The 2018 Ploughing Innovation Arena run by Enterprise Ireland in conjunction with the Irish Farmers Journal will showcase the latest technology by agribusinesses.Here we report on a selection of the innovations that will be on display and competing for a prize fund valued at over €80,000 in supports.
Tailpainter – Agrify Solutions
Despite the introduction of a number of electronic solutions to the market, tail painting remains the most widely used way of fertility monitoring in cows. The main difficulty in getting the cow’s tail painted is that typically it takes two people. Agrify Solutions has a tailpainter that will allow a farmer paint the top of the cow’s tail quickly and safely from the milking parlour pit or, in the case of suckler herds, from a safe distance behind the cow. It plans on bringing it to the market in time for the 2019 season. The company was founded by Cork dairy farmer Liam O’Keeffe.
One of the biggest problems in grassland is docks. This product (which is still in prototype stage) uses computer vision technology that distinguishes broadleaf weeds from grass. It then can use this technology to apply herbicides to the weeds individually and not the grass and treat individual plants. In this case it applies herbicide to broadleaf weeds such as docks in grassland. In farm trials, there has been a 90% saving in the use of herbicide. The startup was founded by Mayo farmer Padraic Walsh in 2017.
Digester – Alchemy Utilities
Converting animal manures and organic farm waste into energy is one way the agri-food industry can reduce its carbon emissions. The digester produces more gas that is higher in methane content than a traditional anaerobic digester, meaning better outputs and returns than similar-sized alternatives. The Roscommon-based startup has developed a thermophilic digester (TD) which is a biogas system that uses a dry digestion process. It pre-treats the feedstocks to increase their dry matter content which can vary from 20% DM to 40% DM. It can run on a wide range of organic feedstocks including 100% chicken litter.
Soil data – Greensource/Anuland
The soil is the most important asset a farmer has. This product allows a farmer to know what is happening in the soil, in near real-time, facilitating better-informed management decisions around crop fertilisation and health. A soil monitoring unit is placed into a field which measures different attributes such as pH. The data is sent to the cloud for processing and then combined using machine learning to help the farmer make informed decisions. The farmer has a deeper knowledge of what is happening in the field by providing knowledge on the most appropriate times to fertilise taking all local soil and environmental conditions into account. The company was founded by Limerick-based McDonnell farming family.
Section control, fertiliser spreader – Agri-Spread
Given that fields are not perfectly square, overlapping can occur which is both a waste and not best practice from an environmental perspective. This machine can reduce or shut off the application rate on either side automatically, all controlled via the GPS controller. The trailed fertiliser spreader has two conveyor floors which are GPS-controlled for feeding the fertiliser to the rear spinner deck. The spinner deck has two independently controlled spinners which are controlled in relation to the spread width required. Founded in 2006, Agri-Spread is a family-owned machinery manufacturer based in Ballyhaunis Co Mayo.
Slurry Gas Buster – Clare Engineering
One of the gases produced during agitating is hydrogen sulphide, a clear gas that is heavier than air, which tends to stay low to the ground in the absence of air movement. Exposure to this gas causes confusion, disorientation, rapid collapse and fatality where the concentration rises above 700ppm. Clare Engineering has designed an extraction system that will disperse the potentially fatal gases in farm manure which are generated when a farmer is mixing/agitating slurry and replace with clean air. The business was founded in 1982 and is based in Cavan.
Dairy water heater – Dairy Geyser
Hot water is essential on every dairy farm but it can be expensive and inefficient. Traditional immersion heaters have high running costs and cannot maintain a constant water temperature.
The Dairy Geyser is an oil-fired boiler which saves up to 75% on water heating costs. It delivers constant and instant hot (food grade) water at 20 litres per min. The temperature can be adjusted from ambient to 90°C. With the onset of chlorine-free detergents, the Dairy Geyser can be hooked up to a power washer and can be used when sterilising tanks or sheds.
Automatic moving fence - Grazebot
It is well known that grass is Ireland’s competitive advantage but it can be difficult to manage when grazing. Grazebot has developed an automated moving fence system which allocates fresh grass to animals on a continual basis to ensure the entire sward is consumed before the fence moves again. The cows don’t walk or contaminate the grass they are about to eat. It also stops selective grazing of the more palatable grasses first. Ultimately the company claims it improves grass production and utilisation. An operational prototype will be working at the Innovation Arena. The Westmeath based startup was founded by the Drumm farming family.
Drone heat detection - HerdInsights
Enterprise Ireland
It can be difficult for farmers with large herds across vast tracts of land to monitor cattle, especially to improve the efficiency of farm breeding programmes and reduce healthcare costs. Smart collars are limited to cows entering the parlour. This new technology uses drones which fly out to where the cows are located, collect the data and send it to the cloud with alerts sent directly to the farmer’s phone. This allows cows to be monitored, outside of range, at any time of the day, which enables the farmer to get information on each cow well in advance of milking. HerdInsights was established in 2010 and is based in Cork.
Stones are a problem on nearly all farms in Ireland. This implement combs stones into rows which can then be loaded into a trailer using a front loader. The adjustable spring-loaded pins till and level the soil while rowing. It is pulled behind a tractor. This implement is a cheap way of de-stoning land and the implement requires little maintenance. The inventor is based in Offaly.
