By Alice McFarlane

Pilot project tests biosecurity technology

Aug 29, 2024 | 5:09 PM

Animal disease is a major issue for the livestock and poultry sector in Canada and globally.

In swine, porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome (PRRS) costs $200 million per year in Canada. In poultry, commercial farms in Canada lost nearly seven million birds in 2022 due to highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI).

With this in mind, Farm Health Guardian has created digital biosecurity technology and is looking for farms and food companies to participate in a pilot project. It automates biosecurity to send biosecurity breach alerts, stop unauthorized entry, and verify requirements to protect against disease transmission.

The ideal project participants would have multiple connected sites, like pig production systems, transport or feed companies looking to verify vehicle biosecurity, and veterinarians who oversee a group of farms with shared biosecurity protocols.

Rob Hannam, CEO of Farm Health Guardian, said strong biosecurity practices within a food system are one of the best ways to reduce animal disease, which is a costly problem for farmers and food companies.

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“Every farm business is a little bit different, so it’s important to demonstrate how the technology works in that situation,” Hannam said.

There are big gains to be made from using modern digital technologies as opposed to the current practices that tend to be more manual and time consuming, especially when it comes to biosecurity.

The company received federal funding to support the pilot project. Hannam said the investment means they can help more farms and food companies reduce the risk of disease spread, improve animal health and reduce losses.

“Our focus will be to demonstrate the value of adopting digital biosecurity technology to farmers and food companies across Canada and in the Midwest US,” he said.

More information on how to participate can be found here.

Farm Health Guardian operates out of Guelph, Ont. and Omaha, NE.

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alice.mcfarlane@pattisonmedia.com

On X: @farmnewsNOW