SANFEED - Sustainable Animal Nutrition and Feeding

About SANFEED

The SANFEED Programme (Sustainable Animal Nutrition and Feeding) is a new Doctoral ANIMAL SCIENCE Programme in an industrial setting funded by the Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT) that started in the academic year of 2014/2015 and is coordinated by the Abel Salazar Institute for Biomedical Sciences from the University of Porto.

The programme is organised in the following four workpackages (WP):

• WP1: Increase livestock sector efficiency
• WP2: Decrease the environmental impact of animal production
• WP3: Promote health and animal welfare
• WP4: Assure product quality and food safety

SANFEED research themes are generated by its consortium that comprises top-level academic and business partners, bringing business into the research and innovation chain, and promoting the transfer of new ideas from science into technology. The main objectives defined by the consortium can be summarized in the following points:

1) Evaluate feeding strategies to improve feed efficiency, health and welfare of animals, whilst minimizing the environmental impact;

2) Evaluate cost-effective and resource-efficient alternative protein and energy sources for animal feeds towards a reduction of EU imports;

3) Include epigenetic, genetic, metabolomics and phenotypic information in the actual programs towards gains in efficiency and more environmental friendly production systems, and healthy animals;

4) Develop non-invasive techniques to study animal’s digestive physiology;

5) Prevent and control of disease by integrated management of animal health and, particularly on proper nutrition and feeding;

6) Evaluate nutritional strategies to improve product quality and increase food and feed safety;

7) Enhance and promote Portuguese Higher Education and bring focus to Animal Nutrition by providing a highly innovative programme that in close collaboration with all relevant stakeholders will assure cutting edge scientific training in core research skills as well as in transferable personal and professional skills and competences;

8) Create a new generation of nutritionists able to identify opportunities and devise innovative solutions by creating synergetic research and technological transference.

Each academic year, 4-5 students with degrees in relevant areas of Animal Science, Biology and/or Veterinary are selected. The successful candidates will receive a 4 year PhD Fellowship funded by the Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT) and by the SANFEED industrial partners.

Calendar 2019/20

Candidates can apply to SANFEED programme until 31 May 2019.