In the last year, many Saskatchewanians learned something they previously didn’t know about our province – we are home to a world-leading research facility.
As the world mobilized to respond to COVID-19, our very own University of Saskatchewan (USask) Vaccine and Infectious Disease Organization (VIDO) led newsworthy international efforts to develop a vaccine based on its multi-decade history of research and development in human and animal health sciences.
But what many people still don’t know about the Saskatoon-based organization is just how much of its history, capacity and output are tied to our local agriculture industry.
“The news has very much focused on COVID-19 and the pandemic,” says Dr. Andrew Van Kessel, VIDO’s Associate Director of Research. “That has taken attention away from the animal side of our program.”