Animal Production and Protection

Protein and other nutrients from animal sources are an important component of diets worldwide. Agricultural animals also provide skins, fiber, feathers and other products with economic importance. There is a growing need for these products as the global population expands and demand becomes higher also due to more disposable income for hundreds of millions of people. Fulfilling this need will require new technologies to improve both productivity and efficiency of food animals. The Animal Production and Protection topic area aims to support the development of innovative, marketable technologies that will provide significant benefit to the production and protection of agricultural animals. New technologies for rapid detection, point-of-care, treatment and prevention of disease are needed to improve productivity and enhance the biosecurity of our herds and flocks. Better technologies are also needed to develop and enhance alternatives to the use of antibiotics since pathogen resistance and human sensitivity to residue food products derived from animals have become of increasing concern. And there is an urgent need for technologies that decrease the impact of animal agriculture on the environment and optimize use of our natural resources, especially those that address carbon sequestration processes and provide an outlet for manure. Technological advances in animal production and protection will not only enhance the safety of the Nation's food supply and contribute to environmental stewardship, they will also allow American producers to remain competitive in the global marketplace and contribute to global food security.