The UPV brings together international experts in precision livestock farming in Valencia

The Universitat Politècnica de València (UPV) is hosting the 12th European Conference on Precision Livestock Farming (ECPLF 2026) until Thursday, 17 September; this is one of the leading international scientific conferences dedicated to precision livestock farming. The conference, organised in part by the UPV's Research Institute for Animal Science and Technology (ICTA), is being held in Spain for the first time and will release over 170 scientific papers, authored by more than 880 researchers from over 30 countries.

Since its first edition in 2003, the ECPLF has brought together specialists in animal science, veterinary science, engineering and technologies applied to the livestock sector every two years. It aims to bring the latest scientific and technological advances to farms to improve animal health and welfare, make more efficient use of resources and facilitate decision-making.

AI and sensors to better understand animals

Sensors capable of continuously monitoring an animal's behaviour, cameras and computer vision systems, microphones, connected devices, and artificial intelligence-based tools are among the advances that will be discussed over the coming days at the UPV.

These technologies enable real-time information to be obtained and changes in the animals' behaviour, feeding patterns, or condition to be detected, helping to anticipate health or welfare problems.

The conference also addresses the digitalisation of farms, big data analytics, precision nutrition and the reduction of the environmental impact of livestock production, as well as new systems to optimise feeding and the use of resources.

In addition to scientific presentations and poster sessions, ECPLF 2026 includes four plenary lectures. Panellists include Dale Polson from Cognitive Ag (United States); Jun Bao from Northeast Agricultural University (China); Anna Stygar from the Natural Resources Institute Finland; and Paco Maroto from the University of Córdoba.

From research to farms

Another key focus of the conference is the transfer of research findings to the production sector. The session 'Innovation Roundtable: Bridging research and industry', taking place on Wednesday 16 September, will bring together representatives from technology companies to analyse how to turn scientific advances into tools for use on livestock farms.

The programme also includes workshops on computer vision and artificial intelligence applied to precision livestock farming, as well as a session on smart proteins and precision animal nutrition as part of the European SYNFEED project. Led by the UPV's ICTA, SYNFEED is developing new strategies for precision animal feeding to better tailor nutrient intake to animals' needs, improve feed efficiency, and reduce the environmental impact of livestock production.