Periodic Reporting for period 1 - HAYTECH AI (Hay data analytics & fermentation control to increase dairy farm milk yield)
Reporting period: 2023-02-01 to 2024-01-31
Hay consists of grasses such as alfalfa, ryegrass, fescue, etc. that have been cut, dried and baled. Dairy farmers feed the hay to their cows when fresh feed is not available. Farmers must: (i) supply enough hay to maintain the cows’ nutritional needs, and (ii) ensure hay quality is adequate to maintain the high quality and amount of milk produced. When stored, the longer the hay heats up, the more nutritional value (digestible nutrients, carbohydrates & crude proteins) it loses by the time it is fed to dairy cows. Up to 30% of hay may become fouled in storage. Fouled feed will impact cows’ health and a daily milk production loss of 15-20%. Europe’s annual milk output of 160M tonnes is worth €61B. A potential 15% reduction in milk production would be worth €9.1B. Further consequences would include a reduction in dairy headcount, difficulties in sourcing hay to make up for the fouled quantity, financial impact on individual farms and Europe’s loss of dairy market share.
HAYTECH AI consists of remote hay bale monitoring probes & a data processing cloud-based platform (Quanturi Cloud). Every hour, an inserted probe reads the hay bale's internal temperature & moisture. ML/AI-driven analysis of captured data will determine stored hay bale quality at any point in time. HAYTECH AI tracks fermentation using Quanturi’s patented algorithm. When excessive heat accumulates inside a bale, HAYTECH AI’s timely intervention will instruct the inserted probe to disperse a biodegradable reagent to stop the fermentation. HAYTECH AI gives farmers a precise nutritional profile of every bale they feed to their animals. Our solution will recommend specific supplements for every cow in case the available hay lacks adequate amounts of nutritional ingredients. This combination of instant evaluation of hay quality and cow-specific feed recommendations will increase milk quality and volume, dairy herd welfare, farm economics and lessened carbon footprint.
HAYTECH AI consists of remote hay bale monitoring probes & a data processing cloud-based platform (Quanturi Cloud). Every hour, an inserted probe reads the hay bale's internal temperature & moisture. ML/AI-driven analysis of captured data will determine stored hay bale quality at any point in time. HAYTECH AI tracks fermentation using Quanturi’s patented algorithm. When excessive heat accumulates inside a bale, HAYTECH AI’s timely intervention will instruct the inserted probe to disperse a biodegradable reagent to stop the fermentation. HAYTECH AI gives farmers a precise nutritional profile of every bale they feed to their animals. Our solution will recommend specific supplements for every cow in case the available hay lacks adequate amounts of nutritional ingredients. This combination of instant evaluation of hay quality and cow-specific feed recommendations will increase milk quality and volume, dairy herd welfare, farm economics and lessened carbon footprint.
Work performed during the first period of the HAYTECH AI project includes development of the supporting cloud infrastructure, data transfer protocol, hay quality feature, hay management platform, and fermentation control. Pilots in France, Italy, and the UK were conducted to collect data for the development and validation of the hay quality tracking tool.
We have been engaging with existing HAYTECH customers to promote new features (Hay quality) and deepen our understanding of customer behavior. We have also built a network with companies and organizations working in the agriculture field. This includes machine manufacturers, research centers, insurance companies, and local agricultural chambers.
As a result, the first version of the hay quality tracking tool was released in March 2023. The Feed Value Indicator (FVI) allows users to monitor changes in hay quality in real-time. This new feature will be further integrated into the Hay Management Platform (HMP). The HMP is the centerpiece of HAYTECH AI and is a tool to help users manage the entire lifecycle of hay bales from field to feed. The Hay Management Platform was introduced at Agritechinca (11/2023) and will be released in April 2024.
We have been engaging with existing HAYTECH customers to promote new features (Hay quality) and deepen our understanding of customer behavior. We have also built a network with companies and organizations working in the agriculture field. This includes machine manufacturers, research centers, insurance companies, and local agricultural chambers.
As a result, the first version of the hay quality tracking tool was released in March 2023. The Feed Value Indicator (FVI) allows users to monitor changes in hay quality in real-time. This new feature will be further integrated into the Hay Management Platform (HMP). The HMP is the centerpiece of HAYTECH AI and is a tool to help users manage the entire lifecycle of hay bales from field to feed. The Hay Management Platform was introduced at Agritechinca (11/2023) and will be released in April 2024.
The Feed Value Indicator (FVI) model developed within the first phase of the project returns the same predictions results as certified lab analyses, hence demonstrating the tremendous potential of HAYTECH AI in the dairy farming industry. The usage of the real-time data for optimizing feed rations is driving better decisions. It is noticed that farmers are changing their behavior. They are adapting in real-time their practices with new data to avoid storing spoiled hay and hence, using their resources adequatly. Combined with feed analysis and adjustment of feed rations based on real-time montoring of hay quality, HAYTECH AI will undoubtly become a powerful tool to improve milk yield and milk quality.