UK: Dairy research improving production in Scotland and East Africa

The work of scientists and farmers in Scotland to breed more productive dairy cows has paid off both at home and on the African continent – thanks to support from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. Research by Professors Raphael Mrode and Mike Coffey (pictured above), from Scotland’s Rural College (SRUC), has enabled them to identify economically important traits and implement genomic approaches that lead to healthier cows with higher milk production, and in turn allow farmers to breed smaller cows which require less feed and land to graze on, but produce more milk. The research is now being highlighted by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation to show how cows can be used to help communities in both the UK and Africa thrive. This approach has benefited Scottish dairy farmers like Rory Christie, a former SRUC student, who farms near Port William, in Dumfries and Galloway. He is one of four farmers in Scotland who have worked with Coffey to create the first dairy crossbreeding index ...