scholarly journals Contribution of Precision Livestock Farming Systems to the Improvement of Welfare Status and Productivity of Dairy Animals

Dairy ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 3 (1) ◽  
pp. 12-28
Author(s):  
Panagiotis Simitzis ◽  
Christos Tzanidakis ◽  
Ouranios Tzamaloukas ◽  
Evangelia Sossidou
Keyword(s):  
Management Practices ◽  
Small Ruminants ◽  
Farming Systems ◽  
Yield Reduction ◽  
Livestock Farming ◽  
Dairy Farmers ◽  
Precision Livestock Farming ◽  
Livestock Farming Systems ◽  
Dairy Animals ◽  
Training Programmes

Although the effects of human–dairy cattle interaction have been extensively examined, data concerning small ruminants are scarce. The present review article aims at highlighting the effects of management practices on the productivity, physiology and behaviour of dairy animals. In general, aversive handling is associated with a milk yield reduction and welfare impairment. Precision livestock farming systems have therefore been applied and have rapidly changed the management process with the introduction of technological and computer innovations that contribute to the minimization of animal disturbances, the promotion of good practices and the maintenance of cattle’s welfare status and milk production and farms’ sustainability and competitiveness at high levels. However, although dairy farmers acknowledge the advantages deriving from the application of precision livestock farming advancements, a reluctance concerning their regular application to small ruminants is observed, due to economic and cultural constraints and poor technological infrastructures. As a result, targeted intervention training programmes are also necessary in order to improve the efficacy and efficiency of handling, especially of small ruminants.

scholarly journals European farmers' experiences with precision livestock farming systems

2017 ◽  
Vol 7 (1) ◽  
pp. 38-44 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jörg Hartung ◽  
Thomas Banhazi ◽  
Erik Vranken ◽  
Marcella Guarino
Keyword(s):  
Farming Systems ◽  
Livestock Farming ◽  
Precision Livestock Farming ◽  
Livestock Farming Systems

scholarly journals Agroecological practices to support tropical livestock farming systems: a Caribbean and Latin American perspective

2021 ◽  
Vol 53 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Gisele Alexandre ◽  
Lylian Rodriguez ◽  
Javier Arece ◽  
José Delgadillo ◽  
Gary Wayne Garcia ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Latin American ◽  
Farming Systems ◽  
Livestock Farming ◽  
Livestock Farming Systems ◽  
American Perspective

scholarly journals Nanotechnology and Reproductive Management of Farm Animals: Challenges and Advances

Animals ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (7) ◽  
pp. 1932
Author(s):  
Nesrein M. Hashem ◽  
Antonio Gonzalez-Bulnes
Keyword(s):  
Management Strategies ◽  
Farming Systems ◽  
Biological Molecules ◽  
Farm Animals ◽  
Physiological Status ◽  
Livestock Farming ◽  
Reproductive Management ◽  
Livestock Farming Systems ◽  
Reproductive Disease ◽  
Nutritional Strategies

Reproductive efficiency of farm animals has central consequences on productivity and profitability of livestock farming systems. Optimal reproductive management is based on applying different strategies, including biological, hormonal, nutritional strategies, as well as reproductive disease control. These strategies should not only guarantee sufficient reproductive outcomes but should also comply with practical and ethical aspects. For example, the efficiency of the biological- and hormonal-based reproductive strategies is mainly related to several biological factors and physiological status of animals, and of nutritional strategies, additional factors, such as digestion and absorption, can contribute. In addition, the management of reproductive-related diseases is challenged by the concerns regarding the intensive use of antibiotics and the development of antimicrobial resistant strains. The emergence of nanotechnology applications in livestock farming systems may present innovative and new solutions for overcoming reproductive management challenges. Many drugs (hormones and antibiotics), biological molecules, and nutrients can acquire novel physicochemical properties using nanotechnology; the main ones are improved bioavailability, higher cellular uptake, controlled sustained release, and lower toxicity compared with ordinary forms. In this review, we illustrate advances in the most common reproductive management strategies by applying nanotechnology, considering the current challenges of each strategy.

Options for the better use of less nitrogen on livestock farms

2014 ◽  
Vol 5 (s1) ◽  
pp. 59-67
Author(s):  
J.-L. Peyraud ◽  
P. Cellier ◽  
P. Dupraz ◽  
F. Aarts ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Water Framework Directive ◽  
Farming Systems ◽  
Aquatic Environments ◽  
Ammonia Emissions ◽  
Ecological State ◽  
Livestock Farming ◽  
Livestock Farming Systems ◽  
Northern European ◽  
International Regulations ◽  
Nitrates Directive

The previous articles have shown that preoccupations concerning discharge of nitrate emissions are not recent, even if they have not yet resulted in expected reductions. The Water Framework Directive, which aims at a ‘good’ ecological state of all aquatic environments in 2015, enlarges the objectives of the Nitrates Directive. We are currently witnessing the broadening of objectives for reducing emissions of all forms of nitrogen from livestock farming systems to other compartments, in particular the atmosphere. The reduction of ammonia emissions, which was a little concerned by the French context until now, is a priority for animal systems in several northern European countries. It is a subject of intense efforts of international regulations.

scholarly journals Evolution of livestock farming systems and landscape changes

2009 ◽  
Vol 4 (3s) ◽  
pp. 19 ◽  
Author(s):  
Maurizio Ramanzin ◽  
Luca M. Battaglini ◽  
Luciano Morbidini ◽  
Mariano Pauselli ◽  
Giuseppe Pulina
Keyword(s):  
Farming Systems ◽  
Landscape Changes ◽  
Livestock Farming ◽  
Livestock Farming Systems

Novel approaches to evaluate sustainability of pasture-based livestock systems

2016 ◽  
Vol 7 (2) ◽  
pp. 185-190
Author(s):  
A. Bernués
Keyword(s):  
Ecosystem Services ◽  
Public Goods ◽  
Policy Design ◽  
Economic Value ◽  
Market Price ◽  
Farming Systems ◽  
Agricultural Landscapes ◽  
Livestock Farming ◽  
Livestock Farming Systems ◽  
Livestock Systems

Pasture-based livestock systems, often located in High Value Nature farmland areas, hold the greatest potential to deliver public goods across European agricultural systems. They play an important role in preserving agricultural landscapes, farmland biodiversity, cultural heritage, and in sustaining rural development. However, many of these functions are ignored in evaluation frameworks because public goods do not have market price and are often ignored in policy design, so farmers do not get the appropriate incentives to provide them. Different conceptual frameworks can be utilized to evaluate the multiple functions or services of these systems: Multifunctional Agriculture, Ecosystem Services, and Total Economic Value. We analyze the common characteristics of these concepts (e.g. they place human benefits and societal demands at the core of their definitions), their specificities (e.g. use of different units of analysis and spatial-temporal scales), and how they can be embedded in the wider concept of sustainability. Finally, we illustrate how the different concepts can be combined to evaluate pasture-based livestock farming systems from a socio-cultural and economic perspective. The public goods (ecosystem services) provided by representative case studies in Mediterranean and Nordic regions are quantified (also in monetary terms) under different environmental/policy scenarios. The results show that there is a clear underestimation of the socio-cultural and economic values of ecosystem services provided by these farming systems. They also show that the social welfare loss linked to further abandonment of livestock farming, and the associated environmental degradation, is very large. From a societal perspective, it is necessary to jointly measure the biophysical, socio-cultural and monetary values of ecosystem services (market and nonmarket) in order to promote the sustainability of pasture-based livestock systems.

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