Cainthus, a Dublin-based machine-vision company, uses breakthrough predictive imaging to remotely monitor livestock and allow quick identification of disease and welfare issues. Their proprietary software uses images to identify individual animals based on hide patterns and facial recognition, and tracks key data such as food and water intake, heat detection and behaviour patterns. The software then delivers analytics that drive on-farm decisions that can impact milk production, reproduction management and overall animal health.

Cargill, a leader in sustainable swine nutrition and production solutions, has signed a deal with Cainthus in a strategic partnership that will bring facial recognition technology to livestock farms worldwide, beginning with the dairy sector. The deal includes a minority equity investment (terms not disclosed).

The data gleaned from the images collected by the software is used to anticipate issues and adjust feeding regimens. What used to be a manual process that took days or weeks now takes place in near real-time – a relief on the time constraints put upon modern-day farmers.

David Hunt, president and co-founder, Cainthus, commented:

Cargill is a natural partner for us, given their focus on bringing a world-class digital capability to the market and their understanding of how technology will truly help farmers succeed. We think this partnership will be a game changer for farmers because it will allow them to efficiently scale their business.

SriRaj Kantamneni, managing director for Cargill’s digital insights business, agreed that the partnership would drastically improve the ability of producers to accurately and efficiently monitor livestock:

Our customers’ ability to make proactive and predictive decisions to improve their farm’s efficiency, enhance animal health and wellbeing, reduce animal loss, and ultimately increase farm profitability are significantly enhanced with this technology.

Cargill and Cainthus intend to expand to other species, including swine, poultry and aquaculture, over the next several months.

As reported by Cargill

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