Picture of black and white cows inside a barn.
RESEARCH PROJECT

Precision livestock breeding – improving both health and production in dairy cattle

Updated: July 2025

Project overview

The official name official name of the project:
Precision livestock breeding – improving both health and production in dairy cattle.
Project start: January 2020 Ending: June 2025
Project manager: Lars Rönnegård
Contact: Lars Rönnegård
Funded by: FORMAS (ID: 2019-02276 and 2019-02111) and the Kjell och Märta Beijers Foundation.

Participants

Short summary

Agricultural systems needs to evolve to meet the needs of a growing population, and at the same time focus on both animal welfare and minimal environmental impact. Our research project focuses on how animal welfare and the health and productivity of dairy cows can be improved using sensor technology

This is a collaborative research programme between the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences (SLU), University of Copenhagen (KU), Dalarna University (DU), Wageningen University and Research (WUR), RISE Research Institutes of Sweden and Växa Sverige.

About the project

A primary component of the project is to use a real time location system to study the indoor movement and social interactions of dairy cattle. We will investigate the possibility to select for increased milk yield considering effects of social interaction with the purpose to improve the social environment of the cows.

We will use theory developed for indirect genetic effects (IGE). To model IGE, it will be essential to first understand the social interactions, as an IGE is a genetic effect of an individual on the trait value of the other individuals in the same group.

The location and movement of the cows will also be used to investigate disease transmission. An existing simulation model of spread and control of mastitis causing pathogens will be further developed using cow location data and pathogen data.

We will develop decision-support tools for farmers to minimize transmission of mastitis within their dairy farms in close collaboration with Växa Sverige.

Project goals:

  • To develop tools for summarizing animal movement and social interactions in dairy farms.
  • To develop methodology for breeding on indirect genetic effects (IGE).
  • To develop decision-support tools for minimizing disease transmission within dairy farms based on knowledge gained from animal movement and social interactions.

Lars Rönnegård is the principal investigator of the research programme. Lars is a professor in statistics at Dalarna University and also holds a position as researcher at the Department of Animal Breeding and Genetics, SLU.

Per Peetz Nielsen is a researcher at RISE Research Institutes of Sweden and holds a PhD in Ethology.

Carsten Kirkeby is a senior researcher at the Institute for Veterinary and Animal Sciences, University of Copenhagen.

Volker Kromker is a veterinarian and professor in cattle health at the University of Copenhagen.

Freddy Fikse is employed by Växa Sverige and holds a PhD in Animal Science.

Anna Skarin is an associate professor at SLU with an expertise in animal movement.

Moudud Alam is an associate professor in microdata analysis at Dalarna University.

Teresa Johansson is a research assistant at the Department of Animal Breeding and Genetics, SLU.

Keni Ren is a postdoc at the Department of Animal Breeding and Genetics, SLU.

Hector Marina is a postdoc at the Department of Animal Breeding and Genetics, SLU.

Svenja Woudstra is a PhD student at the University of Copenhagen with Volker Krömker as main supervisor.

Ida Hansson is a PhD student at SLU with Lars Rönnegård as the main supervisor.

Maya Gussmann, assistant professor at Copenhagen University, is responsible for the modelling and simulating of mastitis transmission between cows.

Lisa Beste is a communications officer at SLU.

Earlier collaborators

Tariq Halasa was recruited in December 2020 to Novo Nordisk as principal epidemiologist working on diabetes.

Natalie von der Lehr is working in her own popular science communication company NatScience since autumn 2021.

Anna Silvera was recruited in December 2021 to Svensk Fågel (Swedish poultry meat association) as sustainability specialist with focus on animal welfare.

Mikhail Churakov returned full time to Professor Sigrid Agenäs’ group in January 2022 to focus on investigating consequences of a cow-calf contact system in dairy cattle.

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