Division of Food Production and Society
Cultivating sustainable changes in livestock feed production and feeding practices (Feed&Feeding)
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End: dec 2028
Start: jan 2025
The project will evaluate various strategies for feed production and feeding practices to enhance the sustainability of Norway's food system and support national agricultural policy goals. These strategies include adjusting livestock diets, improving breeding and animal health, and introducing new protein sources for feed. The project will assess environmental impacts, such as land use changes, greenhouse gas emissions, soil carbon levels, nutrient balances, and biodiversity, as well as socioeconomic impacts, including food security, economic and social sustainability, and the viability of rural communities.
Project participants
Valborg Kvakkestad Grete Stokstad Anne Kari Bergjord Olsen Ola Flaten Bjørn Egil Flø Håvard Steinshamn Anne Kjersti Bakken Helge Bonesmo Vilde Haarsaker Egil Prestløkken Anna Hessle| Start - end date | 01.01.2025 - 31.12.2028 |
| Project manager | Nhat Strøm-Andersen |
| Division | Division of Food Production and Society |
| Department | Economics and Society |
| Partners | Norwegian University of Life Sciences NMBU, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences SLU, Animalia AS, Felleskjøpet Fôrutvikling AS, Geno R&D AS, Green House AS, and Norsvin R&D AS |
| Total budget | 10000000 |
| Funding source | Research Council of Norway |
To provide a comprehensive sustainability assessment, we will use a Multi-Criteria Analysis (MCA) framework to evaluate the sustainability of the strategies, considering potential conflicts and win-win opportunities. The project will integrate methods from various disciplines, including data compilation, livestock diet optimization, farm sector modelling, surveys, interviews, and workshops, to generate scores for the MCA.
Next, we will use the results of the sustainability analysis to explore how sustainable strategies can be implemented effectively. This will start with interviews and surveys of key actors in existing value chains to understand how social, cultural, and economic factors influence feed production and feeding practices. We will also investigate how creating efficient value chains for alternative protein sources could help address challenges in the livestock sector and how policy changes can promote sustainable practices. The policy analysis will be based on linear programming results, indicating how policy measures can be applied, and insights from the surveys and interviews with value chain actors.
WP1: Ruminant livestock production – effects of varying production and feed efficiency levels (L: Steinshamn)
This WP will examine how animal production level and feed efficiency affect diet quality requirements, and the number of animals needed. We assume that the domestic consumption of beef and dairy products is as today, and that domestic livestock production covers this demand. The outputs will be fed into WP3 for estimating total feed and land area requirements and subsequently conduct sustainability assessments.
WP2: Monogastric livestock production – effects of developments in genetics and management (L: Bonesmo)
This WP explores how advancements in genetics and management practices influence feed efficiency, and consequently, the quantity of feed needed and the number of animals in monogastric animal production systems. Our goal is to quantify these effects and understand the connections between them.
WP3: Comprehensive sustainability assessment (L: Bakken)
This WP will perform a comprehensive sustainability assessment based on the input of the different strategies in WP1-2. We will address land use dilemmas of protein crops, the environmental and economic sustainability effects of production levels and feed efficiency livestock production systems, as well as food security, sociocultural impact and rural viability associated with it.
WP4: Policy instruments and value chains for improved sustainability in the feed system (L: Kvakkestad)
This WP will examine how the institutional context influences the decision-making of various actors within the current value chains and how sustainable change can be advanced through the modification of policy instruments and the development of new value chains.
WP5: Project management, coordination, communication, and dissemination (L: Strøm-Andersen)
This WP is to ensure the efficient administrative and scientific coordination and management of the entire project and enhance the broader dissemination of project outcomes through diverse knowledge exchange mechanisms, aiming to amplify the impact of the project results. Feed&Feeding emphasizes that the exchange of knowledge, expertise, and innovation is best achieved by establishing and nurturing strong connections between science, industry, policy, and other relevant stakeholders.