Though the recent departure of the Field Crop Development Centre (FCDC) has affected its rating, Olds College of Agriculture and Technology remains highly ranked in Canada’s top 50 research colleges, according to Research Infosource Inc. In December 2024, the research, consulting and publishing firm placed the institution at No. 14.

The Olds College Centre for Innovation (OCCI) and Alberta Grains are collaborating with several central Alberta farmers to assess the viability of a new research method. Alberta Grains will contribute $40,000 of in-kind support and provide advice on its applicability and value to farmers.

There are always many research and development projects on the go at the Olds College Centre for Innovation (OCCI), the applied research division at Olds College of Agriculture & Technology. Industry partners join forces with the department to develop and test a wide variety of innovative products in the core areas of crop and livestock production, environmental stewardship, technology integration and data science and utilization.

This past growing season, the Olds College Centre for Innovation (OCCI) research team installed LI-COR chambers on one of the institution’s Smart Farm fields to monitor soil emissions of potent greenhouse gas nitrous oxide (N2O). Advanced technology that produces high volume results quickly, the solar powered system consists of several automated gas chambers connected by tubing to two solar powered trace gas analyzers housed in a small shed.

The use of drones has become commonplace in agriculture. The Olds College Centre for Innovation (OCCI)uses them in applied research activities. In the 2023 growing season, more than 10 such projects required drone flights to capture high resolution images and create datasets using cameras and sensors.