Controversial electric collars get PM's approval

The prime minister has ruled out any added regulations for virtual fencing technology.

Solar-powered GPS collars, referred to as 'wearables', are widely seen as a big part of the future of farming for dairy cows and beef cattle.

Cows wear electronic collars and their movement is controlled via an app using audio, vibrations and an electric pulse, to stay within the virtual fence.

Companies Halter and Gallagher are leading the charge, exporting collar technology to farmers around the world.

Uptake is growing rapidly but the agritech has also divided opinion among some farmers, vets and animal welfare groups in this country.

Animal welfare charity group Veterinarians for Animal Welfare Aotearoa has released an ethical code for the GPS collars worn by livestock, saying New Zealand is falling behind Australia in regulating virtual fencing technology.

However, asked at Fieldays, Christopher Luxon said he was very comfortable with the technology and saw no need for tighter regulation at this point.

"We're very comfortable with where it's going," he said.

In fact the government is investing $3.55 million in a five-year project to boost beef and sheep production led by Pāmu, in partnership with a number of industry partners - including Halter.

The LIFT - or Livestock Innovation Farming Transformation programme - aims to unlock the productivity potential of hill country while protecting sensitive environments by showcasing how virtual fencing works in practice on-farm.

Independent economic modelling shows LIFT has the potential to deliver an additional $536m per year in farm‑gate returns by 2036, and a $1.25 billion uplift in export value by 2036.

Luxon hailed cow collars as one of the best examples of Kiwi ingenuity and a booming export opportunity for New Zealand.

"When you think about the virtual fencing companies, whether it's Gallagher or whether it's Halter that are doing some great work in that space and creating technology platforms for agriculture here and around the world, that's a huge opportunity for us. And that's the way I want New Zealanders to think about agriculture.

"We're going to push forward really hard on it because it's a Kiwi invention."

Virtual fencing is currently managed by the Animal Welfare Act, and some vets and farmers say it is having a positive impact on animal health.

Early and new adopters on its impacts on farm

Te Kuiti sheep and beef farmer Natasha Cave was an early adopter and credited wearables for transforming her enterprise into a thriving hill country operation.

"So we are a sheep and beef system - breeding cows with breeding ewes and finishing our young stock. We collared two-and-a-half-years ago with Halter.

"It's created a massive step change in our farm business. We were backs against the wall, kind of questioning our future in farming and we've managed to lift our cattle stocking rate by 20 percent, which is equated to this year we weaned an additional 10 tonne of calf life weight to pre-Halter days."

Cave - who also authored a Kellogg study paper about wearable technologies potential on hill country farms - said that came from maximising grazing efficiency and accessing parts of the hill country that were less accessible, especially in winter.

She said if it was used well it has a positive impact on animal welfare, but she warned it was a very powerful tool if it was not used well. Most of her cows took to the system easily and within the first 24 hours wearing collars they had adjusted to the sound cues, without the need for any electrical pulses.

She felt wearables technology had potential animal welfare benefits with data being used to identify sick cows earlier.

Sheep and beef farmer Jacques Reinhart, of Horizon Farming in Hawke's Bay, has just joined the LIFT programme.

"We're basically trying to make a playbook on how to integrate these wearables into sheep and beef farming systems in different climates and topography and stuff across New Zealand."

He was confident though that wearables companies were working closely with animal rights and all the laws around animal welfare.

"I mean, because the reality is, if they haven't been doing that, then their risk is massive because they can fold their whole business. So I'm confident in those companies doing that."

Reinhart said like with anything, there would be people who used the technology well and there might be some who used it poorly.

Fellow Hawke's Bay farmer Tim Fairweather uses Gallagher's eShepherd wearable collars on his sheep and beef property.

He said training the animals was just as important as training the farmer, and there were rules and restrictions in place.

"With the right training for the user you get a better understanding of how to use this that's best for the animals.

"We're already using electric fences out there to control stock. All we're doing now is just making it a very mobile fence that we can stick almost anywhere."

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