The deal with Dairy Farmers of America (DFA) includes a bulk order of Piper’s systems for their farms in central and southeast of the US to ensure farmers are being paid fairly for milk. The DFA is one of the largest dairy unions in the US, with around 6,000 farms under its umbrella.
Piper Systems improves milk collection, loading, and sampling through the use of advanced automation and data. Systems can be used on the farm or tanker, providing accurate sampling to grade milk properly and yield payments for farmers, and ensures traceability at all steps of the chain. The system is also modular, allowing it to be repaired relatively easily if needed.
The deal, which includes a €1.8 million capital investment in the equipment, could also yield further revenues down the line from access to the data streams, the company said. “We think there’s a further opportunity with DFA to do business over the next couple years that we’ll be pursuing,” chief executive Leigh Hamilton said.
The company will also target other large co-ops in the US.
The deal is culmination of several years of work in the US to update regulations to allow technology and systems that have been in use for several years in Ireland to be implemented in the dairy market there.
“The Irish dairy industry punches so far above where it should be at in terms of such a small economy,” said Ms Hamilton. “It’s incredible when you go abroad to market like the US, they’re the biggest dairy market in the world … to walk in as an Irish person, it’s great because other people have kicked that door open before us.”
However, a change in regulation has opened the way for Piper in the US. The company attended several hearings in 2019 to help guide the change in regulations, but the Covid-19 pandemic stalled its progress in the US.
The company, which employs 14 people, has a small number of staff in the US to help expand but it main hub will remain in Ireland, where its technology is developed and supported, with local installers on hand in the US to help support customers.
Although the main focus for the company remains the dairy industry, the technology could be repurposed for use with other industries if the demand is there. “We’re always open to adjacencies,” said Ms Hamilton. “But right now, our big project will be scaling sustainably.”
