Silvia Alonso Alvarez

Silvia Alonso Alvarez

Senior Scientist Epidemiologist

Silvia Alonso is a senior scientist at the International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI), based in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. She is a veterinarian and holds a MSc in Epidemiology from the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, a PhD in veterinary public health. Silvia worked for 5 years as a lecturer at the Royal Veterinary College where she gained experience in teaching and training at undergraduate and postgraduate level, both nationally and internationally. She has more than 15 years of experience in public health research, both in Europe and internationally. Her research looks at the interface between livestock production and human health, including nutrition. During her time at ILRI she has been involved in a range of projects looking at the epidemiology and control of different zoonoses, mainly foodborne, and on strategies for sustainable food safety in informal markets. Her current research explores how to leverage livestock value chains to improve health and nutrition. She is leading the first large-scale field trial of an intervention in informal markets to improve food safety and child nutrition in peri-urban Nairobi. She is a Diplomate of the European College of Veterinary Public Health and the Chair of the ethics IRB at ILRI.

My Projects

MoreMilk: Making the most of milk

MoreMilk: Making the most of milk

Building capacity for institutionalizing food safety tracking in African Union member states

Building capacity for institutionalizing food safety tracking in African Union member states

Improving handling practices and microbiological safety of milk and milk products in Borana pastoral communities, Ethiopia

Improving handling practices and microbiological safety of milk and milk products in Borana pastoral communities, Ethiopia

Aflatoxin-related health risk for milk consumers in rural and peri-urban areas in Burkina Faso

Aflatoxin-related health risk for milk consumers in rural and peri-urban areas in Burkina Faso

What is killing my cow? Re-assessing diseases in smallholder dairying in Tanzania

What is killing my cow? Re-assessing diseases in smallholder dairying in Tanzania

My Blog Posts

ILRI News

Informal food markets: what it takes to make them safer

My Publications

Consumer demand for milk and the informal dairy sector amidst COVID-19 in Nairobi, Kenya

  • Alonso, Silvia
  • Angel, M.D.
  • Muunda, Emmanuel
  • Kilonzi, Emily
  • Palloni, G.
  • Grace, Delia
  • Leroy, J.L.

Diarrhea illness in livestock keeping households in Cambodia: An analysis using a One Health framework

  • Asakura, Shingo
  • Khieu, B.
  • Seng, S.
  • Pok, S.
  • Ty, C.
  • Phiny, C.
  • Srey, T.
  • Blacksell, S.D.
  • Gilbert, Jeffrey
  • Grace, Delia
  • Alonso, Silvia

Milk purchase and consumption patterns in peri-urban low-income households in Kenya

  • Muunda, Emmanuel
  • Mtimet, Nadhem
  • Bett, E.
  • Wanyoike, Francis N.
  • Alonso, Silvia

Foodborne disease hazards and burden in Ethiopia: A systematic literature review, 1990–2019

  • Gazu, Lina
  • Alonso, Silvia
  • Mutua, Florence K.
  • Roesel, Kristina
  • Lindahl, Johanna F.
  • Amenu, Kebede
  • Sousa, F.M.
  • Ulrich, P.
  • Guadu, T.
  • Dione, Michel M.
  • Ilboudo, Guy
  • Knight-Jones, Theodore J.D.
  • Grace, Delia

Milk quality and safety in the informal sector in Assam, India: governance, perceptions, and practices

  • Nicolini, G.
  • Guarin, A.
  • Deka, Ram P.
  • Vorley, B.
  • Alonso, Silvia
  • Blackmore, E.
  • Grace, Delia

Aflatoxin exposure among children of age 12-59 months in Butajira District, South-Central Ethiopia: A community based cross-sectional study

  • Ayele, M.
  • Haile, D.
  • Alonso, Silvia
  • Sime, H.
  • Abera, A.
  • Balcha, K.H.
  • Roba, K.T.
  • Guma, G.T.
  • Endris, B.S.