At its launch recently in Kilkenny, Keenan highlighted that feed efficiency is at the heart of its new InTouch AgriTech technology.
InTouch AgriTech is a cloud-based technology that links 3,000 feeding machines on farms across the world to Keenan’s live monitoring centre in Kilkenny, InTouch Centre.
Within the centre, a team of highly skilled nutritionists constantly measure what cattle are eating, how the feed is prepared and animal performance. If problems arise, the InTouch Centre detects them real time and corrective action is taken straight away.
Kennan says the technology gives farmers full control of what’s within their control and can also provide a sustainable solution against volatile commodities.
It says at a time when thousands of Irish dairy and beef farmers are suffering swingeing price cuts the Keenan’s new technology based nutrition support service for dairy and beef farmers, will help farmers cope with volatile commodity (milk and beef prices and feed input costs) in addition to unpredictable weather conditions such as those encountered in the summer of 2012 and spring of 2013.
Speaking at the official launch of InTouch AgriTech, Gerard Keenan, Chairman of Keenan, outlined how this recent swing in commodity prices will be a feature of future global markets and that farmers must make effective use of what they can control. One volatility plan that can be managed by both farmers and their advisers is improved feed performance which can have a positive impact on milk yield from the same number of animals and improved beef quality assurance.
Also speaking at the launch was Professor Mike Wilkinson of Nottingham University, who reported that across Europe, and specifically in Britain and Ireland, increasing milk yields from cows since 2005 had generated little increased margins to farmers due to narrowing relationship between milk prices and feed input costs. This was exacerbated by declining responses from cows being fed more concentrates.
At the launch Keenan also announced the extension of InTouch AgriTech technology and support for all mixer wagons.
Gerald Keenan said currently it estimates that there are 8,000 Irish dairy and beef farms with mixer wagons who produce 50% of Ireland’s milk and beef.
“Together with new entrants to precision feeding this will realistically rise to 75% of national milk production. So, we can all work together to make a real contribution to building an industry that is sustainable and resilient in the face of the volatility, in weather and markets, we are certain to face”, he said.
