In our series “Who is…?”  we introduce you to all of our team members.

Patrick Stratz

• I have been employed at Qualitas AG since 01.03.2021. As a geneticist, I am involved in both routine genetic evaluations and projects to develop future evaluations.
• I started studying agricultural biology with a specialisation in agricultural biotechnology at the University of Hohenheim. I attended a few lectures on plant breeding in the diploma course, but then met Prof. Dr. Jörn Bennewitz at the time, which awakened my interest in the subject. Thanks to my diploma thesis supervisor I also completed my doctorate afterwards at the department of animal breeding and genetics and remained there as a research assistant with a teaching load until 2018.
• Following my scientific career, I gained my first professional experience in pig breeding at Suisag until 2019. During this time, I met the employees of Qualitas AG at conferences. I also gave lectures on practical pig breeding at the University of Bern and ETH Zurich. In the process, I realized that teaching was in line with my interests. So, in 2019 I moved to the Justus-von-Liebig Schule Waldshut as a direct entrant with the subjects microbiology, biotechnology and chemistry. I enjoyed working with many students but preparing for the lessons was very time-consuming due to the extensive and detailed curriculum content.
  When I think back to my time as a teacher at school, one of the key scenes in Biology class in Grade 12 comes to mind. Back then we covered the basics around DNA or mitosis / meiosis and heredity. In this topic, I deviated from the actual teaching content to tell about animal breeding. After this lesson, a student came and asked if I didn’t regret not working in animal breeding anymore.
  This made me think and, among other things, led to my decision to apply for a job as a geneticist at Qualitas AG. At Qualitas AG I can now bring back the professional experience I gained at Suisag.
• After 1.5 years, I can confirm the experience I had with the employees during my time at Suisag. They are very helpful and the teamwork is very good.
  I also appreciate the fact that I have a lot of freedom at Qualitas when it comes to organising my daily work. I appreciate the fact that I was able to help design the course on breeding value estimation and that I am involved in very interesting research projects.
• I spend most of my free time doing sports. In summer you can find me mountain biking during the week and hiking in the mountains on weekends. In winter, I prefer cross-country skiing or snowshoeing. If time permits, I play the guitar to relax.