SMASOEA

The SMASOEA project was launched within the broader transition towards more sustainable, efficient and animal welfare-oriented livestock production systems. The dairy farming sector is increasingly challenged to improve productivity while simultaneously enhancing milk nutritional quality, environmental sustainability and process traceability.

The project focuses on two main areas: the assessment of Precision Livestock Farming (PLF) systems applied to dairy production and the development of innovative feed solutions and precision nutrition strategies, including the use of by-products and low-impact forage to improve both environmental and production performance.

The strategic objective of the project is to improve the overall sustainability of the dairy cattle value chain by integrating monitoring technologies, automated farming systems, innovative feed solutions and environmental, economic and social sustainability assessment tools.

If successful, the project will:

· improve animal welfare;

· increase production efficiency;

· enhance the nutritional and nutraceutical quality of milk;

· reduce environmental impacts and greenhouse gas emissions;

· promote circular economy principles through the use of agricultural by-products;

· support dairy farms with objective data and decision-making tools.

The project includes monitoring environmental conditions and dairy cow welfare, comparing conventional and automated milking and feeding systems, assessing methane emissions, and developing innovative feed solutions and precision diets.

eLoop contributes to the project by evaluating the sustainability performance of dairy farms through:

· Life Cycle Assessment (LCA);

· Life Cycle Costing (LCC);

· Social Life Cycle Assessment (S-LCA);

· environmental and production data analysis;

· identification of environmental hotspots;

· comparison of conventional and innovative farming scenarios;

· support in defining sustainability improvement strategies.

The project’s expected environmental impact focuses on assessing and reducing the emissions associated with dairy milk production, with particular attention to methane emissions, animal nutrition, resource consumption and the efficiency of production systems. By analysing different livestock farming scenarios, the project aims to identify lower-impact practices and technologies, promote the use of by-products and environmentally sustainable forage, improve resource efficiency, and compare the performance of conventional farming systems with Precision Livestock Farming approaches. The ultimate objective is to provide scientifically robust evidence to identify the main environmental hotspots throughout the production process and define effective mitigation strategies.

From an economic perspective, the project seeks to improve farm efficiency by reducing operational inefficiencies and costs while enhancing the value of dairy products with superior nutritional and nutraceutical characteristics. As the project is still ongoing, quantitative results are not yet available for publication.

The project’s expected social impact includes improving animal welfare, food quality and the transparency of production systems. The anticipated benefits extend across the entire dairy value chain, including livestock farmers, dairy industry operators, consumers, researchers, technical professionals and rural areas with a strong livestock farming vocation.

From a business perspective, SMASOEA has the potential to accelerate the adoption of Precision Livestock Farming (PLF) technologies, foster the development of innovative feed solutions, support the creation of higher value-added dairy products, and promote the adoption of sustainability measurement and management tools across the dairy supply chain. In doing so, the project will help strengthen the competitiveness of dairy farms while supporting their transition towards more sustainable production models.