Cows
Few species have become as closely intertwined with modern humans as cows. Sacred in some parts of the world and factory-farmed for meat in others, cattle are growing in number globally (~1.6 billion in 2024) and are a key pillar of agriculture, and contributor to climate-relevant emissions.
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New Holland Agriculture has announced a new tractor designed to run on fuel created on-site using cow manure. The T7 Methane Power LNG offers the same power and torque as a diesel tractor, but it's part of a system that can greatly reduce emissions. -
If you’re a farmer with a herd of hundreds of cows, keeping tabs on them can be tricky work, but we’ve seen how sensor tags might one day ease the burden. New research has demonstrated how smartwatch-style sensors could be powered by animal movement. -
Australian cattle stations (aka ranches) can be huge, so checking on all the cows is a big task. With that in mind, the CSIRO national science agency has teamed up with agtech startup Ceres Tag to develop an ear tag that not only tracks the animals' whereabouts, but also detects unusual activity. -
Before we drink cow's milk, it is routinely pasteurized and homogenized to make it safe and consistent. Australian outfit Made by Cow says that this eliminates much of its goodness and flavor, so has created a new cold press method that makes it safe to drink much closer to its fresh state. -
Dutch agricultural firm Lely has developed a new robotic milker called Astronaut 4 that enables the farmer to monitor milking on a smartphone while the cows get on with the job themselves. -
Electronic ears tags are being used to check on the well-being of cattle.