Askham Bryan College

FdSc Precision Livestock Farming

The FdSc Precision Livestock Farming is structured to provide you with a blend of the necessary technical, academic and management skills to work at the forefront of this increasingly innovative and technically focused part of the agricultural industry.

The programme will develop your technical and management skills, in the areas of forage crop production, nutrition and genetics using the latest, machinery, data collection technology and software, while providing access to the latest production and livestock handling systems.

The fulltime modular programme is delivered over two years using a hybrid approach to delivery to provide you with the flexibility to gain industry experience in agriculture or one its associated supply chains while continuing with your education and training. At the end of your studies, you will have the skills and understanding to work at a supervisory or management level in the global precision livestock sector.

University Centre Askham Bryan has access to the 238-hectare Home Farm, which houses a milking herd of 200 cows, which are milked through a rapid exit parlour and a DeLaval Robot, a state-of-the-art high welfare precision beef facility in which students will actively participate in the use of the latest precision-livestock equipment, research, and industry engagement and a commercial flock of 200 breeding ewes.

Crops grown on the grade 2 arable land, include wheat, sugar beet and maize, using the latest precision field technology and variable rate application techniques and software to maximise arable returns and the production of high-quality forage to improve the performance and returns of the dairy and livestock enterprises.

The Farm also features a new £2.4 million Agri-Tech Innovation Centre dedicated to advanced agricultural and engineering training, the DeLaval Digital Farm and robotic milker which provides live data for analysis and interpretation of dairy cow performance.

On-farm data from the different enterprises is also drawn together using the latest Map of Agriculture software to provide live updates on what is occurring on the farm, the level of inputs and physical performance of the different enterprises’ adding to the learning experience and knowledge of the students on the FdSc Precision Livestock Farming Course.