Presidents' Reports

The Reports of the following Commissions are available:

Physiology Livestock Farming System Cattle

Pig Sheep and Goats

Report from Physiology Commission

Session 10 was arranged as a joint symposium with ASAS and ADSA to focus on growth. The title of the session: 'EAAP-ASAS-ADSA Growth and Development Symposium' was chosen to illustrate the bonds between the three societies. The session was organized and chaired by Mogens Vestergaard, President of the Commission on Animal Physiology. In order to further strengthen these bonds, two of the three invited speakers (James Sartin and Teresa Davis) came from USA, whereas the third invited speaker (Jean-Francois Houquette) came from France. The sub-title of the session was: ' Methods and animal models used to study physiological aspects of postnatal growth and development in farm animals'. Within this framework, the three invited speakers nicely presented key-lectures to cover this subject giving examples of the methods and animal models used in their study. A number of abstracts submitted to this session was presented as 6 short communications in between the three main talks. Furthermore 10 abstracts were posters, but only 5 posters were presented at the meeting. Three of the 5 missing posters were from Iran. The three invited talks have been considered as potential review papers for ANIMAL, and All three authors have agreed to prepare a manuscript for ANIMAL.

Approximately 70-80 persons were present for the first part and 35-40 at 18.00. The session ended at 18.10.

Session 37 was the Free communication session. This session was organized and chaired by Jozsef Ratky, former vice-president of the Commission on Animal Physiology. The chairman has reviewed the 50 incoming abstracts, rejected some and planned a session with a total of 27 abstracts, of which 6 was presented ad short theatre presentations and 21 as posters. However, 9 posters were missing, especially from Iran. The main subjects of the session were focusing on reproductive physiology. Topics covered different physiological and patophysiological events around birth, lactation, estrous, pregnancy, and spermatology.

Approximately 35-40 people attended the session.

Session 10:
9 theatre presentations. ALL present.
10 posters in the abstract book. But only 5 as posters in Barcelona.
The 5 missing posters were: 10-10, -13, -17, -18 and -19.

Session 37:
6 theatre presentations. ALL present.
21 posters in the abstract book. But only 12 posters in Barcelona.

In total 14 no shows (all posters).

Best presentation:
Session 37, Theatre 6.
Graber, M. et al., Physiological differences between metabolic stable and instable cows.

Best poster:
Session 26, Poster 26-16.
Hameister, T. et al., Age-dependent changes in behavioural and neuroendocrine responses of neonatal pigs exposed to a psychosocial stressor.

 

New member of the Commission

I hereby announce that Dr. Marc-Antoine Driancourt (Intervet Schering Plough) will join our commission starting from June 2010

Mogens Vestergaard
(President of the Physiology Commission)

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Report from Livestock Farming System Commission

Report Session 03. The impact of competition between food, feed and fuel on livestock industry.
Chair: I. A. van der Zijpp. Number of attendants: 70-75

The session was the opening of the Livestock Farming Systems Commission. There were four presentations of 30 minutes and an introduction by the chair. One presentation could not be presented for personal reasons.

There were relatively few appropriate submissions for this session. This reflects the lack of research within the animal sciences addressing this dynamic issue of global and regional importance, and potential consequences of policy making for the development of animal production and consumption of animal products. Moreover it is difficult to attract scientists not directly involved in animal science, even when addressing this area of competition between food, feed and fuel.

The invited speaker was Dr. Scott Radcliffe, sponsored by ASAS presenting the North American policies and experiences of biofuel production and co-products for livestock. Drs. Brendan Lynch and Piet van der Aar presented the European development for the ruminant and pig/poultry sectors. Akke van der Zijpp provided a global picture presenting the dynamics of animal based food and energy consumption related to income, and family size related to income. Given the 2.1 ha of bio-capacity per human being on the earth, urgent attention has to be paid to efficient and integrated production of food, feed and fuel to prevent negative environmental impact and increase poverty. At the end a panel discussion followed the presentations. The first three speakers are considering the submission of a paper to Animal.

Several participants responded direct or through e-mail with further inquiries. The theme or parts thereof could be the basis for future sessions of the LFS Commission and jointly with the Nutrition Commission or the species based Commissions.

Thanks to ASAS for sponsoring Dr. Radcliffe’s participation.

 

Report Session 09. Local breeds: what future? (2) Farming systems & products.
Chair: I. Casasús. Number of attendants: 100-105

This session was organised jointly with the EAAP-FAO-CIHEAM Mediterranean Working Group, and with collaboration from the Sheep and Goat Comission. The session received 42 contributions, of which 2 were invited presentations, 9 were oral communications and 32 were poster presentations.

