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Professor Sokratis Stergiadis

Dr Sokratis Stergiadia portrait
  • Member of the University’s Senate
  • Member of the University’s Access and Participation Committee
  • Doctoral Student Recruitment Lead for Department of Animal Sciences
  • Module convenor for: Introduction to Livestock Production; Digestion and Nutrition  
  • Supervision of undergraduate and postgraduate students
  •  Academic Tutor to undergraduate students

Areas of interest

I have experience as principal investigator and co-investigator in several research projects (funded by the EU, national governments, and industry) focusing on how to feed and manage ruminant animals in order to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions, improve efficiency of feed, energy and nutrient use at animal diet and farm levels, and produce more nutritious milk, dairy products and meat.

In brief, areas of interest in my research projects include:

  • Improving the sustainability and resilience of livestock production and achievement of the net zero carbon targets
  • Developing solutions for the reduction of livestock greenhouse gas emissions
  • Prediction modelling for livestock greenhouse gas emissions and feed nutritive value
  • Developing dietary strategies to improve nutrient and energy use efficiency in ruminant production
  • Unravelling the role of rumen microbiome in ruminant metabolism and product quality
  • Improving nutritional quality (fatty acid, mineral, protein, vitamin, antioxidant, and phytoestrogen profiles) of animal products (milk, meat, eggs) via husbandry, animal diet and crossbreeding practices
  • Investigating effect of crossbreeding on productivity, efficiency, health and fertility of dairy herds and the nutritional quality of milk, in low-input and pasture-based production systems
  • Nutrition and husbandry practices to increase growth rates in dairy calves
  • Applications of metabolomics on animal and food science
  • Assessing effect of consumption of animal-derived foods and plant-based alternatives' on environmental footprint and human nutrition.

Postgraduate supervision

On-going PhD programmes

  • Nurul Fitri Sari. Plant bioactive compounds to mitigate methane emissions. (1st supervisor)
  • Sabrina Ormston. Improving nutrition efficiency and milk quality in dairy production. (1st supervisor)
  • Rachael Walls. Consumption of milk and plant-based dairy alternatives: implications for nutrition, household expenditure and environmental sustainability. (1st supervisor)
  • Joshua Thompson. Willow (Salix spp): The potential of a tannin-rich tree fodder to reduce ammonia emissions and improve productivity of dairy cattle. (2nd supervisor)
  • Benchu Xue. Food for Feed: Valorisation of agro-industry by-products in animal feed. (2nd supervisor)
  • Sinead O’Callaghan. Nutritional programming in replacement dairy heifers: Future-proofing herd performance, health and behaviour. (2nd supervisor)
  • Kieran Robertson. Insects for sustainable animal feed: Livestock farming in a climate change challenged world. (2nd supervisor)
  • Anna Ciezarek. Exploiting plant diversity and phenology for livestock health under climate change. (2nd supervisor)
  • Ganimet Unsal. Environmental enrichment and animal diets to Improve animal welfare: Effectiveness, adoption and consumer attitudes. (3rd supervisor)
  • Joanne Tattersall. Variation in the iodine content of milk, dairy products, and eggs and the implication for UK iodine intake. (2nd supervisor)
  • Evangelos Akrivopoulos. The role and mechanisms of bovine milk derived extracellular vesicles in the modulation of neuroinflammation. (2nd supervisor)

  • Grainne O’Doherty. The role of precision technologies in future grazing systems: Implications for animal welfare, performance and farm sustainability. (2nd supervisor)

Completed PhD programmes

  • Dr Angelos Angelidis. Optimising nitrogen use efficiency in UK beef systems. (1st supervisor)
  • Dr Eric Newton. The effect of European phycological supplementation in dairy cattle on milk quality. (1st supervisor)
  • Dr Holly Vickery. Improving animal welfare in UK dairy goat production systems. (2nd supervisor)
  • Dr Eleni Chatzidimitriou. Egg nutritional quality as affected by farm management practices. (3rd supervisor)
  • Dr Nikolaos Voutzourakis. Effect of climatic and agronomic factors on animal health, milk yield and quality parameters in extensive and semi-intensive Sfakiano dairy sheep production systems in Crete. (3rd supervisor)
  • Dr Deborah Hynes. Effects of dietary protein level and source on milk production, nitrogen and energy utilisation and methane emissions of zero-grazed dairy cows. (3rd supervisor)

Teaching

I enjoy teaching fundamental principles of animal nutrition and livestock production to undergraduate students, to support the development of a good grounding for further studies in these areas.

I am an enthusiastic user of flipped learning pedagogic approaches to ensure a discussion-driven deeper understanding and facilitate active learning opportunities in the classroom.

At PhD level, I supervise and mentor several PhD students for the delivery of high-quality peer-reviewed research articles and the final thesis.

Research centres and groups

  • Department of Animal Sciences
  • Centre for Dairy Research
  • Institute for Food, Nutrition and Health

Academic qualifications

  • PhD. Effects of dairy management on milk quality (Newcastle University, UK, 2006-2009)
  • MSc in Animal Production (Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Greece, 2004-2006)
  •  BSc in Agriculture, direction of Animal Production (Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Greece, 1999-2004)
  • Fellow of the UK Higher Education Academy

Professional bodies/affiliations

  • Member of the Livestock Research Group of the Global Research Alliance on Agricultural Greenhouse Gases
  • Member of the Science Commission for Animal Nutrition of the European Federation of Animal Science
  • Trustee (Council member) of the British Society of Animal Science (BSAS)
  • Chair in BSAS Membership Committee
  • Member of the Feed & Nutrition (Ruminant) Open Innovation group of the Centre for Innovation Excellence Livestock (CIEL)
  •  Committee member & Sector Expert (Animal Science & Technologies) of the Agrisciences Technical Group of the Society of Science, Chemistry, Innovation (SCI)
  • Mentor for Early Career Researchers in BSAS and SCI
  • Member of the Scientific Board & Chair of the Authors & Content Committee of the journal animal (Elsevier)
  • Member of the Editorial Board of the journals animal (Elsevier) and The Journal of Agricultural Science (Cambridge University Press)
  • PhD external examiner in national and international academic institutions
  • External evaluator for grant applications in national and international funding bodies

Publications

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