are browsers who consume different kinds of leaves which contain herbs the young and for the sick,” Musa assured as goats continued to bleat in a chorus Some of the leaves he mentioned the goats preferred included desmodium he normally fetches his feeds from the Agricultural Society of Kenya (ASK) Showground-Mamboleo His sister runs a hotel and she normally serves her happy clients goat milk A litre of goat milk is sold at Sh200 during the rainy season but it goes up to Sh250 or Sh300 during dry spells As a member of Kenya Saanen Breeders Society of veterinarians and farmers they always share useful information and possible solutions to emerging complications in their dairy goat breeds “The group’s social platform has been of great help to me as I normally post and supply my excess milk stock to different parts of the country where the demand is high,” Musa informed he noted that the uptake was now steadily rising among the locals and he usually takes his goats to the August Kisumu ASK exhibitions The process of getting high-quality milk production starts from the date you start to serve the female after nine months and chances of twinning would be very high due to adequate space What will happen if it’s served before nine months Chances are that this interference would highly lead to stunted growth and low milk production and the womb which is still growing will offer less space for another baby to mature in it you begin milk training immediately because you have to tame it early you need to gently touch those teats as if you are milking it and train it on how to walk on top of the milking parlour,” he emphasized by adding; “Climb it up and bring it down So that after five months when it delivers it will be very comfortable and no kicking that animal will be kicking and turning around and you won’t even milk it!” He offers tangible tips that one needs to be passionate and committed to do dairy-goat keeping “My father used to tell me that if you can’t speak their language then you will fail A good goat farmer must communicate with a goat; I know when they want water I know it is a bit tricky to explain but they have a special language to communicate and once you learn their language his father was a farmer at their ancestral home who used to keep poultry and cows and grow cabbages Admitting that he picked a cue from his father he advises that; “If you want your child to be a good farmer you start moulding that child right from the tender age it’s also a way of building the passion in them and that spirit of farming you have to bring it from down.” After going to Kondele Primary School and completing high school (Kisumu Days) in 2002 Musa said that a mature female dairy goat should eat properly between 14-15kgs daily a farmer needs to control them in order not to be overweight because they need to perform “I feed them three times a day by adding water salt and supplement the females with the commercial feeds The young ones between two to three months are fed calf pellets,” he advised statistics indicate that Kenya has about 400,000 dairy goats with 80 percent being reared in the Mt Kenya region Nyeri County has the highest population with 84 with 800 goats followed by Murang’a County with 51,116 goats (Mbindyo et al. The National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI) avers that compared to cow milk proteins goat milk proteins contain higher levels of certain amino acids such as tryptophan and cysteine while maintaining similar nutritional properties Research has shown that goat milk proteins have several health benefits as well as antimicrobial and anticancer properties One of the challenges Musa faces is the unavailability of feeds which occurs during the ASK-Kisumu shows which are annually held in August “They normally clear everything and at that time Also diseases like pneumonia could at at times turn out to be chronic,’’ he lamented he practices good Animal Husbandry; housing no external pests will interfere and the animal will remain clean urine and droppings are also sources of good folia feeds and manure respectively “When I mix 10 litres of urine with 20 litres of water then I do top dressing because I also have a farm where I grow vegetables Instead of buying folia feeds from the Agrovet shop you will see the leaves are very fresh and brown,’’ he explained Musa avers that the droppings from the dairy goats offer a very good source of manure he informs that buying them and putting up structures would be costly but once you have settled all these He urged both tiers of government (national and county) to ensure that there are enough agricultural field officers who could sensitize and offer quick solutions to various problems facing the farmers On a future progression in his alternative Kibos farm Musa wishes to have around 100 female dairy goats to provide enough milk and also do value addition once I do value addition there will be more money I will venture into making yoghurt as some of my colleagues are doing,” he said he contends that “dairy goat farming is good as long as you have the right breed; so long as you do it the right way and start it small Don’t always say that you want to begin big with 10 or 50 goats You must be logged in to post a comment Kenya Broadcasting Corporation MyGov Kenya National Archives Kenya Yearbook Editorial Board Kenya Institute of Mass Communication Media Council of Kenya eCitizen – Gateway to All Government Services How to make payments to the Directorate of Information County Focus, March, 2025. Mawasiliano, March, 2025. Sauti Ya Kericho, January, 2025. Maarifa, January, 2025. NGAO, February, 2025. THE EYE, February, 2025. Nyota Ya Mashariki, March , 2025. Nyota Ya Magharibi, March, 2025. KNA Bulletin, December, 2024. Sauti Ya Gusii, December, 2024. the Festival of the Sommets Musicaux de Gstaad has become a prominent winter rendezvous for classical music enthusiasts It is the premier winter festival and offers close proximity to the artists as it takes place in the churches of Saanen and Rougemont and in the Gstaad chapel Under the artistic direction of Renaud Capuçon and orchestras and ensembles offering the loveliest of classical The festival is built on three pillars: three concert cycles in three exceptional venues Afternoon concerts in the Gstaad Chapel feature promising young talent while evening concerts in Rougemont and Saanen enchant their