The invited conferences presented two experiences from Southern and Northern Europe, both describing how local small ruminant production systems could be organised from different aspects (breeding, technical organization, product commercialization) in order to improve the quality of rural livelihood while designing sustainable production systems.

The oral communications regarded Ruminants in arid environments (3 papers, all from Israel), Pig production (3), and the analysis of system Sustainability (3), and were selected to provide a wide view of research carried out in LFS out in all species and across EAAP member countries. The presented posters concerned Cattle production (6), Pig production (2), Sheep-Genetics (4), Sheep-Dairy (4), Sheep-Meat (6), Poultry (4) and Other species (6).

The session run on the fixed time schedule, and although there was interesting debate at the beginning, towards the end the discussion of presentations by the audience was less intense, which was probably due to the length of the session.

 

Report session 20: Are organic farming sustainable?
Chair: J. Hermansen. Number of attendants: 110-115

The session was divided in two parts each of 4 oral contributions. All presenters were present.

Part one included an invited paper from Dr Rotz, US, and focussed on how the organic farm could be managed in order to obtain certain sustainability dimensions. From an overall perspective, probably the presentations focussed too much on single elements in stead of addressing the sustainability in its more general sense.

Part two focused on gas emissions from livestock farms, not in particular dedicated to organic systems.

Finally 30 min. were spent on a general discussion, where poster presenters were offered the possibility to present their poster (1 min). Only two poster presenters used this opportunity.

The general discussion was very lively and revealed that there was a lot of interest in the subject.

Thanks to ADSA for sponsoring Dr. Rotz’s participation.

 

Report Session 27. Methods to assess livestock farming systems dynamics: adaptive strategies to changing socio-economic environment
Chair: S Ingrand. Number of attendants: 80-90

The session received 10 contributions (1 no-show), of which 1 was invited presentation, and there were no posters.

The invited conference was done by the president of the European IFSA group, Dr Ika Darnhoffer. Her presentation explored strategies that allow farmers to resist disruptions while at the same time organizing and influencing transitions, i.e. simultaneously fostering the attributes necessary for stability, adaptability and transformability. The focus was on livestock farming systems, that tend to have long-term investments (e.g., animal housing, milking equipment) and may thus be less able to adapt quickly compared to farms with arable crops.

The oral communications regarded mostly modelling processes: labour, herd functioning in sheep, goats, dairy and beef cattle, trade-offs between production, economics, land use and labour.

One presentation concerned a non European context (ie cattle systems in Uganda), very interesting in a context where the adaptive strategies must deal with no regulations.

The session run on the fixed time schedule, and there was interesting debate all along the session.

 

Report Session 34 – Free Coms
Chair: V. Matlova. Number of attendants: 40-45

The session had 26 contributions, of them 9 were oral communications (all were presented) and 17 poster presentations from which 3 were no-shows.

The oral communications presented first two experiences from Spain related to environmental issues (implementation of the IPPC directive and assessment of Best Available techniques) and results of an extensive EFSA study on the effects of current farming and husbandry systems on dairy cow welfare. The last mentioned raised several questions and discussion.

Next presentation regarded goats (simplified scheme of one-day milking only) raised again debate, as well as two communications concerned dynamics of beef cattle farming within a Protected Geographical Indication scheme, and utilization of adaptive potential of imported dairy breeds.

Last three presentations came from the USA (benefits of using individual animal identification and recording, importance of specific botanical information for precision grazing for controlling noxious weeds and integration sheep into vineyard floor management). Despite late hours, the auditory was interested in presentations and kept listening and discussing.

 

Report Session 44. The role of livestock farming in rural development.
Chair: C. Eilers. Number of attendants: 45-50

The session received 12 contributions, of which 1 was an invited presentation, 8 were oral communications and 3 were poster presentations.

The invited presentation discussed the social and cultural meanings of livestock farming in Norway and the Netherlands and how this can be used in the development of the rural areas in Western Societies. A lively discussion about social and cultural meanings and the relevance for livestock farming arose from this presentation.

The oral communications regarded differentiated pig production systems in Europe, analyzing of grassland use of livestock farms in France, identifying farm typologies in a risk area for abandonment in the Pyrenees (Spain), smallholder cattle production dynamics in the Northern region of South Africa, local cattle breeds and performance potentials and obstacles in Iran and an ethnography of a Finnish fur farmer. The presentations showed us the different roles of livestock in rural development on three different continents, with different opportunities and obstacles.

