Future feeds for sustainability in European livestock production

The FEATURE doctoral network will train doctoral candidates (DCs) in international interdisciplinary research methodologies to assess the potential of using alternative feeds (forages, food-industry by-products, insects), that are locally growing or available in different European climates, and support transition to more sustainable, circular and resilient livestock systems, aligning with environmental and economic targets and consumer demands. The 13 DC projects will explore alternative feeds’ nutritive value and the effect of integrating them in livestock diets on animal productivity, efficiency; methane emissions and nitrogen outputs; food nutritional quality and flavour/taste; and supply-chain environmental footprint and socioeconomic implications. Multi-omics techniques and bioinformatics will be utilized to understand the role of gut ecology and host metabolism on the observed outcomes. FEATURE will co-create, via dedicated DC programmes and in collaboration with the industry partners, adoption pathways and policies for the sustainable integration of alternative feeds in European livestock value chains. The consortium involves 6 academic institutes, 4 research organisations, 7 industry partners, and 17 gender-balanced named supervisors across 7 countries. DC’s training involves secondments at industry partners for industry data collection/analysis for environmental and socioeconomic evaluations. DC’s will have access to personalised development plans, four consortium-wide training schools, skills workshops, secondments, and engagement activities to enhance their scientific knowledge, personal, soft, entrepreneurial and communications skills and support their transition to leaders in academia and industry. This expertise is crucial for bolstering the sustainability, circularity and resilience of European food systems through the adoption of practices that produce healthy, affordable and safe animal-derived foods.