A press release from Halter announced Shane and Bronya Wainwright, of Rosealan Farms Ltd, were selected as one of three high-performing pasture-farming families to win Halter free for a year as part of a competition that garnered hundreds of entries during National Fieldays.
Halter, a New Zealand tech company, fits solar-powered, GPS-enabled smart collars to cows that allow farmers to shift, manage and monitor their herds using a phone app and communication towers.
The Wainwrights are in their third year of farm ownership, milking 580 cows on a 150ha dairy farm, and will receive the collars and communication towers free of charge for 12 months.
Mr Wainwright said the new technology would be very beneficial.
"I’m most excited about not having to get up every morning during mating to pick cows on heat before I do my AI run.
"Having all my reels done without spending hours doing them will allow us to have more family time, and having Halter will be like having another set of eyes over the farm 24/7."
Halter chief executive and founder Craig Piggott said he was blown away by the number of applications the company received for the competition.
"We’re really excited to welcome these three families into their Halter journey.
"Ultimately, we chose them because of their innovative mindset and passion for embracing technology on their farms.
"We can’t wait to see how they will use our system to grow and harvest more grass, level up their reproduction outcomes, and have full oversight of their animals."
Also selected as winners were Jon and Fiona Sherlock, sheep and beef farmers from Waingaro, and Cameron and Lizzy Te Brake, dairy farmers from Arohena.
