Hannah Dairy Research Conference 2025
Next Generation Resilient Dairying Conference 2025
Funded by the Hannah Dairy Research Foundation and supported by the Journal of Dairy Research, Next Generation Dairying Workshops and Conferences stimulate dairy-related research in Scotland and connect researchers and industry globally.
The 7th HDRF Conference will be held on the 24th and 25th November, 2025, in Edinburgh. The twin and related themes for this year’s Conference are Resilience and Agility in the dairy sector. Registration and Abstract submission are now open. Registration is free. There is a Conference Dinner on the Monday evening,. Tickets can be booked on the Registration page at the discounted price of £25. Early booking is recommended.
Calling all Early Stage Researchers! Funds are available to assist Early Stage Researchers to attend the Conference. The amount of support to be offered will be decided once Expressions of Interest have been received. Expressions of interest are open now and will close at midnight on Wednesday 5th November. Funds will be awarded competitively and decisions will be made by Friday 7th November.
The Draft Programme is now online. Find it at the bottom of the page! Please take into account that the Programme is subject to change.
This is a lunch-to-lunch research-focused Conference themed around the twin and related issues of resilience and agility in the dairy sector. Plenary talks will feature topics such as resilience of animals (against disease), of husbandry (against environmental challenge) and of businesses (against economic uncertainty). Is resilience the route to sustainability? Or could a focus on resilience detract from the need for dairy enterprises to be flexible and agile in responding to changing circumstances? In addition to the Plenaries the programme will feature shorter submitted presentations and posters, and there will be a Panel Discussion session themed to the issue of agility in research, education, knowledge transfer and the broader industry. The Conference will be of interest to researchers from all sectors of dairying as well as dairy-industry service providers and farmers.
Attendance is free and online virtual participation is also available to those who cannot attend in person. Competitively-awarded travel grants will be available within the UK to younger scientists.
You can contribute! There will be dedicated sessions for Short Oral Communications. Any dairying-related research is welcomed, but we especially want to hear of research allied to resilience. Abstract submission is open with a deadline of November 14th. Depending on the number of submissions offered, we may also hold a Poster Session with a linked “elevator pitch” oral introduction. The Abstract submission link can be found above.
Our Plenary Speakers are confirmed: Prof Louise Manning, Dr Emma-Jane Murray, Dr Morteza Ghaffari, Prof Andrea Wilson and Dr Graham McAuliffe are all confirmed as Plenary Conference Speakers. Louise will address commercial and consumer-related resilience across the dairy foods chain, Emma-Jane will talk about economic resilience with specific reference to animal health, Morteza will discuss rearing of resilient animals, Andrea will explore the genetic basis of resilience traits and Graham will describe the importance and potential impact of including nutritional value into sustainability analyses. Read more below.
Remember to book your Conference Dinner Ticket! Don’t miss out! Savour a three-course fine dining meal with wine included, network to your heart’s content and enjoy our guest Prof Tom McNeilly in his “fireside chat” Details and online booking link below.
The Panel Discussion Session will be held on Tuesday morning after coffee, chaired by Prof Julie Fitzpatrick, until recently Chief Scientific Advisor for Scotland. You can participate live on the day or by submitting your question in advance. There are more details below.
Plenary Speakers
Professor Louise Manning: Resilience and “leagility” across the dairy foods chain. Louise started her research career with a PhD in Global Food Production since when she has worked for over 40 years undertaking consultancy and research to inform strategy, policy, business productivity and personal development in the agri-food sector. She was Professor of Sustainable Agri-food Systems at the Lincoln Institute for Agri-food Technology, University of Lincoln from 2022-2025. Louise is Managing Director of a strategic consultancy business, LJM Associates Ltd, a director of her family farming business and also provides ongoing strategic and governance support to businesses and governments. She has a strong background in applied research and promoting innovation in food safety and quality, food-related crime, food governance, business ethics and supply chain digitalisation as well as social and corporate responsibility. She has published over 150 peer-reviewed papers and also written and edited multiple books and book chapters, as well as being active on social media (X – @foodsafetyljm).
Dr Emma-Jane Murray: Economic benefits of health resilience. Emma-Jane is a researcher specialising in bovine infectious diseases at Teagasc Moorepark in Ireland. Her interests include animal health economics, One Health, and veterinary epidemiology. These interests were further developed during her recent PhD at the University College Dublin School of Veterinary Medicine & Global Burden of Animal Diseases programme, which focused on the burden of cattle diseases in Ireland. Emma-Jane holds an MSc in Veterinary Epidemiology (Royal Veterinary College and London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine). Her interdisciplinary background spans from livestock science to public health, having served as a governor on university boards and contributed to public health surveillance in Ireland during the peak of the Covid-19 pandemic.
