Christine F. Baes
,
Centre for the Genetic Improvement of Livestock, Department of Animal Biosciences, University of Guelph, Guelph, ON, Canada
Angela Cánovas
,
Centre for the Genetic Improvement of Livestock, Department of Animal Biosciences, University of Guelph, Guelph, ON, Canada
Mike Coffey
,
Scotland’s Rural College, Easter Bush, United Kingdom
Erin E. Connor
,
Animal Genomics and Improvement Laboratory, USDA-ARS, Beltsville, MD
Birgit Gredler
,
Qualitas AG, Zug, Switzerland
Getu Hailu
,
University of Guelph, Guelph, ON, Canada
Vern Osborne
,
University of Guelph, Guelph, ON, Canada
Jennie Pryce
,
Department of Environment and Primary Industries / La Trobe University, Victoria, Australia
Mehdi Sargolzaei
,
Semex Alliance, Saint-Hyacinthe, QC, Canada
Flavio Schenkel
,
Centre for the Genetic Improvement of Livestock, Department of Animal Biosciences, University of Guelph, Guelph, ON, Canada
Zhiquan Wang
,
University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB, Canada
Paul Stothard
,
Department of Agricultural, Food and Nutritional Science, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB, Canada
Filippo Miglior
,
Centre for the Genetic Improvement of Livestock, Department of Animal Biosciences, University of Guelph, Guelph, ON, Canada
Genomic technology (including SNP arrays and next-generation sequencing) is a powerful driver for the genetic improvement of livestock. Strategic phenotyping of several thousand genotyped animals may now suffice for effective selection within an entire population. Rapid development of new technologies and precision farming allow more precise / automatic measurement of existing or new traits.
In collaboration with partners from Australia, Switzerland, the United Kingdom, and the United States, we present a genomics-based approach to improve feed efficiency and reduce methane emissions in dairy cattle. The foundation of this research is the collection of individual daily feed intake and methane emission data for cows and heifers in Canada, as well as feed efficiency and methane emission data from partner countries. The ultimate outcome of this major research initiative will be routine genetic evaluation services for feed efficiency and methane emission to allow for genetic selection and improvement of these novel traits.
The results of this $10 million project are expected to improve feed efficiency of dairy cattle and reduce the environmental footprint of the dairy industry, in part due to lower methane emissions and reduced land required for feed production.
