Smart data solutions at VIV Utrecht
‘Sharing Data = Better Poultry’ was the central theme at VIV Europe 2018 in Utrecht. Many companies showed new products to connect independent datasets from different players in the supply chain to analyse, compare and make them actionable. New introductions, innovations and partnerships made the exhibition world class.
When it comes to data the poultry industry has made a giant leap forward. Of course there is already a stream of data present at every farm, from every computer, but connecting the dots is still difficult. And it is here that major progress has been made. Everywhere you looked at VIV new and fancy app’s were present. You would really need a very, very smart phone to run all of them together. Some look at climate, some at water and feed consumption, some at animal performance and some connect them all together. From a technical standpoint they are a work of art, but this is only the beginning. Making the technical connect to the on farm situation, connect with stockmanship, is a property not all companies are able to match. At least not yet. Promising work has already been done by Poultry Plan, Farm Result, Porphyrio and Applied Group. Companies to keep a close eye on, when it comes to smart data solutions.
On farm
Many innovations at VIV are more hands on, on farm. But even there, the data component can be found. A great example is the MiteAlert red mite monitoring system by Hotraco Agri. The system consists of a plastic perch with advanced electronics, linked to an intelligent data management system. The system doesn’t treat the flock, but keeps track of the mites and gives signals when it is the ideal time to start treatment.
Vencomatic is eliminating mites with their new Q-perch. Integrated into the innovation are two barriers which kill the mites on their way to the hen. It offers a continuous line of defence, reducing the number of mites in the poultry house.
In any case, VIV made it clear that the red mite pest situation is foremost on the minds of many poultry operations.
A small recap of products to combat mite on VIV:
- Exolt of MSD from the Netherlands,
- Baggy and Baggy Plus of Newpharm Agro& Biocides from Italy,
- Alphamiter DW from Alphatech SAS in France,
- Dergall of ICP Pharma in Poland,
- Pulcap of Pulsil from Serbia,
- Aquamite of Aquavial in France
- Cubasil Mite of Witteler from Germany
Bird level
A new arrival was celebrated at the Hubbard booth during VIV. The ‘Hubbard JA257’, a new Hubbard Premium breed made up of the recently introduced Hubbard M22 male mated with the well-known Hubbard JA57 female, has been accredited by the Dutch Animal Welfare Association (‘Dierenbescherming’) for use in their Better Life (‘Beter Leven’) certification scheme. After a comprehensive welfare outcome evaluation by Wageningen University & Research this new breed, the Hubbard JA257, has been added by the Dutch Animal Welfare Association to the list of approved breeds for broilers alongside the Hubbard JA757 and Hubbard JA957.
Too big to be on a booth, Big Dutchman brought the brand new NaturaCavaran, a mobile poultry house for 1000 layers or 800 organic birds. Measuring in at 13.60m by 7.33m by 4m high and outfitted with a Natura Step system.
Just big enough to fit on a booth was the new EGGoist barn design by the Ukrainian Texha firm. The house is modular and fits both broilers as layers.
GrowGrain is a product used as diversion material for poultry. It consists of a mat of spouted barley, which can be grown on farm. Within days a 5kg heavy mat of spouted grain grows out of 600 grams of seeding material after just adding water. 1 mat per 1,000 hens per day is recommended.
Soluphar brought part of a new packer to the VIV. The belt of the packer moves slightly upwards and the rotation speed of the rolls isn’t constant. This helps to place the eggs perfectly in the trays. The machine is compact (2.10m x 1.20m) and is plug & play with a capacity of 14,000 to 28,000 eggs per hour.
It may look familiar but Salmet has a newer version of the Whisk system. Instead of moving air in the back of the cages from in between cages, air is now moved more under the cage floor. This results in extra stocking density of one extra hen per cage.
Processing
Meyn developed innovative solutions to speed up poultry processing to 15,000 bird per hour. In response to the growing demand for even higher line speeds, Meyn has upgraded its machines with innovative solutions to process broilers quicker, achieving high levels of quality and maximising yield. New versions of existing evisceration equipment are implemented with 20 units in a 240° frame (instead of the normal 180°), allowing for longer processing contact time in each machine. Other innovations by Meyn to run a processing line at 15,000 bph are the new Meyn Carousel rehanger M2.0 and the new Meyn Line weigher M2.0. For processing after chilling the Meyn Physic and Flex M3.0 cut up lines are updated to match the 15,000 high-speed lines with exactly two cut up lines.
Marel Poulty showcases a wide variety of global launches, centred around the theme “Keep Control and Think Fast”. These revolutionary poultry processing solutions will set new benchmarks for the entire industry. First and foremost, “Think Fast” refers to 15,000 bph processing, not just developed for the sake of speed, but meant to keep control of the highest efficiency and quality without compromises. That includes Stork ATLAS live bird handling, a system that can easily process 15,000 bph, combined with CAS SmoothFlow stunning. Marel Poultry’s stunning, defeathering, evisceration and chilling processes are ready too for this new benchmark in processing capacity. To visualise that, Marel Poultry displays at VIV Europe the VC-20 RS Vent Cutter, as well as two new LineLink transfer units.
Hatchery
During the exhibition Patrick van Manen of HatchTech and Kornel Zyla of ModernHatch sign the agreement to build a new HatchCare hatchery in Poland. The hatchery will have a capacity of 76 million chicks per year and will be built adjacent to the traditional hatchery for 65 chick a year HatchTech built in 2012. In the new hatchery the chicks will get access to feed and water in the hatch window.
Feed in the hatcher, or post hatch feeding, was part of the brand new SmartStart system by Pas Reform as well. The hatchery supplier worked closely together with biotech startup In Ovo and DSM premix company Twilmij and Philips to give newly hatched chicks access to feed, water and light. SmartStart uses natural deep eutectic solvents to retain water inside a semi-moist feed.
Stronger together
MSD Animal Health announced a partnership agreement with Vinovo, a division of the leading hatchery automation company, Viscon Hatchery Automation. This synergistic partnership, which was announced during a signing ceremony at the VIV Europe World Expo, will bring together MSD Animal Health’s unique broad vaccine product line and Vinovo’s novel vaccine delivery system to provide a new standard in safe and effective in ovo vaccination, thereby improving bird welfare, reducing vaccine reactions and providing greater protection for the chickens.
The Giordano group from Italy acquired the majority stake in Twinpack Special Products in the Netherlands. After almost 20 years of commercial cooperation, the Italian leader in professional poultry equipment decided to increase the strategic and operational focus on the logistics systems for eggs, such as EggsCargoSystem and HatchCargoSystem.
For corporate identity reasons the company name Twinpack Special Products will change. From next September the new name will be GI-OVO. At VIV, Twinpack presented a novelty, making data exchange between processors and cargosystem possible via RFID microchips embedded in the system.
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