The presented posters concerned management of high ecological value grasslands in Belgium, farming styles and local development in Europe and possible consequences of these farming styles and sustainable livestock production in Serbia mountain regions.

The session was held on the last day of a full congress in the morning, the attendance was satisfactory and the discussions were lively.

 

BEST ORAL PRESENTATION AND POSTER

• Best oral: S44 T6 Identifying farm typologies in an abandonment risk area in the Pyrenees (Spain), by López-I-Gelats, F., Milán, M.J. and Bartolomé, J., Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona.
• Best poster: S34 P15 The competitive and sustainable stockman is labor efficient, by Bostad, E. and Swensson, C., Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences.

Alberto Bernuès
(President of the Livestock Farming System Commission)

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Report from Pig Commission

Summary of Session 18 - Practical implementation of MAS in pigs and poultry
Chair: P.W. Knap, Germany

General Comment

This session covered the state of the art of implementation of a novel technology by the animal breeding industry, with contributions mainly made by breeding organizations. Although this is a risky topic to organize (the session organizer depends very much on the willingness of industry players to present their current R&D in public), this particular session had a surprisingly large number of contributions. The session was very well attended by a lively audience, but suffered much from the architecture of the auditorium that made it very difficult for the chairman to see the audience, and for speaker and chairman to communicate with each other on the stage.

Theatre contributions

This session comprised six invited papers and five contributed ones. The authors of the invited papers had challenged the session chairman (also an industry representative) to present about the state of the art in his own breeding company, and this also served as the session introduction. The main message from this presentation was that the implementation of MAS is a long and sometimes complicated gradual growth process, with as main features (i) the recognition that DNA markers need to be handled as random variables once they are implemented in any considerable volume, and (ii) the more or less seamless development of conventional MAS into genomic selection.

Four presentations covered the practicalities of implementation of one or two markers with large effects on the target trait (muscle development, sperm motility, E. coli resistance) into existing breeding programs. These schemes run at limited costs and the impact of the marker on overall genetic improvement in traits other than the target trait is usually limited – so the MAS scheme is more or less a stand-alone factor in the breeding program. One presentation covered work on 16 markers (linked to four QTL that code for several growth and carcass traits) with the final aim to increase uniformity of parent females; the outcome of this is still uncertain due to difficulties with data acquisition on the commercial level.

The seventh presentation looked at four possible ways of applying MAS in practical breeding: (i) single genes, with as opportunities: simple implementation with clear benefits and no need for further testing after allele fixation, and limitations: the cost of producing unwanted heterozygotes, possible lack of genetic variation, and the poor availability of identified major genes; (ii) polygenic traits under selection (e.g. the conventional production traits), with as opportunities: enhanced genetic progress and improved early selection on traits measured in older animals, and limitations: the cost of MAS relative to the value of the extra improvement, and the poor current development of the required computer systems; (iii) polygenic traits not under selection (e.g. boar taint) with as opportunities: the best or even only option to target acute problem traits with a large impact on the trait, and the possibility of a fast uptake of research findings, and limitations: complicated large-scale phenotyping and expensive R&D; and (iv) solving herd problems, with as opportunities: the possibility to target very specific conditions,.most suited to identifying causative mutations, and as limitations: lack of academic focus, and frequent oversimplification of the genetic background of the problem trait.

Two presentations focused on the application of genomic selection in pigs, one by modelling a scheme for the improvement of litter size with an assessment of genetic progress as a function of the genotyping volume in calibration (i.e. the estimation of marker effects) and selection (i.e. the estimation of breeding values that make use of those marker effects), culminating in an assessment of return on investment as a function of both. The other presentation covered the usage of genomic models to estimate trait heritabilities, and concluded that the genomic approach provides more accurate heritability estimates and much higher reliabilities of estimated breeding values; in other words: genomic selection actually works in this pig population.

The two final presentations covered genomic selection in existing breeding programs. One focused on the required volume of the reference population (the same as the calibration dataset above, used for marker effect estimation), which produced a curve of EBV accuracy as a function of genotyping volume that showed the expected asymptotical pattern. This curve showed a counter-intuitive tendency to go down again at high genotyping volumes, which was explained by a limited number of reference animals so that the ones chosen last had lower phenotype reliabilities which result in lower accuracies of the marker effect estimates. The other presentation gave an overview of the implementation of an existing genomic selection program, with as main messages that (i) anything that can go wrong will actually go wrong unless the whole process is kept under rigid control with well-developed reality checks, and (ii) it is still uncertain if the return of investment will be positive.

