Hill farmers ‘must be given support to invest in drones’

Hill farmers should receive government support to invest in drones and other technologies so they can access the environmental and welfare benefits precision technology can offer, according to an industry expert.

Mark Rutter, professor of animal behaviour at Harper Adams, said precision farming tools had great potential for increasing efficiencies in hill farming systems.

But he said the costs of the technology in relation to the value to livestock – particularly in sheep production – meant that few farmers could justify the investment without some form of support.

Professor Rutter said that arable and dairy producers were able to invest in precision agriculture because investments could be repaid within a matter of months.

“However, when you look at the value of an animal over its lifetime, the economics are stacked against beef and sheep,” he said.

“That means we either have to look at low-cost sensors, or ways to subsidise them.”

As grazing sheep and cattle in upland systems delivered important cultural and ecosystem services, Prof Rutter said subsidising use of technology through environmental schemes could be one solution.

“It’s a management tool that should bring financial benefit, but it could also monitor compliance with schemes,” he said.

“I think the environment side will be quite important in driving these technologies forward.”

While uptake was currently low, Prof Rutter said there were countless ways precision technologies could be developed to help hill farming systems, from using drones to identify animals, to monitoring grass use.

“We could also think about whether we can teach animals that if they follow the drone, they will get a reward,” he said.

“I think there’s a lot of scope for this approach.”

Other useful tools included on-animal sensing to monitor things like health and behaviour, as well as GPS location devices and virtual fencing.

“The idea with fencing technology is to monitor grazing and control the access, either through remote release gates, or through dynamic systems where animals pass through a gate (into the next grazing paddock) when a sward reaches its optimum depletion,” he added.

“When we look at robotic and moveable technologies they are viable for dairy systems, but not for beef and sheep. This is where virtual fencing could come in.”

Sensors could also become vital in monitoring and improving grazing livestock’s welfare, he said.

“They could have a big impact on antibiotic use – we might see a situation where animals are monitored more closely before acting immediately with antibiotics,” said Prof Rutter.

That means we either have to look at low-cost sensors, or ways to subsidise them