Dr. Morteza Hosseini Ghaffari: Early-life feeding and calf resilience: Linking nutrition, behaviour and predictive data. Morteza is a scientist at the Research Institute of Farm Animal Biology (FBN), Dummersdorf, Germany. He received his MSc from Isfahan University of Technology in 2008 and his PhD in Animal Science from Ferdowsi University of Mashhad (Iran) in 2013. After a postdoctoral fellowship at the University of Alberta, Canada (2016–2017), he joined the University of Bonn in November 2017. In 2024, he completed his habilitation on “Deep Phenotyping of Dairy Cows”, focusing on OMICS and biomarker-based approaches to investigate metabolic responses and adaptive mechanisms in dairy cattle during the transition period. His research focuses on the integration of high-throughput techniques to assess physiological adaptation in dairy cattle. He has authored more than 180 peer-reviewed publications and utilizes advanced OMICS technologies to develop precise nutritional strategies to improve dairy cattle health, performance and resilience. In his presentation he will discuss the role of early-life nutrition, specifically colostrum and milk feeding management, in calf health and resilience. In addition, he will explore the potential of automated milk feeders and behavioural data to predict disease onset and improve proactive management strategies that support dairy calf growth and health.
Professor Andrea Doeschl-Wilson: Understanding and breeding for resilience traits Andrea is Professor of Animal Disease Genetics and Modelling at the Roslin Institute at the University of Edinburgh in the UK. She leads a research group that develops and applies statistical and mathematical models to study how the genetic make-up of animals together with non-genetic factors influence the spread of infectious diseases and harmful behaviour in farm animals. Their research encompasses all major farm animal species (cows, sheep, pigs, chicken, fish). Andrea and her team are particularly interested in exploring the integration of novel technologies into improved prediction models with the ultimate aim to enhance animals’ resilience and health for more sustainable livestock production.
Andrea currently leads the Roslin Institute Strategic Programme on the Prevention and Control of Infectious Diseases. She also leads and contributes to various large scale international research consortia with collaborators from both academia and industry across Europe, North America, Australia and Africa.
Dr Graham McAuliffe: Enviro-nutritional assessment methods, data limitations and potential opportunities for the dairy sector. Graham is Reader in Environmental Impact Assessments of Food Systems at Harper Adams University. His research centres on advancing the methodological frontiers of life cycle assessment (LCA), with a particular focus on integrating nutritional quality into environmental metrics to deliver more policy‑relevant and scientifically robust insights. Over more than a decade, he has contributed to the development of transparent, reproducible approaches that address uncertainty, improve indicator specificity, and strengthen the interpretability of sustainability assessments. Dr McAuliffe has collaborated widely with international organisations, NGOs, and research councils, and his work has informed debates on the environmental and nutritional sustainability of food systems, with significant implications for the dairy sector and beyond.
Conference Dinner
The Conference Dinner will be held on the Monday evening (24th November), 7.30 for 8.00 in the Castlehill Room of the Scotch Whisky Experience on the Royal Mile. The three-course gourmet dinner will be complemented by your choice of red or white wine followed by freshly-ground coffee and Scottish Fudge. A vegetarian option is available. After the meal there will be a fireside chat session with Prof Tom McNeilly, Scientific Director of the Moredun Institute and Chief Executive of the Moredun Foundation. The evening is priced at a heavily-discounted £25. Advance booking is required, and is done through the Registration portal (choose the “Monday” option and scroll down to find the Dinner Ticket).
Panel Session
The Panel Session will be Chaired by Prof Julie Fitzpatrick, Honorary Professor of Food Security at Glasgow University and until recently Chief Scientific Advisor for Scotland. Our expert Panellists will discuss issues around the future evolution of dairying and how the industry generally as well as individual farmers can become more resilient to the challenges posed by factors such as climate change. Retaining and, if possible, increasing agility will be an important part of the discussion. Mitigation has been a major focus for dairy farms as they seek to reduce their environmental impact, but is it now time to reassess, recognize the societal and nutritional importance of milk and dairy products and conduct research that will enable enterprises to adapt and thereby remain viable and profitable? The session will be interactive with questions from the live audience as well as pre-submitted questions. For example, do we have/need a definition for resilience? Is the spectrum of dairy farming becoming wider? Is there a conflict between agility and profitability? What lessons can be learned from regional systems, or from failures of resilience? Are we becoming too reliant on imported feedstuffs? Can sending milk hundreds of miles for processing be regarded as sustainable? Make sure your voice is heard: submit a question to the Panel!
