Transforma Insights recently published ‘Asset Monitoring: 181 million devices by 2032 to mostly prevent theft and increase asset productivity’, a report detailing the use of IoT in the management and tracking of all kinds of assets including livestock and for different agricultural processes. This article delves into the multifaceted aspects of IoT in tracking and monitoring animals, highlighting its pivotal role in ensuring efficient agricultural practices worldwide.
Monitoring the health and location of livestock in real-time
IoT solutions are being implemented to keep track of the health of various livestock. In the case of livestock that is typically kept in a single location (such as pigs and chickens), these are mostly static sensors that are deployed in barns, fields, and enclosures, and are used to keep a check on the animals’ health metrics and environmental conditions. Environmental sensors can monitor the intensity of light and levels of humidity, CO2, ammonia, and temperature to help farmers automatically control ventilation and lighting systems. Managing light intensity is essential for poultry as it has a direct impact on animal growth, feed consumption rate, and also the quality and number of eggs laid.
IoT solutions can also identify impending health problems far earlier than a farmer would, potentially reducing the spread of disease and keeping animals healthier. This can significantly reduce livestock losses, helping farmers to increase efficiency and save significant amounts of money. For example, many cattle are culled due to illnesses that could have been better managed with early identification. To cope with such issues, two German farmers adopted a solution called smaXtec and experienced 80% less severe disease progression and zero animal losses due to diseases. The solution also increased milk production.
The relatively mobile nature of livestock such as cattle makes it highly important for farmers to keep track of their location in real-time to reduce instances of missing animals. Livestock management techniques use IoT-enabled devices to monitor and track the location and condition of such livestock. Highly valuable or particularly mobile animals such as cattle and sheep are ideally tracked with individual tags, while lower-value animals are typically monitored with a smaller number of fixed sensors and potentially RFID tags. Such location monitoring of livestock saves farmers a lot of labour and ensures more efficiency in agricultural processes by saving the time required to manually check each animal.
Ensuring efficient production and timely reproduction
Milk production in cows can fall by almost 50% during hot summers. IoT monitoring can provide data to farmers allowing them to ensure that milk production is not hampered, despite external factors. Other aspects of animal rearing can also be made more efficient, particularly pregnancies. Only 10-20% of inseminations in “heat stressed” cows result in pregnancies, and pregnancies that are successful require frequent monitoring by farmers in case of any health-related issues. This in-person monitoring can be reduced using remote monitoring to ensure that pregnancies are progressing as they should and that any problems that might occur during the pregnancy are detected well in advance. For example, a US farmer increased cows’ pregnancy rate from 25% to 33% using GEA CowScout, powered by Nedap.
IoT enabled beekeeping
The range of applications for IoT technologies extends to include even the smallest organisms. For example, IoT is also being implemented for the monitoring and tracking of beehives in order to protect bees. Honeybees play an important role in the human food chain with a third of the food consumed by humans being pollinated by honeybees. They are also the source of honey and produce 400 million metric tons of honey for human consumption each year. IoT solutions allow beekeepers to better manage the honey, hives, and colonies even when they are far away by allowing them to remotely examine the conditions of the beehive and stay updated. These systems measure a range of basic parameters (including the weight of the beehive, temperature, and humidity) and alert beekeepers in case of deviation in any of the parameters. The systems also keep track of the number of honeybees in the beehive and provide alerts in case their number diminishes.
Challenges to the adoption and future prospects of IoT in livestock management
Despite the benefits, a range of factors may limit the adoption of livestock monitoring systems in different countries. Cheap labour is one such limiter in certain countries as farmers prefer hiring labourers instead of implementing IoT solutions due to the lower costs of labour as compared to using IoT. The growing number of vegans and vegetarians and a tendency for people to consume less animal produce in many parts of the world may also reduce the size of the addressable market for livestock monitoring. People switching towards plant-based meat substitutes will also limit the rearing of livestock to some extent in the future. Another factor is that livestock is responsible for significant greenhouse gas emissions and increasing government focus on climate change may ultimately discourage farmers from accumulating more livestock.
Despite the challenges, many countries are encouraging the use of technology to manage the outbreak of diseases in livestock in a timely manner. For example, the USDA (United States Department of Agriculture) has mandated the use of RFID tags for all cattle involved in interstate travel and exhibitions effective January 1, 2023. Increasing adoption of nationwide standards by various governments is also expected to increase the adoption of IoT solutions required to monitor livestock.
IoT is revolutionising one of the world’s oldest industries
In conclusion, IoT is revolutionising livestock management by offering innovative solutions that enhance efficiency and productivity. IoT-enabled sensors and devices are being used to monitor livestock health, environmental conditions, and location, providing real-time data to farmers. This technology allows early detection of health issues, reduces the spread of disease, and saves animals’ lives. Moreover, IoT aids in optimising resource management, such as controlling ventilation systems and monitoring animal pregnancies, leading to increased production and increased reproductive success rates. Despite challenges like labour costs and changing consumer preferences, the adoption of IoT in agriculture, especially in livestock management, is expected to increase globally, often driven by government mandates and the need for efficient disease management.
Rohan Bansal 
Joydeep Bhattacharyya 