Iowa Beef Center director column
March 2023
Precision Beef Production
Through educational meetings and trade shows this winter, I’ve learned much about the current state and future direction of precision livestock technologies for the beef industry. Many companies are investing heavily in this area and it is a very active area of research at major universities.
What is here now. Technologies gaining widespread use include calving and other surveillance cameras. Being able to watch that heifer in labor from your kitchen table may reduce many a late night trip to the calving barn. There are all kinds of new apps available. An eclectric fence app can help you find the short and then turn off the fence so you can make the repair. Apps that integrate data entry from the scale head on your feed wagon or squeeze chute for further data management and analysis are increasing in popularity. While these tools won’t pull a calf, fix the fence or feed the cattle, they do save much time in data entry and labor.
What is evolving. These tools are recently available and rapidly improving. RFID ear tags are becoming common to integrate data collection of individual animals. With the scale heads mentioned earlier, cattle weights and other measures can be easily collected and stored. New on the market are ultra high frequency RFID tags. These can be read from much greater distances for more rapid identification of animals. Currently, the applications available for the high frequency and ultra high frequency tags are not always interchangeable, and this is an area of development. Recently the first virtual fence became available. This allows for controlled grazing without internal fences. Look for more development in this technology as well. Several companies have developed behavior sensing ear tags. Based on animal movement, activity and ear temperature, an algorithm attempts to predict behaviors such as rumination, estrus activity and sickness. As artificial intelligence (AI) methods improve, look for these technologies to continue to improve and for more applications to be developed.
What is coming. The combination of sensors, cameras and aritfical intelligence opens the doors to research on some new ideas. Some researchers are developing facial recognition as a means of identification of cattle. Along with sophisticated camera research, evaluating the use of AI for early detection of disease such as respiratory disease continues. One researcher is using cameras trained on the feet of cattle in confinement to identify very early lesions of hairy heel wart.
The beef industry also will continue to benefit from advances in precision cropping technology. Strategic application of fertilizer and manure can add value to the beef enterprise. Yield monitors can demonstrate fields or sections of fields that are unproductive for crops and should be converted to forages. Technologies will continually provide more tools in the toolbox for the foreseeable future. They do not replace good management, decision making and stewardship, however.
March is calving season in Iowa and a time of great optimism. Based on current cattle inventories, there is reason to be optimisic as we move ahead into the next few years. Cattle numbers are at a low and beef demand is strong. These times will not be without challenges, however. Costs remain high and margins will continue to challenge cattle feeders. Be sure to reach out to your regional beef specialist or any of us on campus with your questions. And don’t forget our website has many resources and tools available.
The IBC at Iowa State University serves as the university’s extension program to cattle producers. Our center comprises a team of faculty and staff from the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, the College of Veterinary Medicine and Iowa State University Extension and Outreach. We work together to develop and deliver the latest in research-based information to improve the profitability and vitality of Iowa’s beef industry. If you’d like to be notified of updates on progress of research projects or programs that might be coming to your area, please subscribe to our “Growing Beef” newsletter by following the link on our website, www.iowabeefcenter.org. If you have a question, use our “Ask our Experts” link. Also, feel free to call us at 515-294-BEEF or email us at beefcenter@iastate.edu. You can also follow @iowabeefcenter on Twitter, YouTube and Instagram and now AgFuse.