Draft Programme
KE Workshop - 2025
A Knowledge Exchange Event with a Difference
The Hannah Dairy Research Foundation recently hosted an innovative workshop that brought together farmers, practitioners, and researchers to discuss practical dairy farming challenges and opportunities. Unlike traditional events where researchers primarily present their findings, this workshop flipped the format on its head, fostering an open dialogue led by farmers and practitioners to share their experiences and insights with researchers.
Key Highlights of the Event
The workshop featured an impressive lineup of speakers, each offering valuable perspectives on key aspects of dairy farming:
- David Hamilton, a farmer from Meldrum Farms, shared firsthand insights into the realities of dairy farming.
- Chloe McCulloch, Head of SAC Consulting - provided advice on effective business strategies for dairy farmers.
- Bob Carruth, representing NFUS, contributed a political perspective on dairy farming and its broader implications.
- Derek Kennedy, from Lactalis, addressed topics on milk marketing and processing, offering a view into the industry’s supply chain dynamics.
- Grace Smith, from Carrs Billington, presented practical guidance on feeding dairy cows to optimise health and productivity.
Collaborative Discussions and Future Plans
Attendees actively engaged in vibrant discussions throughout the workshop, sharing ideas and exploring solutions to the challenges faced by dairy farmers today. This unique format not only facilitated meaningful exchanges but also piqued the interest of participants in forming a group to continue these discussions in the future.
This workshop has successfully demonstrated the power of collaboration and knowledge exchange in driving innovation and progress within the dairy farming industry. The Hannah Dairy Research Foundation looks forward to seeing the ideas from this event evolve into impactful initiatives.
For more information or to join the proposed discussion group, please contact the Hannah Dairy Research Foundation: [email protected]
(Photo – Derek Kennedy -Lactalis)
Press Release here.
Identification of metabolic markers of gastrointestinal tract maturation in pre- and post-weaned calves
Identification of metabolic markers of gastrointestinal tract maturation in pre- and post-weaned calves
Financial pressures associated with high pre-weaning rearing costs, result in dairy calves (Boulton et al., 2017) being weaned from milk much earlier than would occur naturally. This limits the time available for the digestive system to develop from a milk-fed pseudo-monogastric system to a functional ruminant system able to digest complex, fibre-based diets. Calves weaned with a poorly functioning digestive system may have lower growth rates post-weaning (Steele et al., 2017) and consequently may be older at first calving (Heinrichs et al., 2005). Strategies to predict sufficient digestive development for weaning to occur have been developed (e.g. concentrate intake or weaning weight); however, these are often impractical commercially. Identifying the precise point at which a calf is ready to be weaned is therefore challenging (Welk et al., 2024).This project will use already obtained gut tissue, content, and faecal samples from a time-series study on calves to identify molecules in the faeces that have potential to act as markers of digestive tract maturity.
Investigating the potential of bacteriophages to kill Scottish Streptococcus uberis isolates as a primer for the development of phage therapy for bovine mastitis
Investigating the potential of bacteriophages to kill Scottish Streptococcus uberis isolates as a primer for the development of phage therapy for bovine mastitis
Bovine mastitis represents a major economic and welfare problem to the dairy industry worldwide, estimated to result in annual costs of €20 billion. Streptococcus uberis is a leading cause of bovine mastitis and the second most common cause in Scotland. Treatment often relies on antimicrobials, but with growing concerns over antibiotic resistance across all of human and veterinary medicine, there is a need to develop alternative treatments to preserve conventional antimicrobials. One promising approach to new antimicrobial drugs is phage therapy. Bacteriophages (phages) are naturally-occurring, free-living viruses that infect and kill bacteria. Despite promising results in human medicine, phage therapy has received limited attention for the treatment of veterinary infections. This proposal aims to identify and characterise phages active against S. uberis mastitis isolates from Scotland as validating the potential to develop phage therapy against this important dairy cow pathogen and as a route to preserving effective therapies.
