Sensor Technology: Detecting when the udder of a cow is infected, smart sensors such as Labby’s measure changes in the milk to detect inflammation before it becomes a problem. Other sensors include SomaDetect, which analyzes milk for signs that the cow is in heat.
Computer Vision Technology: Earlier intervention leads to healthier and happier cows. At my own company, we’re using computer vision technology in the barn to improve animal welfare by closely watching the cows and their behavioral patterns. The goal is to ensure cows are comfortable at all times. With video monitoring tied together with artificial intelligence, feeding practices can become more efficient. Equally important, a cow with a longer rest period can produce more milk, have better health, and have a lower carbon footprint.
Food And Water Technology: Startups like Fyto are also looking at sustainable alternatives to feed ingredients, such as using aquatic plants as a protein source instead of importing soybean from the Midwest or Brazil. Fyto engineered designer ponds, which are intended to be water- and energy-efficient, to produce these new protein crops. Processed dairy cow manure is used as fertilizer, which also helps to close the circle. Livestock Water Recycling sought to make farming more sustainable by developing new technology to recycle up to 75% of the water that is lost in the manure lagoons.
Clearly, digital technology is aiming to impact the future of dairy farms. In the current moment, consumers are becoming more aware of the obstacles for farms to overcome. A recent survey among 2,500 consumers in the U.S., Vietnam, Brazil and Norway showed that consumers are also recognizing farmers’ challenges. The survey from Cargill found that 71% of those consumers surveyed “express concern about the pandemic’s disruption of the food system.” Two in three consumers recognize the increasing pressure animal farmers feel to continue supplying safe, affordable protein since Covid-19 began, and 47% of consumers surveyed see farmers as stewards of natural resources, while 42% classify them as animal care experts.
With consumer awareness and startups looking to put technology to work, connected farms are likely to grow – if not become standard – within the next five years. Dr. Jeffrey Bewley of the U.S. Holstein Association said at a virtual conference that successful dairies are the ones that are always adapting and looking for new opportunities. If you are not moving forward you are falling behind.
While consumers are preparing more home meals instead of visiting their favorite restaurants during the pandemic, there is a huge opportunity for tech startups in the food and agriculture industry to make use of these unconventional times and leave an indelible impression. Consumers who can see that the dairy products they consume come from farms with the highest level of care, animal health and welfare – and use technology to make agriculture more sustainable, animal-friendly and transparent – might find a glass of fresh milk to be more satisfying than ever before!
Aidan Connolly is CEO of start-up Cainthus, President of AgriTech Capital (investing & advising), an author and a food / farm futurologist.
