FlockFinder, a leading company in the Agritech industry, has launched its latest tool to help livestock farmers across the UK.
Supported by Innovate UK, and powered by the latest AI technology, ‘EweGene’ is a digital assistant that offers expert guidance on disease identification, treatment, and prevention. Giving farmers access to the knowledge and tools they need to reduce the impact of disease on their farm.
Livestock diseases apply constant pressure to sheep profitability by increasing labour and medicine use and decreasing productivity. Just looking at some common sheep diseases, including Lameness, Abortion, Ectoparasites, Intestinal Parasites, and Liver Fluke, the annual cost of these diseases to the UK sheep farming industry exceeds £100million/year .
Studies have shown that effective identification and treatment of diseases can result in up to a 30% increase in farm profitability. This increase is achieved through improved livestock performance and reduced medication and administrative costs.
It is therefore important to give farmers the tools they need to identify, and treat, diseases quickly; preventing their spread across the farm and/or wider industry, minimising its negative impact.
Typically, farmers use their experience to identify livestock diseases. However, when presented with unfamiliar circumstances, they must rely on searching through a multitude of livestock diseases, reviewing symptoms one-by-one to see if they match.
This approach is limited as it does not allow for exploring alternative causes. If farmers are unaware of a specific disease, they are unlikely to search through all possible causes to check if the symptoms align. This increases the potential for misdiagnosis and mistreatment.
However, with ‘EweGene’, the approach can be reversed. Farmers can enter the symptoms, and the platform will return a list of potential diseases that match. A friendly chat-based interface then helps narrow down this list to the most likely cause, improving the accuracy of diagnosis and, importantly, treatment. The treatment guidance also remains dynamic, staying up to date with the latest advice.
Trained on data from trusted industry sources, including AHDB, DEFRA and MSD, Farmers can ask questions on a wide range of topics, ranging from livestock diseases, regulatory compliance, and industry best practises.
Available online, and integrated with FlockFinder’s award-winning livestock management app, ‘EweGene’ gives farmers access to essential knowledge and support while out in-the-field.
Access to ‘EweGene’ starts at just £5/month and is included in all FlockFinder memberships. The company also offers a free trial so farmers can give it a go before signing up.
FlockFinder is an innovative Agritech company focused on developing technologies that empower farmers to improve efficiency and profitability. Founded on a mission to unlock the unrealised potential that technology can deliver to the livestock farming sector.
The UK-based startup was co-founded in 2020 by James Stretton, who comes from six generations of sheep farmers on Romney Marsh, Kent, and Tommy Neeld, a leading data scientist with who has previously worked for companies including the big-4 consulting firm EY and the London Stock Exchange.
The company’s founders say they want to deliver a “digital revolution in livestock farming”, with the goal of “building technology that is easy to implement, simple to use and accessible to farms of all sizes.”
“Farmers continue to face increasing challenges right across the industry, however access to knowledge and support doesn’t need to be one of them. ‘EweGene’ is a user-friendly solution that can help farmers get guidance when they need it most – while out on the farm!”. said James Stretton, CEO FlockFinder.
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