A PhD student in Teagasc’s animal and grassland research and innovation programme, Luca van Dijk, has been awarded the Walsh Scholars Gold Medal.

Luca van Dijk’s PhD research examined the health and welfare of young calves transported from Ireland to the Netherlands.

According to Teagasc her research found that "prolonged fasting during transport impacts calves more severely than the journey itself".

It also highlighted that Luca van Dijk’s research demonstrated that "providing milk replacer during ferry transport significantly improves calf health and wellbeing".

Teagasc said these findings have "direct relevance for Irish and EU policy".

Luca, who grew up in The Netherlands, is a Walsh Scholar registered with Munster Technological University under the supervision of Dr. Muireann Conneely (Teagasc) and Dr Gearóid Sayers (MTU). 

Before starting her Walsh Scholarship at Teagasc, she completed her master’s degree at Wageningen University in the Netherlands, where she studied automatic methods to detect disease in veal calves.

She has said said that her passion for animal welfare was sparked during hands-on work with cattle in remote Australia and that she hopes to continue postdoctoral research in animal welfare after her PhD studies.

The Walsh Scholars Gold Medal, the highest honour given to a postgraduate student in the Teagasc programme and this year, 39 final-year scholars applied for the 2025 Walsh Scholars of the Year competition.

Applicants were assessed across five core competencies, submitted written applications, completed science communication training, and - if shortlisted - took part in interviews with external assessors.

According to Teagasc Director, Professor Frank O’Mara, completing a PhD is a major achievement, and the Walsh Scholars of the Year finalists have shown "outstanding ability, determination, and vision throughout their journey".

"Their research spans a diverse range of topics, each contributing in meaningful ways to the future of agriculture, food, and rural development," Prof. O'Mara added.

In addition to the gold medal, awards were presented to top scholars across Teagasc’s four research programmes. These included:

Animal & Grassland Research and Innovation Programme

Gold Medal winner: Luca van Dijk (Dutch);
2nd Place: Sofia Tisocco (Argentine) – Developed biogas yield models for co-digestion of grass silage and slurry;
3rd Place: Charles Dwan (Irish) – Investigated methane emissions from pasture composition and animal traits. 

Crops, Environment and Land Use Programme

1st Place: Rajas Shinde (Indian) – Developed a grass-based biorefinery model to co-create climate solutions with farmers;
2nd Place: Fatima Latif Azam (Spanish) – Used genomics to breed potato varieties resistant to common scab;
3rd Place: Virgile Ballandras (French) – Created DNA tools for pest monitoring to reduce pesticide use. 

Food Programme

1st Place: Mariana Maçãs (Portuguese) – Incorporated Irish pea flour into high-protein breads through novel milling;
2nd Place: Francesca Bietto (Italian) – Built the first in vitro infant gut model to test formula impacts;
3rd Place: Animesh Singh Sengar (Indian) – Explored plant-based meats from Irish-grown pulses using extrusion. 

Rural Economy and Development Programme

1st Place: Holly Mullan (Irish) – Researched farm succession and social sustainability in rural Ireland;
2nd Place: Carlos Francisco-Cruz (Mexican) – Created regional GreenHouse Gas emissions models to support policy targeting;
3rd Place: Felipe Aguiar-Noury (Ecuadorian) – Analysed adoption of sustainable fertiliser practices across 700 plus farms.