to the website of the Professorship Statistical Methods in Animal Breeding.

The professorship conducts research and teaches in the fields of animal genetics and animal breeding, as well as the statistics applied in these fields, within the Bachelor’s programme in Agricultural Sciences and the Master’s programme in Sustainable Agricultural Systems.

Central elements are the quantitative genetic basis of traits, the population genetic background of livestock populations, and concepts for innovative and modern breeding programs.

Key areas of focus:

• Adaptation of livestock populations to future or changing production conditions

• Immune competence, nutrient efficiency, metabolic stability, and (climate) resilience and their dynamics

• Preservation of genetic diversity and avoidance of negative consequences through selection or population management

• Interactions between genetics and the environment, such as pathogen-host interactions and genotype-feed interactions

• Integration of microbiota data and other omics data

The professorship has been held by Prof. Dr. Markus Schmid since March 2026. It is affiliated with the working group Quantitative Animal Genetics and the leadership of the focus topic Promoting Diversity in Animal Farming at the Research Institute for Farm Animals (FBN) in Dummerstorf. The team at the AUF is supported by researchers from the FBN research group.