 

Summary of Session 26 - Physiology and genetics of stress and behaviour
Chair: X. Manteca, Spain

General Comment

A total of 9 papers were delivered during this session, including 2 invited key note papers and 7 shorter presentations. In fact, the program included 10 papers but one of the speakers could not attend due to personal problems. The session was well attended and the audience was very proactive in providing challenging questions and prompting discussion at the end of each paper. The chairman introduced the session by explaining its objectives and by emphasising the relationship between production, welfare and stress. The two objectives of the session were (1) to further understand the physiological mechanisms underlying individual differences in behaviour and in the stress response and (2) to discuss the possibility to improve welfare and production through genetic selection focusing on behaviour and stress.

Theatre contributions

The first keynote invited lecture dealt with the molecular genetics of the stress response in pigs. The speaker briefly reviewed the physiology of the stress response and the concept of robustness. He then went on to describe the positive and negative effects of the activation of the HPA axis on health and production, and concluded with a discussion on the possibilities to use genetic selection to modify the HPA axis activity.

The second paper was a short presentation on biomarkers for recovery for stress in pig muscles. The paper was of interest from both a theoretical and an applied standpoint, as the candidate biomarkers may be useful to determine optimal resting times during lairage in pigs.

The third paper (also a short presentation) dealt with genes involved in aggressive pecking (as opposed to feather pecking) in laying hens. The results were preliminary but, if confirmed, may contribute to a better understanding of this behaviour and to possible remedial measures through genetic selection.

The second keynote invited lecture reviewed the genetics of several behavioural patterns of pigs that are important from the standpoint of welfare or production. These include aggressive and social behaviour, fear and maternal behaviour. The genetics of these behaviours was reviewed and the possibilities of selecting pig behaviour were discussed. The paper prompted a lively discussion on the ethical limits of genetic selection as a tool to modify the behaviour and the general biology of domestic animals.

The two following short papers dealt with aggressive behaviour in pigs mainly after mixing of unacquainted animals. The papers reviewed the importance of this behaviour, the extent of individual differences in the expression of aggressive behaviour in pigs and the relationship between aggression, stress response and meat quality.

The next short paper was on temperament and maternal abilities of two breeds of pigs (Meishan and Large White) kept in a loose-housing system during lactation. The paper presented results on breed differences in behaviour during the adaptation period to the loose-housing system and at farrowing. Interestingly, it was shown that in Large White sows standing more during the adaptation period could be a sign of higher anxiety and predicted poor maternal behaviour.

The session ended with two short papers on cattle. The first of the two looked at calf temperament with the final aim of developing a reliable test to assess temperament. The last paper dealt with lying behaviour in dairy cows and how it is affected by high milk production. The paper concluded that the consequences of continued selection for higher milk yield may include a shorter lying time that could have negative effects on welfare.

The session ended as scheduled.

 

Summary of Session 42 - Health Issues and Immunocompetence in Pig Production
Chair: S.A. Chadd, UK

General Comment

This was a joint session with the Physiology Commission.
A total of 7 papers were delivered during this session. These included an invited key note paper followed by 6 shorter presentations. The papers represented research work conducted in 6 different countries. The session was well attended and the audience was very proactive in providing challenging questions and prompting discussion at the end of each paper. The chairman introduced the session by emphasising the main theme, an examination of those factors which compromise immunocompetency in pigs, linked to health and welfare issues in modern commercial production. The sequence of the papers was deliberate to progress the theme one which had particular combined relevance to the Pig and Physiology Commissions of EAAP. The chairman set the scene by stressing the importance of optimal nutrition in the life of the new born piglet and through the early rearing stages in support of an enhanced immune function. Nutrition management plays a vital role in the development of immune systems. Research endeavour has shown that specific nutritional support strategies might well include nucleotide sources in addition to beneficial oligosaccharide molecules and B-glucan sources. Feed hygiene and quality were of paramount importance in the avoidance of immune suppression scenarios and this included ensuring the absence of potential mycotoxin contamination.

Theatre contributions

The first invited paper pursued the subject of immune function in relation to mycotoxin challenge in young piglets. An account of the associated research carried out at INRA, Toulouse was given. The contrast was made between weaning age under natural conditions for the pig and the challenge imposed through domestication and early weaning scenarios in respect of immature gut development. The matter of contamination of pig feeds due to the presence of mycotoxins with increasing frequency, was articulated. Physiologically such toxic substances invariably produce immunosuppression in the young pig and manifested as depressed T or B lymphocyte activity. Such a compromised immune status can render the pig exposed to other infectious diseases and impaired productivity.

