Artificial intelligence technology and advanced camera systems are revolutionizing the way U.S. dairy farmers manage their herds.
Artificial intelligence (AI) and advanced camera systems are revolutionizing the way U.S. dairy farmers manage their herds. While the use of smart cameras in dairies isn’t entirely new, and there are possibly a dozen companies working globally in this area, there are four main players who have commercialized the technology on U.S. dairy farms and provide tools that can improve profitability, productivity and use artificial intelligence to inform farm management.
The Evolution of AI Cameras in Dairy Farming
Due to the historically high complexity and cost of installation, the adoption of camera technology has lagged the adoption of wearable IoT sensors—such as cow collars and ear tags—which are now used on more than half of U.S. dairy cows. Cameras on dairy farms have been used for decades, AI makes camera-based monitoring far more useful and efficient. By constantly monitoring footage, AI can identify farm practices, animal welfare issues, and sustainability concerns that would be impossible for humans to perform 24/7.
Driven by that growing recognition of the value AI systems bring to dairy operations, Smart camera systems are gaining traction. Currently, AI camera systems are being used in just 1/10th of the cows using wearable devices and total cows using smart AI cameras are expected to exceed 1 million within the next two years.
What Companies Offer Today
- Healthier cows and safer calving
Smart AI Cameras have been used to observe feed consumption, animal behavior in the barn and since both of these are critical from a financial and cow management decision making perspective it is not surprising that having feed management decisions have been widely adopted by U.S. dairy producers. More recently the same company, Cainthus, have generated a new maternity ward monitoring system sends alerts to farmers when cows are ready to calve, enabling timely interventions that reduce the risk of complications. By integrating these systems with their data platforms farmers can make informed decisions based on real-time insights.
- Early diagnosis and treatment of lameness in cows
One company uses 2D cameras to monitor cow gait in milking parlors, enabling early identification of potential lameness. This allows farmers to address lameness issues before they escalate. The provider CattleEye suggests that AI cameras used in this way can improve cow care and even reduce the carbon footprint.
- AI cameras to improve parlor practices
The third player in this space uses AI cameras to monitor milking parlors and to identify non-standard behaviors, sending farms immediate video alerts. Cattle Care claim that they now watch almost 500,000 cows and encourage employers to shift compensation from hourly wages to performance-based salaries. Ultimately, the system helps farmers identify areas for training and improvement to foster a culture of accountability and productivity.
- Track cow behavior and health
The fourth player describes themselves as a ‘digital shepherd’ to ensure cow welfare practices are being followed on farms. Established to meet the needs of Fairlife and focusing on cow welfare and human-animal interactions, ElectroFai aims to create transparency for auditors, ensure compliance with best practices, and mitigate brand risks.
Looking Ahead: What AI Cameras Spell for the Future
By providing real-time data on cow health, behavior, and feeding, AI such as ChatGPT, Generative AI and large language models (LLMs), offers insights that were once impossible, empowering dairy producers to significantly improve their farms. From helping farmers in their daily work, boosting productivity and promoting humane animal care, it’s clear that the future of dairy farming lies in embracing advanced technologies. As the focus on sustainability and animal welfare grows, AI informed, smart camera systems will become essential, transforming the dairy industry for years to come.
So which AI camera technology to choose? As always with technology, choose the one that seems to be backed by someone with deep pockets, ask about the installation and service support and get the name and phone numbers of current customers who you can call. Nothing works better than speaking to another Dairy or two to find out the real story. Still don’t wait. AI is the trend with the greatest potential to disrupt dairies.
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