The 2018 Ploughing Innovation Arena run by Enterprise Ireland in conjunction with the Irish Farmers Journal will showcase the latest technology by agribusinesses.Here we report on a selection of the innovations that will be on display and competing for a prize fund valued at over €80,000 in supports.
Tailpainter – Agrify Solutions
Despite the introduction of a number of electronic solutions to the market, tail painting remains the most widely used way of fertility monitoring in cows. The main difficulty in getting the cow’s tail painted is that typically it takes two people. Agrify Solutions has a tailpainter that will allow a farmer paint the top of the cow’s tail quickly and safely from the milking parlour pit or, in the case of suckler herds, from a safe distance behind the cow. It plans on bringing it to the market in time for the 2019 season. The company was founded by Cork dairy farmer Liam O’Keeffe.
One of the biggest problems in grassland is docks. This product (which is still in prototype stage) uses computer vision technology that distinguishes broadleaf weeds from grass. It then can use this technology to apply herbicides to the weeds individually and not the grass and treat individual plants. In this case it applies herbicide to broadleaf weeds such as docks in grassland. In farm trials, there has been a 90% saving in the use of herbicide. The startup was founded by Mayo farmer Padraic Walsh in 2017.
Digester – Alchemy Utilities
Converting animal manures and organic farm waste into energy is one way the agri-food industry can reduce its carbon emissions. The digester produces more gas that is higher in methane content than a traditional anaerobic digester, meaning better outputs and returns than similar-sized alternatives. The Roscommon-based startup has developed a thermophilic digester (TD) which is a biogas system that uses a dry digestion process. It pre-treats the feedstocks to increase their dry matter content which can vary from 20% DM to 40% DM. It can run on a wide range of organic feedstocks including 100% chicken litter.
Soil data – Greensource/Anuland
The soil is the most important asset a farmer has. This product allows a farmer to know what is happening in the soil, in near real-time, facilitating better-informed management decisions around crop fertilisation and health. A soil monitoring unit is placed into a field which measures different attributes such as pH. The data is sent to the cloud for processing and then combined using machine learning to help the farmer make informed decisions. The farmer has a deeper knowledge of what is happening in the field by providing knowledge on the most appropriate times to fertilise taking all local soil and environmental conditions into account. The company was founded by Limerick-based McDonnell farming family.
Section control, fertiliser spreader – Agri-Spread
Given that fields are not perfectly square, overlapping can occur which is both a waste and not best practice from an environmental perspective. This machine can reduce or shut off the application rate on either side automatically, all controlled via the GPS controller. The trailed fertiliser spreader has two conveyor floors which are GPS-controlled for feeding the fertiliser to the rear spinner deck. The spinner deck has two independently controlled spinners which are controlled in relation to the spread width required. Founded in 2006, Agri-Spread is a family-owned machinery manufacturer based in Ballyhaunis Co Mayo.
Slurry Gas Buster – Clare Engineering
One of the gases produced during agitating is hydrogen sulphide, a clear gas that is heavier than air, which tends to stay low to the ground in the absence of air movement. Exposure to this gas causes confusion, disorientation, rapid collapse and fatality where the concentration rises above 700ppm. Clare Engineering has designed an extraction system that will disperse the potentially fatal gases in farm manure which are generated when a farmer is mixing/agitating slurry and replace with clean air. The business was founded in 1982 and is based in Cavan.
Dairy water heater – Dairy Geyser
Hot water is essential on every dairy farm but it can be expensive and inefficient. Traditional immersion heaters have high running costs and cannot maintain a constant water temperature.
The Dairy Geyser is an oil-fired boiler which saves up to 75% on water heating costs. It delivers constant and instant hot (food grade) water at 20 litres per min. The temperature can be adjusted from ambient to 90°C. With the onset of chlorine-free detergents, the Dairy Geyser can be hooked up to a power washer and can be used when sterilising tanks or sheds.
Automatic moving fence - Grazebot
It is well known that grass is Ireland’s competitive advantage but it can be difficult to manage when grazing. Grazebot has developed an automated moving fence system which allocates fresh grass to animals on a continual basis to ensure the entire sward is consumed before the fence moves again. The cows don’t walk or contaminate the grass they are about to eat. It also stops selective grazing of the more palatable grasses first. Ultimately the company claims it improves grass production and utilisation. An operational prototype will be working at the Innovation Arena. The Westmeath based startup was founded by the Drumm farming family.
Drone heat detection - HerdInsights
Enterprise Ireland
It can be difficult for farmers with large herds across vast tracts of land to monitor cattle, especially to improve the efficiency of farm breeding programmes and reduce healthcare costs. Smart collars are limited to cows entering the parlour. This new technology uses drones which fly out to where the cows are located, collect the data and send it to the cloud with alerts sent directly to the farmer’s phone. This allows cows to be monitored, outside of range, at any time of the day, which enables the farmer to get information on each cow well in advance of milking. HerdInsights was established in 2010 and is based in Cork.
Stones are a problem on nearly all farms in Ireland. This implement combs stones into rows which can then be loaded into a trailer using a front loader. The adjustable spring-loaded pins till and level the soil while rowing. It is pulled behind a tractor. This implement is a cheap way of de-stoning land and the implement requires little maintenance. The inventor is based in Offaly.
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