The second presentation was given by a researcher based at the Scottish Agricultural College, UK. The paper provided a valuable insight into the mechanisms underlying within host-virus dynamics and the host’s immune response. Although molecular techniques have greatly assisted the understanding of such, answers to the questions which remain it was argued, could benefit from the consideration and application of mathematical models approach. The Porcine Reproduction and Respiratory Syndrome (PRRS) was the example provided and investigated on this basis and methodology. Mathematical formulae were suggested which incorporated as a model, could help elucidate the understanding of complex host-virus interactions and which could result in achieving enhanced disease resistance.

The third speaker from Spain described an experiment which was designed to observe the effect on Salmonella typhimurium - challenged pigs when the diets fed contained spray dried porcine plasma and plasma fractions. Based on and using these protein preparations the experimental design incorporated one treatment which included a concentrated IgG and the other, a concentrated albumen fraction. Outcomes were compared with a control group. At 7 days post-weaning the experimental animals were challenged with S.typhimurium. Results indicated that the group fed the IgG preparation had the greatest impact on reducing Salmonella shedding and benefit to growth performance although it would appear that the incorporation of plasma and associated fractions in general provided commercial advantage to young pig performance and health status.

The focus of the fourth theatre presentation was the troubling effect of coliform mastitis (CM) which occurred in sows after farrowing. Such a condition produced negative effects on lactation performance and, therefore, compromised piglet and litter performance in turn. The disease is considered to be multifactorial and influenced by, in addition to the pathogenic disease- causing organism, more general management factors. Research at the University of Kiel, Germany was reported on. Milk samples were extracted from 284 sows with CM together with the equivalent number of non- infected sows. Results were interpreted with regard to the line, cycles, number of piglets born alive and farm factors. A wide spectrum of pathogens was isolated, mainly Coliform types in both groups. A combination of bacteria, environment and animal factors appeared to influence the susceptibility for the condition CM. A holistic approach to the prevention, control and treatment of such a disease was considered most beneficial and effective and recommended as an outcome.

Some work at Wageningen University by a researcher from the Animal Sciences Group was reported on in the fifth presentation. Consideration was given to the health and welfare needs of the sow in relation to farrowing systems and farrowing crate design features in particular. The definition of ‘optimal welfare’ and how this might be explained in practice was difficult. Differentiation was made between a natural, facilitated and deficient environment -as perceived from a sow’s perspective. Fifteen fundamental needs of the sow were identified as a result of the research investigation including varied behavioural and physical environmental states. Such outcomes and observations provided a basis for producing and designing more acceptable housing systems in the future in order to enhance the welfare status of sows around the critical period of parturition.

Continuing the focus on sows, the final two theatre contributions dealt with the problem of shoulder ulcers and sores. Both papers provided experimental feedback on research conducted at the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences. The first of the two studies looked at the possible courses of variation which appeared to include body condition of sows, health status and floor condition (type) in particular. A study was, therefore, carried out using 60 herds and 2668 lactating sows and these were scored for the presence and severity of shoulder sore conditions. Results showed that sows in good body condition had a reduced incidence of this condition; the prevalence was higher when the slatted dunging area was made of plastic or cast iron compared with concrete slats. It was concluded that healthy sows with good body condition in a welfare-friendly environment had a lower risk and susceptibility to the incidence of shoulder sores. The final paper considered a possible genetic association with this condition. Genetic background analysis was carried out on 2,699 Norwegian Landrace sows. Variance components were estimated using a single trait animal model including the effects of parity, month of farrowing, herd and regressions of litter size and age at weaning carried out. The heritability for shoulder sores was estimated at 0.14 + 0.04.This would seem to indicate that this condition should be a matter of concern in breeding programmes. Other genetic corrections with other commercial traits of interest were yet to be estimated.

 

Summary of Session 51 - Management of pig feeding: health, environment and social implications
Chair: D. Torrallardona, Spain

