Lianjie Wei

Project Title: BiosecurIE: Evaluation of the economic benefit of biosecurity in pig and poultry farms

Overview: Pig production is under pressure from a range of radical external changes: the unprecedented economic crisis; pressure to reduce AMU; the ban in using ZnO in feed; the need to improve animal welfare and reduce nitrogen emissions. Similarly, broiler chicken farms are struggling with similar economic issues and have been hit hard by avian influenza outbreaks alongside pressures to improve welfare, reduce AMU and manage Campylobacter levels. These pressures require farmers to make changes and improve the use of technologies available to them. However, making the right investments and taking the right decision requires accurate information leading to high quality cost-benefit and financial analyses. The project will use biosecurity data to establish the methods to combine data for pigs and poultry.

Lianjie holds a Bachelor of Veterinary Medicine at Zhejiang University and completed MSc in Veterinary Epidemiology at Royal Veterinary College and London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine. The objectives of his current project are to identify the main factors associated with productive performance, quantify the economic effects of the different factors, and initiate an evidence-based decision-making process for the Irish pig and poultry sectors. Lianjie is proficient in disease modelling, economic analysis, R and STATA.

Programme Area: Pig and Poultry Development Department

Supervisors: Alberto Allepuz Palau, Carla Correia-Gomes and Edgar Garcia Manzanilla

Location: Cork & Barcelona

Funding Source: Teagasc