Automated phenotyping: IMAGEN & Breed4Food Individual Tracking symposium

Automated phenotyping in animal science and genetics research

Genomic breeding programs have been paramount in improving genetic progress of productive efficiency traits and overall health in livestock. These improvements have been accompanied by high-throughput phenotyping. At the same time, a greater public awareness of animal welfare has resulted in livestock producers to focus more on animal health and well-being. Consequently, management practices and breeding technologies in livestock production have evolved, and developments in the field of precision livestock farming have promoted the use of automated phenotyping in animal breeding and genetics research. Large-scale and accurate phenotypic data are now required for successful breeding programs. For example, digital image analysis – the process of extracting valuable information from images – can be used as input for imaging processing techniques with direct application for livestock phenotyping. Also, a wide variety of welfare indicator traits can be derived from modern technology like activity monitors, automatic feeding systems, and other sensors.

Individual Tracking symposium

At the IMAGEN and Breed4Food Individual Tracking symposium national and international speakers will discuss a range of topics, including computer vision, sensor technologies, dealing with big data, animal behaviour and welfare, and implementations in practice. It is promising to be an informative and inspiring symposium, with speakers from Wageningen University & Research (WUR), Eindhoven University of Technology (TU/e), Michigan State University and Newcastle University, as well as speakers from companies such as Hendrix Genetics, Topigs Norsvin and FarmResult.

The symposium is free of charge but registration is required before the 19th of September. If you wish to join the symposium, please register here. The symposium includes lunch and will be closed with drinks and networking.

About Breed4Food and IMAGEN

Breed4Food is a consortium established by Wageningen University & Research (WUR) and four international animal breeding companies: CRV, Hendrix Genetics, Topigs Norsvin and Cobb Europe. The Breed4Food program focuses on the development of innovative research projects in three major research areas. Across these three areas Breed4Food aims to deliver new applied knowledge, innovative methods, software and tools that will ultimately result in scientific breakthroughs to enhance genetic improvement in order to realize a profitable livestock sector, contributing to sustainability and meeting societal challenges.

IMAGEN is a collaboration between researchers of Wageningen University & Research (WUR), Eindhoven University of Technology (TU/e), Utrecht University, Hendrix Genetics, Topigs Norsvin, and various other stakeholders. The IMAGEN program aims to improve livestock health and welfare via new phenotyping methods that enable better animal management and breeding. The program is funded by NWO-TTW.