New strategic research agenda: robustness in animal breeding

Functional traits (health, welfare, robustness) form an increasing part of animal breeding programmes enabled by the growing knowledge in trait development, powerful computing capacity and possibilities of animal genomics to address traits too difficult or expensive to measure. Genetic antagonisms do exist, but genetic improvement in production and robustness and welfare simultaneously is now a matter of adequate selection. For thisgood data to equip selection criteria are a prerequisite:a steady flow of cost-effectively, reliably and repeatably recorded traits on thousands of individually identified pedigreed animals, managed in sophisticated database. Global food security will require efficient balanced systems, climate change also rapid adaptation to health, feed/water availability and land degradation. Proper recording methodology/ implementation need further development: e.g. indicators based on novel physiological traits, general immunity concepts, impact improved health at population level, welfare concepts moving from problem orientation to welfare as balance of the appropriate animal for a certain market/climate/circumstance with appropriate housing, feed, and management. Adapted performance recording systems creating valuable and novel phenotypic data, pooling these resources and linking them to genotypes to create critical mass are needed for genomic research; data exchange /interface development between existing data bases on a herd, regional, national and EU wide level will be important.