audience with performances by most distinguished soloists and orchestras Concerts in the Saanen church are followed by gala dinners at the Gstaad Palace a loyal partner of the Sommets Musicaux de Gstaad festival These occasions offer a rare opportunity to bring together the artists music-loving members of the public and partners of the festival The Sommets Musicaux Festival takes place in the winter sports resort of Gstaad in Switzerland There are several 5, 4 and 3-star hotels in the resort, so book in advance and contact the tourist office if necessary The Gstaad Palace Hotel *****: Set on a hill overlooking the beautiful town of Gstaad the Gstaad Palace offers a breathtaking view of the majestic Swiss Alps Bernerhof Gstaad ****: Located in Gstaad's pedestrian zone this 4-star hotel offers 4 restaurants and a spa area with an indoor pool Gstaad lies in the Bernese Alps, which can be reached via Geneva or Zurich airports. You reach Gstaad by train through idyllic countryside on Swiss railways or you can travel by road Gstaad is the ideal place for unforgettable winter experiences and countless winter sports possibilities as well as numerous spa centres where you can relax so boots and warm coats are strongly recommended If you are fortunate enough to be going to the gala dinner after a concert at Saanen Church the dress code is Cocktail attire so enjoy a rare opportunity to dress up The Gstaad area is one of the hottest gourmet destinations in the entire Alpine region Foodies from all over the world flock here for the variety of delicious cuisine The restaurant scene has the highest density of GaultMillau points in Alpine Switzerland For more information click here to visit the website of Sommets Musicaux de Gstaad Dr Saanen gives a qualitative and quantitative comparison and provides 10 considerations for comparing the most suitable automated transportation method The comparisons are made between an automated guided vehicle (AGV) an automated lift vehicle (ALV) and a Lift AGV momentarily the battery driven Lift-AGV provides the best value for money and can present zero-emission at reasonable investments,” believes Dr Saanen “The attractive performance of manual shuttle carriers in some terminals is no guarantee that an ALV will show the same high productivity Read more in the TBA Supplier Directory there is a substantial decrease in vehicle performance to be expected when modifying manual shuttle carrier system into an automated ALV system.” Dr Saanen concludes: “From a total cost of ownership point of view the Lift-AGV may prove to be the most attractive concept However some operators prefer simplicity and lower infrastructural investments that an AGV brings.” global schedule reliability surged to 57.5 per cent Container throughput at the Port of Melbourne totalled 267,000 TEUs in March 2025 Cover image: ©Associated Press The death toll has risen to at least 70 The breed standard is for purebred does to be just 57 centimetres high at the shoulder and bucks 60cm “Ten minutes after they’re born they’re up and feeding with astonishing appetites,” NZ Nigerian Dwarf Goat Breeders’ Association president Paula Levett said But once they are browsing first-cross animals consume about half the feed a Saanen goat needs milk fat and protein levels are significantly higher with Australian late spring data for one-year-old does with varying levels of dwarf genetics showing average milk fat percentages of 6% when the equivalent is 3.2% for Saanens and 4% protein compared with 3% “With the extra solids their milk would be good for cheese-making,” she said Levett has run goats on her seven hectare property at Glenbrook She has been a hobby cheesemaker as well as showing Saanen goats Their milk along with that of her Nigerian Dwarves is used to rear 10 dairy-beef cattle bought from a neighbour She’s also registrar and treasurer of the NZ Dairy Goat Breeders’ Association She came across the Nigerian Dwarf breed in an Australian goat farming magazine They’re originally from west Africa and were used to feed lions and tigers being imported to the United States to stock zoos at the start of the 20th century A related breed of pygmy goats has been developed in Britain In Victoria an American goat farmer pioneered Nigerian Dwarf goat semen and embryo importation from his home country to establish the breed there “He started selling straws of semen to other breeders who as they were getting older and wanting smaller animals used them over standard sized dairy goats including Saanens,” Levett said About five years ago two bucks were imported to NZ by a group she belongs to from another Australia breeder who was using the imported Dwarf straws over Australian dairy goats to produce a dwarf milking breed found the importation process not too difficult with an Australian company The bucks were put in quarantine across the Tasman for 45 days so they could go from plane to farm on arrival They’re now on a Helensville farm after moving around members of the importing group who had all their stock tested beforehand to make sure there was no risk of disease transmission The resulting buck kids were wethered and find a ready market as pets on lifestyle blocks “We agreed we would hang on to the does and breed them up with a moratorium on selling breeding stock for the first three years,” Levett said Recently some have been sold to a commercial Waikato goat farmer supplying the NZ Dairy Goat Cooperative and Levett has sold a starter herd of two does and one buck to a Timaru farmer To make more landowners aware of the Nigerian Dwarf goats the association will have a stand and the goats will be shown at the Kumeu A&P Show on March 15 Then on March 28 an open day will be held at the same venue where more detailed information about all aspects of farming and breeding the goats will be available Levett said they have a number of advantages over other goat breeds such as minimal feet issues And she believes there might be goat breeders wanting to put a smaller buck over their young does to ensure easier kidding They do need to be securely fenced behind deer fencing or mesh with an electrified outrigger otherwise they’re adept at climbing out “They’re incredibly inventive and will go through a tiny gap under a fence.” www.nigeriandwarf.co.nz Monday (May 5) for more than 3,200 seats on city councils Development is inspired by future transit center