SmartCow
An integrated infrastructure for increased research capability and innovation in the European cattle sector.
SmartCow brings together key European cattle research infrastructures to promote their coordinated use and development, and thereby help the European cattle sector face the challenge of sustainable production.
Covering all relevant scientific fields, cattle types and production systems, SmartCow provides academic and private research communities with easy access to 11 major research infrastructures (RIs) from 7 countries, and high quality services and resources.
Access to these resources will allow development of innovative and ethical solutions for efficient use of animal and feed resources that promote animal welfare and healthy livestock, as well as sustainable competitiveness.
SmartCow combines strong scientific and technical skills in animal nutrition (in vivo methods for nutrient utilization and emissions measurements), genetics (genotyped animals, phenotyping capabilities), health and welfare (sensors and automatic recordings of physiological and behavioural traits) and ethics in animal experimentation.
SmartCow involves combinations of:
- Networking activities (NA) will create an inventory of RIs and capabilities in European countries, standardise measurements methods, ensure common standards (notably through improvement of cattle phenotyping ontology) and create a cloud-based data platform to store and share data and disseminate project outcomes and involve stakeholders;
- Transnational access activities (TNA) will provide efficient and easy access to a wide range of cattle types, husbandry and feeding systems, and to the most advanced animal science technologies for cattle;
- Joint research activities (JRA) will improve the quality and ethics of research services, through advances in the capabilities of investigating feed efficiency and emissions in cattle at a large scale, and will look to validate data coming from sensors monitoring nutrition, health and behaviour.
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SmartCow involves 14 partners from 9 different countries and has received funding from the European Commission (through the Horizon 2020 programme INFRAIA-2017-01 call) for a project period of 4 years (2018-22).
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