From Sky Tower to cowshed
Every morning dairy farmer Sam Waugh sees the Auckland Sky Tower through his window. It's a great reminder of one of his key life goals - giving young people from towns and cities insights into farm life.
Kiwi agritech start-up Halter, in Auckland, expects to commercially launch its GPS-enabled cow collars in April.
Chief executive and founder Craig Piggott this month told the Agmardt NZ Young Farmers Conference in Christchurch that the firm had just finished setting up its production line in China.
“We have received our first collars off the line, and we’re targeting April as our commercial launch. It’s all happening very quickly.”
Halter’s GPS-enabled collar enables cows to be guided around a farm by a smartphone app, Piggott said. It has had 18 months testing on a Waikato farm.
“The system uses audio and vibration to train a cow; the smartest cows only take two hours to train.”
The solar-powered collars reduce farm labour and infrastructure costs.
“The collars can be programmed to bring the cows to the milking shed at certain times and identify cows on heat,” Piggott said.
“The collar has huge animal welfare benefits, especially on larger farms. If a cow stops eating because she’s sick or lame, she can be identified sooner.”
Virtual fences save time can eliminate temporary electric fences.
“We have built the system to work around existing permanent fences. In the long term, a farmer could pull out all fences and run a completely fenceless farm. There are big gains to be made with improved pasture utilisation.”
Farmers will pay nothing upfront to use the collars but will pay a monthly fee to use the software.
Halter’s team has doubled in the last six months and it now has a dozen jobs listed on its website.
Federated Farmers president Wayne Langford is claiming “some real success” on the 12 policy priorities it placed before the Coalition Government.
Federated Farmers is throwing its support behind the Fast-track Approvals Bill introduced by the Coalition Government to enable a fast-track decision-making process for infrastructure and development projects.
The latest report from ANZ isn’t good news for sheep farmers: lamb returns are forecast to remain low.
Divine table grapes that herald the start of a brand-new industry in Hawke’s Bay have been coming off vines in Maraekakaho.
In what appears to be a casualty of the downturn in the agricultural sector, a well-known machinery brand is now in the hands of liquidators and owing creditors $6.6 million.
One of New Zealand’s deepest breeder Jersey herds – known for its enduring connection through cattle with the UK’s longest reigning monarch, Queen Elizabeth II – will host its 75th anniversary celebration sale on-farm on April 22.