Some €4.25m has been allocated to develop a new Science Foundation Ireland research centre – the SFI FutureMilk Centre – in 2018.
First announced during the budget, the FutureMilk Centre is to be an agent of growth for the Irish dairy industry by being a world leader in research for precision pasture-based dairying, according to the Government.
Among other research, the centre aims to develop the science and technology to find new ways to:
Facilitate the consistent production of 20t of dry matter per hectare of high-quality pasture, without repercussions for farm environmental footprint.To reduce the calving interval of Irish dairy cows from the current mean of 392 to 377 days within 10 years.To reduce the cow infertility rate from 22% to 14% within the next 10 years. To explore the development of novel high-value products for export to lucrative markets. Director of the centre, Dr Donagh Berry from Teagasc said: “The FutureMilk Centre aims to be an agent of growth for the Irish dairy industry by being a world leader in fundamental and translational research for precision pasture-based dairying.
“The vision of the FutureMilk Centre is to be a world leader in the agri-food technology sector through innovation and enhanced sustainability across the dairy supply chain, positively impacting the environment, animal wellbeing and the health of consumers,’’ Berry said.
“This will be achieved by greatly improving the soil-to-gut supply chain connectivity, thereby improving resource efficiency, better meeting consumers’ expectations and improving profitability and resilience,” he said.
The centre consists of one director and five co-applicants, with skill sets in agriculture, food, sensing, communications and analytics.
They will be supported by 22 funded investigators, 43 academic collaborators and 46 industry collaborators.
The project will also hire 30 postdoctoral researchers and 54 postgraduate students.
Some €4.25m has been allocated to develop a new Science Foundation Ireland research centre – the SFI FutureMilk Centre – in 2018.
First announced during the budget, the FutureMilk Centre is to be an agent of growth for the Irish dairy industry by being a world leader in research for precision pasture-based dairying, according to the Government.
Among other research, the centre aims to develop the science and technology to find new ways to:
Facilitate the consistent production of 20t of dry matter per hectare of high-quality pasture, without repercussions for farm environmental footprint.To reduce the calving interval of Irish dairy cows from the current mean of 392 to 377 days within 10 years.To reduce the cow infertility rate from 22% to 14% within the next 10 years. To explore the development of novel high-value products for export to lucrative markets. Director of the centre, Dr Donagh Berry from Teagasc said: “The FutureMilk Centre aims to be an agent of growth for the Irish dairy industry by being a world leader in fundamental and translational research for precision pasture-based dairying.
“The vision of the FutureMilk Centre is to be a world leader in the agri-food technology sector through innovation and enhanced sustainability across the dairy supply chain, positively impacting the environment, animal wellbeing and the health of consumers,’’ Berry said.
“This will be achieved by greatly improving the soil-to-gut supply chain connectivity, thereby improving resource efficiency, better meeting consumers’ expectations and improving profitability and resilience,” he said.
The centre consists of one director and five co-applicants, with skill sets in agriculture, food, sensing, communications and analytics.
They will be supported by 22 funded investigators, 43 academic collaborators and 46 industry collaborators.
The project will also hire 30 postdoctoral researchers and 54 postgraduate students.
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