This was a joint session with the Nutrition Commission, and consisted of a total eight theatre contributions (one invited).
Núria Canibe, from the University of Aarhus (Denmark) was the invited speaker for this session. She presented results from her group on the use of fermented liquid feeding for pigs. Emphasis was put on the microbiological composition of fermented liquid feed and its effects on pig’s gastrointestinal health and growth performance. Special attention was also given to the degradation of free lyisine in the feed by some microorganisms, and how the technological processing of feed (pelleting) prior to fermentation may overcome this problem. This was followed by an oral contribution by Stefan Kruse from the University of Kiel (Germany), describing the water and feed intake and the eating rank of group-housed pregnant sows fed with electronic feeders. It was reported that first parity class sows drank less water than second or third parity class sows, whereas first and second parity sows tended to have a higher feed intake than third parity class sows. Eating rank increased with the stay of the sows within the dynamic sow group. Patrick Varley from University College Dublin (Ireland) presented the results of a study on the effects of dietary crude protein level on phosphorus metabolism in a low and high P diet supplemented with phytase. Some interactions between protein and P level were described. At high P levels, a higher P retention was reported in pigs fed low crude protein compared to high protein diets, but no effect of crude protein on P retention was observed with the low P diets. Also, for the high protein diets, there was a higher P digestibility for the low P diets than for the high P diets, but there was no effect of P level at the low levels of CP. Joaquin Morales, on behalf of Carlos Piñeiro, from PigCHAMP Pro Europa, Spain, presented the economic evaluation of the use of low protein diets as best available technique for the reduction of ammonia emissions from Spanish pig farms. They concluded that the cost of implementing this BAT is variable and depends on the prices of soybean meal and synthetic amino acids. Similarly, Nadine Guingand, from IFIP Institut du Porc, France, evaluated the impact of implementing different best available techniques under french pig production conditions on the environment (including ammoniac, odours, water and energy), considering, when possible economic and welfare aspects. Grainne Meade from University College Dublin (Ireland) presented the results of a field trial to study the ammonia and nitrous oxide emissions following land application of high and low nitrogen pig manures to winter wheat at different growth stages. It was reported that the high N manure resulted in higher emissions than the low N manure, (as expected), and that the ammonia and nitrous oxide emissions decreased as the development of the crop advanced. Ulrich Baulain, from the Institute of Farm Animal Genetics Mariensee, Germany, presented their results on the influence of varying proportion of Duroc genes (0, 25, 50, and 75%) on fattening, carcass and meat characteristics in organic pig production. 75% of Duroc genes resulted in the highest feed intake and worse feed conversion, whereas lean meat content was superior for the pigs with 0 and 50% of Duroc genes. The intramuscular fat content increased with the proportion Duroc genes. If was concluded that in a carcass quality based marketing system Duroc gene percentage should not exceed 50%, and that 25% Duroc genes are effective in promoting meat quality. Finally, N.H. Mohan from the National Research Centre on Pig, ICAR, India, described their evaluation of resource based pig feeding and management system in households of North Eastern India. The pig husbandry practices in this region were described and its economic impact in the local communities was assessed. The study concluded that the pig farming can be improved with respect to feeding and breeding.

Business meeting

Two items were covered: selecting the Pig Commission topics for the 2010 conference, and the re-election of secretary Xavier Manteca, vice-president David Torrallardona and president Pieter Knap. All three we re-elected.

Pieter W. Knap
(President of the Pig Commission)

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Report from Sheep and Goats Commission

In the 2009 EAAP meeting, the Commission on Sheep and Goat Production participated in five joint sessions. For the two sessions on “Local breeds: what future?”, one on Selection and one on Farming systems and products, the commission proposed two invited speakers dealing with topics related to small ruminants (R. Baumung and L.O. Eik). Aspects of sheep and goat breeding were an important part of the joint session with the Animal Genetics Commission on “Selection in harsh environments: methods and results” which included free communications on Sheep and Goat Genetics.

In addition to the session on “Sheep and Goat organic farming and product marketing” where contributions from the host country Spain were presented, the commission organised three sessions with free communications; one consisting of contributions dealing with reproduction, one on breeding and feeding, and the general free communications session following the business meeting.
The commission got also involved in the organisation of the meeting of the Animal Fibre Working Group and will, in the future, intensify the cooperation through the joint organisation of sessions.

In its business meeting, the commission re-elected the vice-presidents Christos Papachristoforou (Cyprus) and Ferdinand Ringdorfer (Austria). The programme for next years’ meeting in Crete was discussed and a lot of interesting ideas were collected. Because small ruminants play an important role in this region, topics related to sheep and goats will be of particular interest in the 2010 meeting of EAAP.

Roman Niznikowski presented a proposal to establish an EAAP Sheep and Goat Network, similar to the existing EAAP Cattle and Horse Networks. The proposal was welcomed and Roman Niznikowski and Matthias Gauly were commissioned to elaborate more detailed ideas on both topics to include in the working programme and on organisational aspects. The project will be presented to next year’s business meeting.

The Barcelona meeting has been very busy and successful for our commission. The chairpersons of the sessions, the speakers, authors of posters and participants in the discussions, all have contributed to this success and to the continuing improvement of the scientific quality of the meeting.

