5 New technologies for beef producers

Like every other area of agriculture, efficiency is the name of the game in the beef industry. Fortunately, farmers are changing the game with emerging innovations to monitor herd health by optimizing reproduction and helping build consumer trust. Here are five new technologies that may help you get in the game. 

1. Invisible fence for cows

Founded in 2020, Corral Technologies is another new virtual fence company option. Cows wear a two-sided collar with GPS tracking and can provide stimulation to help keep cows within a virtual boundary designed by the farmer based on GPS coordinates of their property. Cows can become trained after five days of use, but if a cow goes through the boundary, her collar will send her an alarm and stimulation to guide her back inside the perimeter. Farmers can control and track cows through Corral's collars and software via phone, tablet, or computer.  

2. An inclusive cattle feeder platform with real-time data and bookkeeping

AgResult is comprehensive cattle management software designed especially for farmers raising feeder cattle for finishing and on a contracting basis. It also helps organize feed rations and bookkeeping. Whether through the app on your phone or via computer, you can get real-time data on feed inventory, costs per pound of grain, and average daily gain. The pricing for the product is a pay-as-you-go model and is based on the number of head of cattle.

3. Food verification to help build consumer trust 

Where Food Comes From (WFCF), Inc. is an independent third-party verification company that helps over 15,000 farmers, processors, retailers, and consumer brands build trust with consumers. The company audits marketing claims using USDA's Process Verified Programs, National Organic Program, and the company's own CARE program, which covers animal welfare, environmental stewardship, and community supply-chain sustainability. WFCF also uses SunHarvest, a custom software platform that creates metrics on management practices used to achieve the claim, including Passport Traceability, which can track a product to its source of origin. 

4. Watch your herd’s water intake 

Debuted earlier this year, Ranchbot is a water monitoring company that gives farmers insights into their water stock tanks to measure how much their cattle are drinking. Farmers can place Ranchbot's water level sensor in the water tank to monitor water metrics in real-time via a computer dashboard. The sensors and software can operate in remote locations with satellite connectivity. Access to the software is via subscription and costs $1 a day. The sensor costs $1,855.

5. Ear tags monitor bull health and performance

Bull performance is essential to the success of a cowherd. For some farms, monitoring a bull's health can be a challenge. Farmers can use the 701x — XTpro's Autonomous Rancher software — and smart ear tags to collect animal footstep data via GPS. The data is connected to the Autonomous Rancher software and application. The platform can also send alerts to farmers' cellphones if the bull hasn't moved for an extended period or a high-speed warning if an animal moves above 29 mph. The platform also features a bull mounting algorithm to inform farmers which bulls are most proactive. 

Pricing is based on the number of animals a farmer records in the app and the type of operation. For a commercial herd, the monthly subscription price is $8.33, and for the year, it's $100. XTpro costs $83 per tag. A service charge option costs $42 per tag per year.