RobustCows: Adaptation of grass-based dairy systems to climate change: which cow profiles and concentrate supplementation strategies improve robustness and longevity?

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INRAE presentation

The French National Research Institute for Agriculture, Food, and Environment (INRAE) is a major player in research and innovation. It is a community of 12,000 people with 272 research, experimental research, and support units located in 18 regional centres throughout France. Internationally, INRAE is among the top research organisations in the agricultural and food sciences, plant and animal sciences, as well as in ecology and environmental science. It is the world’s leading research organisation specialising in agriculture, food and the environment. INRAE’s goal is to be a key player in the transitions necessary to address major global challenges. Faced with a growing world population, climate change, resource scarcity, and declining biodiversity, the Institute has a major role to play in building solutions and supporting the necessary acceleration of agricultural, food and environmental transitions.

VetAgro Sup is a higher education and research institution under the supervision of the French Ministry of Agriculture and Food Sovereignty. It is the only institution in France that trains veterinarians, agricultural engineers and veterinary public health inspectors within a comprehensive approach to public health. At the heart of life sciences, the institution develops teaching, research, and expert activities across two campuses with a One Health approach, at the interface of human, animal, and environmental health.

Work environment, missions and activities

You will carry out your research within the joint research unit (INRAE/VetAgro Sup) “Herbivores,” which conducts research on the efficiency of animals and livestock systems, the sensory and nutritional qualities of animal products, the adaptive capacity and robustness of animals and herds, animal welfare, environmental impacts, and services associated with livestock farming. The UMR Herbivores includes 121 permanent staff members, including 74 researchers and engineers, and hosts around 60 non-permanent staff each year (including about 20 Doctoral students and postdoctoral researchers). It is structured into five research teams, one support team, and one management team. You will work within the BIOMARQUEURS team (Biomarkers of performance, adaptation, and quality).

The Doctorate will be registered with the Doctoral School of Life Sciences, Health, Agronomy, Environment of the University Clermont Auvergne (UCA). It will be conducted in partnership with the UMR Pegase (L. Delaby), the INRAE experimental unit of Le Pin (https://uep.isc.inrae.fr/), and the dairy advisory company Littoral Normand (https://www.littoral-normand.fr/).

 

Grass-based dairy systems achieve favorable technical, economic, social, and environmental performance but are vulnerable to climate change. This PhD project focuses on the adaptive responses of three dairy breeds (Holstein, Jersey, and Normande) managed in a pasture-based system with seasonal late-winter calving, aiming to maximize milk production at grazing. The project is based on data from a multi-year experiment (named Tripl’XL – 2020–2025) designed to assess the effects of breed and supplementation strategies (no concentrate vs. limited concentrate feeding over 100 days during early, mid or late lactation) on dairy cow robustness. Robustness will be evaluated by analyzing cows’ prioritization of key functions (lactation, reproduction, body reserve dynamics) and their ability to avoid culling and remain in the herd (longevity).

The PhD project aims :

1. To evaluate trade-offs between timing of limited concentrate inputs and cow profiles in the context of adaptation of grass-based systems to climate change.
2. To develop non-invasive methods to characterize functional prioritization profiles, particularly using milk mid-infrared (MIR) spectra.

The PhD project will rely on data from the Tripl’XL experiment (https://uep.isc.inrae.fr/projets-de-recherche/tripl-xl ), conducted at INRAE Le Pin au Haras (Orne). This pluri-annual experiment evaluates how dairy cows from three breeds with different production potential (Holstein, Normande, Jersey) prioritize between production and reproduction functions relative to body reserves use under grass-based management with limited concentrate supply. The experiment began in 2020 and ends in late 2025. Animal data (milk yield and composition, somatic cell count, body condition score, body weight, reproduction) are available. At the start of the PhD project, the dataset will include around 370 cows and 750 lactations. Plasma and milk metabolite data from early lactation, to characterize the animals’ nutritional status during early lactation, are available for one cohort. Milk MIR spectra were collected during the 5 years and will be analyzed as non-invasive predictors of robustness profiles.

You will be specifically in charge of :

• Studying the effect of breed and concentrate supplementation strategy on milk yield, reproduction, and metabolic profiles;
• At the lactation scale, explore the relationship between adaptive prioritization profiles, breed, and supplementation strategy.
• Analysing adaptive profile trajectories over multiple lactations and their link with culling risk and survival in the system.
• Using milk MIR spectra to define adaptive profiles and predict the ability of cows to persist in grass-based systems.

Selected candidates will be interviewed on September 18 or 19, 2025.

Training and skills

Recommended training : Master’s degree or engineering degree (Bac+5 or equivalent) with a background in animal science and a strong interest for data analysis

Desired knowledge and skills : Dairy cattle farming, animal physiology, statistical modelling

Required aptitudes : Interest in research, autonomy, curiosity, organizational skills, rigor, skills in scientific writing, ability to work in a team within an interdisciplinary environment, driver’s license

INRAE's life quality

By joining our teams, you benefit from (depending on the type of contract and its duration):

- up to 30 days of annual leave + 15 days "Reduction of Working Time" (for a full time);
- parenting support: CESU childcare, leisure services;
- skills development systems: training, career advise;
- social support: advice and listening, social assistance and loans;
- holiday and leisure services: holiday vouchers, accommodation at preferential rates;
- sports and cultural activities;
- collective catering.

The site Theix is served by two shuttle buses for INRAE staff, which link the site to the Clermont-Ferrand agglomeration in the morning and evening, and by a transport-on-demand service. It also has parking facilities and services for cyclists.

How to apply

I send my CV and my motivation letter