Markus Schneeberger
(President of Sheep and Goat Commission)
 

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Report from Cattle Commission

The Commission on Cattle Production had a very successful programme at the 60th Annual Meeting in Barcelona. Our commission headed five sessions. 51 papers and 39 posters were submitted to our commission. All sessions received about equal attention looking at oral presentations, which is quite different from previous years when the free communication sessions were overcrowded. However, posters are still mainly send to free communication sessions. Only a very small number of papers and posters were no show. All the sessions were well attended: from about 40 (last day session free communication) till about 180 participants (first day session about cattle breeding and globalisation).

The meeting was for the first time a combination of scientific program and workshops. This way the meeting was condensed. It became clear that a close cooperation with the Cattle Network working group is needed. The programmes and especially the acceptance procedure of abstracts needs to be harmonized. More than half of the oral presenters and posters in the Cattle Network session did not show up, which is embarrassing. Afterwards the agreement is made that the Cattle Commission will take care of the administrative aspects concerning this working group session.

As in previous years we had a few successful joint sessions with other commissions. The joint Session 4 about “Impact of global market on cattle breeding programs and practices” on Monday morning August 24 together with Interbull was really of good quality and interest. Professor Jarmo Juga from University of Helsinki, Finland put a lot of effort in the realisation of this program. He chaired this program together with Professor George Thaller from University of Kiel, Germany. The papers of this session will be published in the Interbull Bulletin. The assistance with technical equipment was well taken care of by the organisers. However the room for this particular session was too small and a group of persons had to stand all morning.
Aim of the session was to provide an insight in developments of animal breeding in the future under the trend of globalisation. Paul Vanraden from USA and Filipo Miglior from Canada presented as main speakers nice overviews of breeding programs in historic and future perspectives. Mr. Bo from Viking Genetics , Denmark enjoyed the audience with examples taken from the applied field of cattle breeding. He showed a long time experience and to be open minded towards the future. Another 7 interesting papers completed this session.

The session on “Non production traits and management of beef and dairy husbandry” (11), was a continuation of the sessions in Vilnius meeting on fertility and mastitis. It was chaired by Mike Coffey of SAC, UK. As main speaker the floor was given to Professor Jeffrey Bewley from University of Kentucky, USA who explained the possibilities of precision farming to measure physiological, behavioural and production indicators. The session was completed with another 10 papers covering a wide variety of topics ranging from body condition scoring, hoof diseases, strategies in genomic dairy cattle breeding programs to heat detection.

In session 21 on “What contributes to low still birth and successful herd replacement in cattle?”, chaired by Jean-Francois Hocquette from INRA, France on Tuesday afternoon, the invited speakers presented two very exhaustive reviews (more than 30 min each). The first one by French scientists described the key points of heifer management from the animal point of view (carcass composition, gut capacity, productive potential, reproduction performances) and the farmer point of view (growth pattern, behaviour in groups, consequences on environment). The second presentation by Irish scientists reviewed current information on embryonic and early foetal losses in cattle with some focus on the factors that affect their incidence in order to propose potential avenues to increase embryo and foetal survival rates. In addition, short communications were presented by scientists from Austria (on genetic parameters for heifer mortality), Germany, USA (both on genetic analysis of dystocia, stillbirth and milk production), Belgium, Uruguay (both on reproduction performances), and France (on calving ability). About 70 to 90 persons attended this session with good discussions after each talk. In addition two posters on water intake by heifers and genetic analysis of diseases were presented by German and Danish scientists respectively.
This topic attracted more participants than was anticipated and was therefore a successful choice.

The Session “Cattle Production Free Communications” (38) took place on Wednesday afternoon, August 26. It was preceded by the Cattle Commission Business Meeting. The first of two Free Communication sessions of the Cattle Commission was organized and chaired by Gerry Keane, Grange Beef Research Centre, Ireland. Approximately 60 people attended. There were 9 speakers listed and all but one was present. All the Free Communications posters (34) were also listed for this session. Six of the posters did not appear. In organizing the two Free Communication sessions, beef cattle and environment related papers were assigned to Session 38 while dairying and nutrition papers were assigned to Session 54. The 8 papers in Session 38 came from 8 different countries – Hungary, Uruguay, Ireland, Denmark, United Kingdom, Spain and France. The topics addressed included use of ultrasonography on the live animal to predict carcass characteristics, relationship between beef genetic merit for growth and carcass traits, use of near infrared reflectance spectroscopy to predict beef meat quality, relevance of the Meat Standards Australia beef quality prediction system to France, performance and health of veal calves as affected by degree of grain processing, methane emissions from extensive cattle systems in Spain, modeling CO2 and trace gas emissions for milk production systems and relationship of low body condition and calf suckling restriction on calf performance in range conditions in Uruguay. All papers generated considerable discussion which was more easily accommodated by the absence of the final paper. All the presentations were novel and original and contributed to both science and practice.

