MSD Animal Health has awarded the 2020 High-Quality Pork — Precision Farming Award to Tami Brown-Brandl, Ph.D., professor of biological systems engineering at the Institute of Agriculture and Natural Resources at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln.
Dr. Brown-Brandl and her team received the award, which grants up to US$200,000 towards project implementation with an interested customer in 2021, for their project, “Next-Generation Grow-Finish Swine Health and Growth Monitoring.”
The winning project demonstrated the benefits of using an radio-frequency identification (RFID) technology and depth cameras to monitor feeding/drinking behaviors and weight gain in pigs to accurately detect abnormal events and acute and chronic illnesses.
This data can provide critical information in real time which could help farmers make better pig management intervention decisions, potentially leading to substantial economic benefits for pig producers worldwide.
Using the gran, Dr Brown-Brandi and her team plan to further develop the monitoring system and other technology solutions to improve early illness detection and market weight estimation, ultimately improving precision animal management for the swine industry.
“This award is truly an honor – what an exciting time to be working in animal agriculture,” said Dr. Brown-Brandl. “The producers, scientists and engineers working in the area of precision animal management are truly shaping the future of animal production. I appreciate MSD Animal Health joining us in helping lead that charge.”
Dr. Brown-Brandl was selected through a competitive process that included a diverse pool of candidates from around the world, including Africa, Asia Pacific, Europe, North America and South America. Entrants presented a wide array of projects, ranging from product convenience to workforce safety and improved animal handling.
