Articles by author: Brock University

• Grape and wine education leader brings cider training course to Canada

  Thursday, February 09, 2017 | By Brock University

  8 February 2017: R00029

  Finally, advanced training support for the booming cider industry is coming to Canada.

  This spring, Brock University’s grape and wine research unit will launch Canada’s only internationally accredited program where industry professionals and enthusiasts alike can raise their expertise at fermenting apples into cider and pears into perry.

  Brock’s Cool Climate Oenology and Viticulture Institute (CCOVI) will offer the intensive week-long course April 24-28, under the Cider Institute of North America’s (CINA) renowned training program.

  Before now, the only two sites providing such programs were Cornell University in New York state, and Oregon State University.

  North America’s cider business has been on a roll. In Ontario alone, net sales of local craft cider skyrocketed 54 per cent in 2015-16 to $5.1 million, according to the Liquor Control Board of Ontario.

  But even as consumer demand has soared, the industry’s production and research community only has a finite amount of collective experience, says CINA president Nick Gunn, himself an Oregon cider consultant. 

  The Cider and Perry Production Foundations course at Brock will cover all aspects of cider production including ingredient sourcing, quality control and the economics of cider making. The hands-on program uses lectures, lab work, workshops and tastings to give learners a step-by-step guide to production.
   
  “In this environment, startup cider makers have the unique opportunity to jump start their quality and technique through industry accredited programs such as Brock’s that create a foundation for business success,” Gunn said.

  CINA certification is the recognized standard for quality in the cider industry, says CCOVI’s continuing education manager Barb Tatarnic.

  “Bringing CINA training to Canada puts CCOVI on the leading edge of an industry that’s exploding,” she said. “And for Brock, it’s a natural extension of the programs we already run for the grape and wine industry.”

  Registration for the intensive five-day course will cost $1,500. The class is limited to 25 participants, and registration closes April 13. Online registration can be done at www.ccovi.ca/ce/node/2946

  In addition to the foundation course, CCOVI also plans to add CINA’s Master Class to its continuing education lineup in the future.

  With 20 years experience in providing research, outreach and education to the grape and wine industry, CCOVI expanded its programming to include the spirits industry in 2016.
   

  For more information or for assistance arranging interviews:

  * Kaitlyn Little, Marketing and Communications Officer, Brock University klittle@brocku.ca, 905-688-5550 x4471

  * Dan Dakin, Media Relations Officer, Brock University ddakin@brocku.ca, 905-688-5550 x5353 or 905-347-1970

  Brock University Marketing and Communications has a full-service studio where we can provide high definition video and broadcast-quality audio.

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  Categories: Media releases

• Research examines distinct heart attack warnings for women

  Tuesday, February 07, 2017 | By Brock University

  7 February 2017: R00027

  Just in time for Heart Month, a Nursing professor at Brock University says women are more likely than men to experience certain early signals of a heart attack — and that knowing how to identify them could save their lives.

  Sheila O’Keefe-McCarthy has received a $74,938 grant from the Women’s College Research Institute’s Women’s Xchange to help patients and health care professionals become more educated about these early indicators.

  She says there are specific warning signs, or prodromal symptoms, that patients with Acute Coronary Syndrome can experience before a cardiac event happens, and recognizing them means a patient can get medical attention before a heart attack hits.

  “We are finding that women are more likely to report a greater number of symptoms compared to men, such as more chest pain, greater prodromal fatigue, sleep disturbances, anxiety and headaches, says O’Keefe-McCarthy. “This means we really need to take notice of the kinds of symptoms patients are presenting with.”

  By monitoring what is happening in the weeks and months leading up to the actual heart attack, she believes clinicians will be better able to screen for symptoms indicative of developing obstructive heart disease.

  The Women’s Xchange initiative supports grassroots research projects across Ontario, and the Brock professor’s project will develop a multi-media education strategy geared toward women that focuses on cardiac-related early warning signs.

  “It’s designed to be an educational intervention that women with cardiac disease and their health care professionals will be able to utilize, but since my research program is focused on men and women, the tools will be transferrable,” says O’Keefe-McCarthy.

  She also developed partnerships with organizations including Heart Niagara, the Cardiac Health Foundation of Canada and the Canadian Council of Cardiovascular Nurses to help support knowledge exchange in the community.

  O’Keefe-McCarthy’s work has a deeply personal inspiration behind it, having lost her mother, sister and father-in-law to cardiovascular disease.

  “They all experienced terrible pain, unusual fatigue and escalating anxiety prior to their cardiac events,” she says.

  “I am personally and professionally committed to improving the health outcomes of those suffering from heart conditions by finding new and innovative ways to respond to prodromal symptoms and cardiac pain suffered during the first hours of a heart attack.”

  For more information or for assistance arranging interviews:
   
  * Dan Dakin, Media Relations Officer, Brock University ddakin@brocku.ca, 905-688-5550 x5353 or 905-347-1970

  Brock University Marketing and Communications has a full-service studio where we can provide high definition video and broadcast-quality audio.

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  Categories: Media releases