“No other tool is able to accurately predict when your calf should be sold to get maximum returns,” says tenant farmer James Wright, who is the latest recruit to Breedr, developers of a unique livestock productivity tool. The platform uses a farm’s own data to help increase the value of its dairy beef by as much as 50%, James will share how this can be achieved at Dairy-Tech 2019 (Innovation Hub, 3.10pm)
“Farmers already collect a lot of data about their herd and Breedr offers an analysis tool for all of this. To be able to predict the date when an animal is going to finish is fantastic, really genuine, and you can improve your breeding practices to get a better price from the finishers. There are benefits within Breedr that no one else is doing,” explains James, who recently joined the agri-tech start-up as Farmer Community Manager.
The number of dairy bull calves retained within the British beef chain has substantially risen in the past decade, with over 80% of bull calves born in the dairy industry now finished for veal or beef. With consumers seeking leaner, more consistent cuts of beef, the Holstein Friesian breed has the potential to provide the required uniformity of quality that processors require.
“Breedr analyses sires’ performance, revealing which bulls produce calves with the preferred body shape and condition for beef,” explains James. “Real-time data about your herd is integrated with wider beef data, so you receive the most up-to-date insights to make the best decisions about your beast.
“The great thing about Breedr is that it’s a tool that you can put as little or as much data as you want into, but everything you put into Breedr has an output. Some farmers might just use it to log weight, others for vaccines and antibiotic usage, or some might start loading out the kill-sheets and weights – with Breedr, you can get data based on those fields as well.
“Even the base functionality of Breedr, the livestock management module, is better than everything else out there and there are more developments in the pipeline.”
The platform is currently in trials with Rothamsted Research’s North Wyke farm and individual farmers across the UK. James is encouraging farmers to sign up for Breedr’s waiting list to get a 30 day trial when they launch later this Spring. He said: “We are analysing past data from Rothamsted’s farm, which shows that using Breedr can improve an animal’s productivity by £100s. Once farmers start using it they will see what a great tool it is.”
James Wright, Breedr’s Farmer Community Manager, will be speaking about the role of innovation in supporting the dairy industry alongside Farm 491, DiAgri and Beosense in the Dairy-Tech Innovation Hub at 3.10pm.
Dairy-Tech takes place on 6 February 2019 at Stoneleigh Park, Coventry, CV8 2LZ. Breedr will be on the Farming 491 Stand.