health of the pigs is becoming more important. This means not only improving the sanitary status in breeding farms, but also selecting for general disease resistance under commercial conditions. As in the case of ruminants, there are some difficulties involved in implementing efficient selection for “functional” traits. There are still no appropriate tools to select for better resistance to diseases or to reduce metabolic disorders. Sufficient knowledge of the genetic aspects of welfare is lacking. Stress recording methods need to be improved – for example, through the use of non-invasive methods for measuring stress-indicating parameters, determination of catecholamine levels, and heart-rate recording on under-skin chips. Improved knowledge of the cognitive abilities and coping strategies of pigs might enable individual characteristics to become indicative of ability to adapt to various housing conditions and social challenges, and could be included in selection criteria. Additionally, there is a need for further assessment of the impact of selection for specific disease resistance and welfare objectives