Putting the i in livestock: innovation for a productive and sustainable livestock farming

The ATF Special Session focussed on farmers: how farmers arrange innovation, how research can contribute to innovation on farm, and how farmers can contribute to applicable research. The Session addressed best practices of innovative farmers from across Europe.

With the start of the European Innovation Partnership on Agricultural Productivity and Sustainability (EIP-Agri) in 2014, more emphasize will be paid to multi‐actor innovation with farmers in the lead and research in a support role. Bringing research to practice will be more and more important. A key role in this process and in the EIP-Agri is reserved to farmers. With this Special Session the ATF and EAAP intended to contribute to the understanding of the roles of farmers and their interaction with scientists in innovation processes.

The Animal Task Force’s 4^th Seminar ‘Putting the i in livestock- innovating for a competitive and sustainable livestock sector’ brought to light new challenges to innovate for a sustainable livestock sector. The seminar focused on key challenges for innovation and ways to turn the excellent research being done in Europe into practice. Inspiring examples from innovative businesses were central at the seminar. Representatives from Ynsect, UNIFORM-Agri, Elanco and Vencomatic Group presented examples of enabling technologies for societal change from their companies. Together with key-note speakers from the research arena and policy-makers, the discussion focussed on how we can further enhance innovation that supports a sustainable development of a competitive animal sector in Europe.