Comparing colostrum status and calf and dam health parameters from ‘cow with calf’ and conventional dairy systems
Comparing colostrum status and calf and dam health parameters from ‘cow with calf’ and conventional dairy systems
Traditional dairy systems remove calves from their mothers soon after birth. Some Scottish dairy farms have explored ‘cow with calf’ (CwC) systems whereby calves are left with their mothers for up to six months, during which time the cow is also milked for human consumption. There may be health and welfare advantages to CwC systems; internationally, work has begun to study these, but no UK work has compared disease incidence and transfer of passive immunity (TPI). Calves must ingest adequate quantities of quality colostrum soon after birth to confer immunity from their dam; failure to do so (FTPI) increases disease susceptibility. Calf colostrum ingestion may differ in CwC systems, thus altering calfhood morbidity and mortality and cow disease risk (e.g. mastitis). This project will compare traditionally reared calves with CwC calves; investigating the incidence of FTPI and of disease in calves and cows in the first three months after calving.
The impact of wearable technology on dairy farmers’ work and wellbeing
The impact of wearable technology on dairy farmers’ work and wellbeing
Agricultural technologies have been commended for their potential to increase farm productivity, but there is limited knowledge about their social impact. This research will investigate the impact of one technology – wearable biosensors for cows – on dairy farmers’ work and wellbeing. Qualitative interviews will be conducted with dairy farmers who have adopted wearables to understand their experiences of using the technology, focusing particularly on how it has influenced their work (i.e. labour processes) and wellbeing (i.e. occupational stress). Additionally, a focus-group will be held with adopters and non-adopters of wearables to further explore perceptions and experiences of the technology. Fieldwork will take place primarily in Scotland, with a small number of interviews in Ireland and southwest England to provide a wider geographical perspective. Outputs will be of interest to a range of agricultural, technology, policy and academic audiences and will inform the development of a larger funding application.
The Grass is Greener: Cow preference for multi-species swards
Effect of multispecies grazing swards on phytochemicals in milk
Two groups of cows will be grazed for 1-month long periods in paddocks of two different sward types: perennial ryegrass monoculture (PRG) and a multi-species sward (MSS) comprising of PRG, timothy, white and red clovers, chicory, and plantain. The Grass Is Greener project will assess cow behaviour on these different sward types and evaluate any impacts on cow welfare via leg mounted accelerometers, fitted on all cows as standard farm practice.
Between these month-long grazing periods, all cows will be given the choice of both sward types (MIX), with their behaviour and welfare being assessed again, as well as their location recorded (PRG or MSS) to assess preference.
The Grass Is Greener project would collect additional data from an existing European funded grazing project, Re-Livestock, taking place at SRUC’s Barony campus.
Effect of multispecies grazing swards on phytochemicals in milk
Effect of multispecies grazing swards on phytochemicals in milk
test test test
Supporting the BVD eradication in Scotland by validation of tests to discriminate BVDV type 1, BVDV type 2 and Border Disease Virus.
Supporting the BVD eradication in Scotland by validation of tests to discriminate BVDV type 1, BVDV type 2 and Border Disease Virus.
Bovine viral diarrhoea (BVD) is a major cattle disease caused in the UK by BVD virus type 1 (BVDV1). Other livestock pestiviruses (BVDV type 2 and Border Disease Virus) can also infect cattle. BVDV1 generally causes mild clinical signs, however abortion, stillbirth and birth of persistently infected (PI) calves can also occur. BVDV2 outbreaks in BVD-free herds carry more severe consequences. Scotland’s BVDV eradication programme, started in 2012, has reduced the number of infected animals significantly, but dairy herds remain particularly affected by BVDV. BVDV2 infections must be reported ‘as soon as possible’ to APHA, however current large scale diagnostic tests do not distinguish between these pestiviruses. A Moredun in-house test can differentiate the three viruses, however validation is required for use with eartags. We intend to validate this and other PCR-based assays and produce a report to allow informed policy decisions on BVDV testing in Scotland.
Vaccine antigen selection for Ostertagia ostertagi.
Vaccine antigen selection for Ostertagia ostertagi.
Parasitic worm infections in dairy cattle is often considered a first grazing season problem, however sub-clinical infections in lactating animals can negatively impact milk production. Currently parasitic nematodes in dairy cattle are controlled using drugs, however long-term use of these drugs has resulted in worm resistance, making the treatments less-effective. Long-term, vaccination against these parasites will provide a means of effective and sustainable parasite control. This project will use high-throughput screening of parasitic worm proteins to identify potential vaccine candidates. The screen will identify worm proteins that are recognised by dairy cattle that show resistance to parasite challenge and assess their potential for incorporation into a vaccine. This work will lead the way to the development of a worm-vaccine to protect dairy cattle against parasitic worm challenge.