Animal Handling and Welfare

Structural characterization of production systems and study of production costs in livestock farms. Establishment of typologies to represent the characteristics of the different types of farms and systems in use.

Researchers

Jordi Bartolomé Filella
Josep Gasa Gasó
María José Milán Sendra
Josepa Plaixats Boixadera

Projects

Competitiveness of the dairy sector: from data to decisions
The dairy sector is facing difficulties due to the reduction in milk prices and the increase in the cost of feed. The need to improve the competitiveness of the dairy company requires decisions that are often difficult to evaluate because they are highly dependent on many economic and technical factors and their interactions. The aim of this project is to integrate animal knowledge, on-farm data from milking machines, management software and sensors, along with artificial intelligence techniques to develop an application to produce additional knowledge (scientific objective) and recommend actions at agricultural level (applied objective). The project is structured in four main tasks: 1) Automated data collection from the different platforms and their consolidation in a single database; 2) Application of artificial intelligence techniques to develop a knowledge-based system to interpret farm data. We propose using different methodologies such as neural networks, machine learning, data mining and knowledge discovery. The system will provide recommendations for actions that will be evaluated based on uncertain risk, risk and economic; 3) Validation of the system under field conditions by implementing the knowledge system in three farms; and 4) Development of a software application in a web environment that allows for easy access and use by professionals.
Contact person: J. Francisco Pérez Hernández (josefrancisco.perez@uab.cat)