Dear Colleagues,

Increasing societal pressure on natural resources due to global changes are driving the need for efficient production chains to avoid an increase in livestock numbers and limit the demand for land and natural resources. The livestock sector is named as one of the main co-responsible parties in climate change particularly for the emission of greenhouse gases. In addition, the use of raw materials for animal feed puts the sector in competition with human nutrition. However, the livestock sector provides valuable energy and nutritional foods, including milk and dairy products, which, in some parts of the world and for some segments of the population, are the only source of protein.

Future challenges will therefore focus on how to promote sustainable livestock farming while continuing to meet the food needs of the world's population.

Making agri-food supply chains more high-performing, through the efficient use of inputs at all levels has become a need that can no longer be postponed. Thanks to precision agriculture, genetic selection and the use of digital technology with a view to ecological transition, but also through policy choices that ensure food security and respect the environment, aims these objectives could be possible.

By way of example but not exhaustive, this issues collects contributions related to: more efficient and sustainable production methods able to limit the use of inputs both in the production phase of foodstuffs for animal feed and in the breeding phase through, for example, the use of innovative technological solutions as a tool for the development of sustainable production systems; favoring the use of alternative livestock feeding systems to improve the sustainability of productions; Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) analysis or the use of artificial intelligence. But also, concerning analyses of the social and political context that stimulate and guide the sector and the policies that have already been implemented and/or can be implemented to safeguard and sustain the production environment. Including best practices from which policy makers can draw ideas to take on board to improve the policies themselves.

Prof. Dr. Jorgelina Di Pasquale
Prof. Dr. Isa Fusaro
Dr. Yari Vecchio
Guest Editors
Andrea Beatriz Damico
Guest Editor Assistant

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• dairy sector
• agriculture policy
• sustainability
• sustainable production
• ecological transition
• efficient use of inputs