February 2025
Reinforcing its commitment to providing customers with first class nutrition and health advice Harbro has enlisted the talents of Professor Nick Jonsson BVSc PhD MRCVS, who takes on the role of Technical Head of Ruminant.
Professor Jonsson has spent the past 15 years at the University of Glasgow where he has taught ruminant health and production and was the leader of the online Animal Nutrition MSC programme. During his time at the University, he worked on several collaborative research programmes with Harbro, so is familiar with the product offering as well as its commitment to innovation.
‘Professor Jonsson has changed the way we think about and feed ruminant animals. It is an honour and privilege to have him join Harbro on a formal basis. Having him on board means our customers now have access to a wealth of both academic and practical knowledge, with an emphasis being placed on ‘Healthy Cows, Healthy Profits.” Commented David MacKenzie, Harbro Ruminant Director.’
Originally from Sydney, Australia, Professor Jonsson graduated as a vet from the University of Sydney and then spent 7 years working in mixed practice in rural Australia.
In the early 1990s he moved into a primarily dairy practice and ran a herd improvement and artificial breeding business. Looking to become a specialist dairy consultant, he started a PhD on ovarian function in dairy cattle at the University of Queensland.
1996 saw him move to the Queensland Government’s Australian Tropical Dairy Institute as a research and extension scientist, where he stayed for a few years before moving to Glasgow in 1999 to work as a lecturer. Professor Jonsson has worked as an academic since then, at the University of Queensland and the University of Glasgow, teaching, consulting, and researching ruminant health and production. Strands of research have included bovine gastrointestinal function and pathology, feed additives for livestock, the use of sensor technologies to optimise ruminant health and production, the genetics of adaptation in cattle, and strategies for integrated parasite management.
Professor Jonsson is keen to continue research on acidosis in cattle – its diagnosis and management, and to resume active work in mastitis and cow comfort as part of his role with Harbro.
A member of the Advisory Committee on Animal Feedingstuffs for the Food Standards Agency of the UK, Vice-President of the British Society of Animal Science (BSAS), and Editorial Board Member for The Journal of Dairy Research and The Veterinary Journal, Professor Jonsson has been involved in over 120 peer-reviewed papers and 100 conference papers, book chapters and other proceedings, establishing him as one of the leading ruminant academics in the UK.
On joining the Harbro team Professor Jonsson said “I’ve enjoyed working with Harbro over the last decade and am looking forward immensely to this new phase. I can’t wait to be in the field again – putting theory into practice and researching real-world problems. This was where I originally wanted to be when I started my academic journey.”