Session 54 “Cattle Production Free Communications” took place on Thursday afternoon, August 27. It was chaired by Marija Klopcic, Biotechnical Faculty, University of Ljubljana, Slovenia. Dr. Klopcic introduced each speaker with describing their backgrounds. This made a good impression. This session was mainly devoted to dairying, while the other Free Communication session 38 focussed on beef. Approximately 45 people attended this session at the last afternoon of the meeting. A few presentations missed. A very young group of persons presented their work. Several Ph.D. theses were discussed. The session took all afternoon and there was quite some discussion. It was therefore a successful session.

In the “Business Meeting of Cattle Commission”, chaired by the President Abele Kuipers, topics of importance for the near future were prepared. In Creta, Greece, 2010, attention for harsh circumstances and robust farming systems will be high on the agenda. The overall conclusion in last meetings was that the strength and longevity of cattle, especially of the Holstein-Friesian breed needs to be improved. Therefore, mastitis and fertility of cattle is again on the agenda. Also chairpersons for the Cattle Sessions have been discussed.
The next topics were mentioned:

From Greece organisers

• Reducing still birth and improvement of survival rate of cattle
• Cattle efficiency in harsh and hot environments

From Cattle commission members and others present:

• Mastitis and fertility of cattle from view of economics and animal welfare
• Impact of food demand on the traits in breeding goals of cattle
• New issues in beef quality from the view of meat industry and consumer perception
• Low risk animal (cattle) production system (antibiotics, diseases, labour, environment, investment…)
• Cattle efficiency in extreme (hot/cold…) environments
• Lameness and locomotion in cattle in relation to animal and farm factors
• Data processing in cattle husbandry
• Free communication – dairy
• Free communication - beef

Professor Carla Lazzaroni from University of Torino, Department of Animal Science, Italy, was elected as Vice-President of the Cattle Commission of EAAP.

As best oral presentation was elected Caroline Carlstrom from the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, Department of Animal Breeding and Genetics, Uppsala, with paper “Phenotypic and genetic variation in milk flow for dairy cattle in automatic milking systems”. The authors were: Carlström, C., Pettersson, G., Johansson, K., Stålhammar, H. and Philipsson, J.
As best poster was elected Federico Vincenti from Council for Research in Agriculture, Research centre for meat production and genetic improvement, Rome, Italy with study “

Effect of animal welfare and feeding system on Charolais young bulls meat quality”. The authors were Vincenti, F., Iacurto, M., Capitani, G., Gaviraghi, A. and Gigli, S.

This year was published the EAAP scientific book no 126 entitled ”Breeding for Robustness in Cattle” with editors Marija Klopčič, Reinhard Reents, Jan Philipsson and Abele Kuipers. This was a result of the very successful all day joint meeting of Cattle Commission, Genetics Commission and Interbull about this topic in Dublin, Ireland, 2007. It was the first attempt to gather knowledge in this field of robustness in the cattle sector. Also, an EAAP Technical publication no 10 was published as result of the joint workshop of the Cattle Network working group, Cattle Commission and Central and Eastern European working group in Vilnius, 2008. The publication covers “The Cattle Sector in Central and Eastern Europe - Developments and opportunities in a time of transition”, editors Kurt Peters, Abele Kuipers, Gerry Keane and Andie Dimitriadou. The publication is comprised of 13 contributions: four overview articles, one on the topic of animal welfare and eight country reports. It was a follow-up of the workshop organised in Bled , Slovenia 2004 dealing with the consequences of EU entry for the “new countries’. This was reported in EAAP Technical publication no 8.

It is very desirable that the scientific sessions at EAAP will be evaluated. Quite a variability in quality and organisational skills between sessions can be observed. The EAAP Scientific Committee has started to perform an evaluation in the previous annual meeting. It is a self evaluation by the Study Commission members of their own sessions. The Cattle Commission decided to collect judgements from the audience. About 10 persons in the audience of each session completed an evaluation form. The results gave several clear signals, actually more than expected. Especially the lack on discussion time and the guidance by chairmen were indicated as points of attention. Sometimes quite surprising comments were given which may move us to more self reflection on our roles

Abele Kuipers
(President of the Cattle Commission)