A new initiative to provide farmers with technological solutions is underway at James Cook University’s Fletcherview Station, two hours west of Townsville. A new breath-based pregnancy testing method for cattle is being put through its paces to help ensure it is suited to north Queensland conditions and cattle.
The trial has been funded by the Tropical North Queensland Drought Resilience Adoption and Innovation Hub (TNQ Hub), who are linking real-world industry problems with innovative solutions.
The TNQ Hub have established a Problem Statement Portal to capture and map the issues that affect farming and agricultural industries directly from Producers. Hub Director, David Phelps said that by working with innovative technology and professionals, they could play a vital role in helping agribusiness be more sustainable.
“Farmers and producers in Tropical North Queensland experience different challenges compared to their southern counterparts, so it is important we are investing in research and technology to make their businesses more sustainable and resilient to future droughts,” Dr Phelps said.
“Our hope is that by understanding the core issues affecting farmers and producers, this information can then be used by researchers within James Cook University (JCU) as well as entrepreneurs and innovators to solve these problems.”
“A good example of this problem – solution match-up is the Agscent breath-based pregnancy test product. Current pregnancy detection methods for cattle can be costly and dependent of the availability of veterinarians. This can limit the ability to identify breeders that should be sold to reduce stock numbers at critical times, such as leading into drought, or to improve productivity to build financial resilience as a buffer for future risks. A more affordable, effective alternative can help cattle producers make key decisions earlier.”
Prof. Ian Atkinson from JCU said the Agscent trial was especially exciting as it provided the opportunity to showcase JCU’s Fletcherview Station.
“Fletcherview is a fully operational cattle property with approximately 600 head of cattle which have been bred to support research, learning and teaching for JCU’s College of Public Health, Medical and Veterinary Sciences,” he explained.
“Having access to this facility opens up so many opportunities for research and technology trials to benefit TNQ’s primary producers.
“As TNQ Drought Hub continues to source leading innovators and researchers to pilot new technology here, it also provides JCU’s students with incredible hands-on learning opportunities so we can retain those skills in our region.”
Access the TNQ Drought Hub’s Problem Statement Portal.
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The TNQ Drought Hub which is supported by the Federal Government’s Future Drought Fund, aims to provide farmers and producers tested and industry ready solutions to the issues that may affect their operation in a bid to make their businesses and operations more prepared for and resilient to future droughts. To find out more, visit https://www.tnqdroughthub.com.au/