Utilisation of whey on mountain pastures by beef cattle

Mountain pasture areas in Switzerland are faced with a dual challenge: halting the advance of the forest, and dealing with the whey which is a by-product of alpine cheesemaking. Beef cattle could contribute to the sustainability of mountain pastures by increasing pasture pressure and reducing environmental impact through the use of the whey in situ. The aim of this article is to define the challenges being faced, to describe how the researchers have approached these challenges, and to outline the experimental conditions under which the scientific aspects of the project have been studied. These aspects will be the subject of three articles in the next issue of Agrarforschung Schweiz / Recherche Agronomique Suisse. To round out this systemic approach, an additional article will be devoted to the technical and economic aspects, and a further one to the possibility of envisaging a dedicated sector. Key words: beef cattle, production