increase font size
Cows on a Waikato farm will be shifted from the Fieldays using Halter technology.
Visitors to Fieldays this year will get a taste of how cow collar technology Halter works.
Halter farmer, Pete Morgan, runs a 600-cow farm in the Waikato. He will live stream the technology to shift his cows from the Halter Fieldays site.
While on site at Mystery Creek, Pete will use the Halter app to remotely shift his mob in Te Awamutu. A live stream will show cow movements in real-time, starting at 2.30pm on Thursday and Friday.
"At our farm, we are designing breaks with different shapes that optimise exactly the accurate allocation of feed, cows move quietly at their own pace, and the farm has had a huge lift in productivity," says Morgan.
"Without a doubt, Halter has changed the way we farm."
Halter chief executive Craig Piggott is looking forward to sharing their groundbreaking technology with such a wide and captive audience.
"Pete will shift his cows from Fieldays, and this is huge because he can be at Fieldays, or anywhere really, and his farm continues to operate.
"I love seeing a farmer's reaction to a virtual shift. It's a look of sheer wonder as they see cows calmly moving to another break, all at their own pace.
"No dogs, no motorbikes, no walking behind cows: just a collar and a smartphone. Fieldays is a great opportunity for us to show just how simple and life-changing it can be."
Just like Fieldays, Waikato is where Halter began. From humble beginnings on their research farm in Morrinsville six years ago, Halter claims to now support "hundreds of farmers and tens of thousands of cows" across New Zealand, with significant uptake in the South Island.
The company says it supports farmers in unlocking the most productive and sustainable farms.
"The system combats labour shortages and improves animal health and performance by enabling farmers to remotely shift, virtually fence and proactively monitor the health of their cows.
"Halters also features an integrated pasture management system to help farmers get the most out of their grass.
"By leveraging real-time data, Halter automatically calculates feed and, coupled with their virtual fencing, allows for more precise kgDM or pasture allocation per cow.
"By automating some of the most time-consuming tasks on the farm, Halter significantly reduces workloads, allowing farmers to use their time more efficiently."
Piggot says Halter is meeting the industry's demand for positive and more efficient change.
The market is in decline in the United States, Canada and Brazil. In Europe, sales are falling in Germany, France and Spain. Turkey is experiencing a sharp decline, whilst the economic strategies and policies implemented by India and China are driving purchases in both countries.
Areare Farms, a dairy operation in the Waikato region spanning multiple properties and milking 760 cows, now has Jenna and her brother Brian Rogers, the third generation of the family business, working alongside their parents Phil and Jackie.
Hamilton-based manufacturer SAM Machinery and Hawke’s Bay’s Tabula have joined forces to offer customers more ways to connect its spreaders with the technology they already use in the cab.
Installing two GEA DairyRobots R9500s marks a major step in the Coubrough family’s journey towards a more automated, future-ready farming operation.
Claas built its first variable chamber round baler - the Variant 100 - in 1996, so 2026 marks 30 years and the fifth generation of the Variant name, recently complemented by the new Cerex Series introduced in 2025.
Overseer Ltd has released an update to OverseerFM, the farm environmental modelling software, incorporating research findings that refine its estimates of crop nitrogen uptake.
New Zealand's red meat sector says it is disappointed that the United States' investigation into lamb imports will move to its next phase.
Three men have been sentenced in District Courts after Ministry for Primary Industries prosecutions over animal welfare, food safety and cattle tracing offences.
Fonterra’s 2026 financial year was a year of delivery, with record volumes of milk collected, processed and shipped by the co-op.
OPINION: The Government's decision to reinstate agriculture and horticultural science as a standalone subject from Year 11 is the right one.
Dairy farmers, still holding onto their Fonterra shares despite switching milk supply elsewhere or exiting the industry, now face a stricter share sell-down requirement.
OPINION: It seems Canterbury processor Synlait is still in the doldrums.
OPINION: Get offside with New Zealand First leader Winston Peters at your own peril.
