The course is aimed at the acquisition of basic concepts of microbiology applied to animal productions. These include basic knowledge on environmental microbiology, rumen microbiology, feed production (silage) microbiology, and microbiology of fermented food of animal origin (dairy and meat products). Furthermore, basic notions concerning the study of biodiversity of microbial communities will be provided. At the end of the course, the students will be able to fully understand the importance of microorganisms within several production activities and independently conduct isolation, identification and characterization of different microorganisms.