Robotics Will Become the Core of the Dairy Industry

Agriculture is undergoing a technological transformation. Farms today feature far more cutting-edge technologies than many people may realize, including a growing amount of robotic automation. The dairy industry is on the verge of a robotics revolution.

While it‘s easy to think of fields like dairy production as traditional, simplistic operations, modern dairy is anything but. Dairy farms have used robots in some areas for decades, and new use cases for agricultural robots are emerging rapidly. If current trends continue, robotics will drive the entire industry in the future.

Why the Dairy Industry Needs Robotics

Robots are an advantage to dairy farms today, but before long, they could become a necessity. Milk production in the U.S. has grown every year in the past decade, so farms must become more efficient to meet growing demand. As land space becomes increasingly difficult to attain and fewer workers enter the sector, that poses a challenge.

Despite the industry’s growth, farm employment is nearing its lowest annual average since the USDA started recording it. Many dairy farms have turned to foreign employees through work visa programs, but this often introduces high legal and transportation fees. Robotics is the ideal solution, offering to expand production without finding new workers.

Like other agricultural sectors, dairy has also faced pressure to become more sustainable. Robots could help in that transition by improving energy efficiency.

Robots in Dairy Today

Robotics has become an industry standard in some parts of dairy production. Much of the industry’s current automation is in milking, where robotic machines milk cows far faster than a human workforce could. While milking by hand can take 5 minutes per cow, today’s machines can milk as many as 20 cows at once.

Automated milking machines also improve sanitation since metals and plastics are easier to keep clean than human hands. As a result, using these robotic systems decreases the risk of contamination, reducing waste and protecting public health. Fewer rejected batches and health problems translate into increased revenue by minimizing costs.

Other robotics use cases in dairy today include automated feeders and waste disposal systems. These systems keep cows fed and their enclosures clean while human workers focus on other tasks. As farms grow and workers become harder to come by, these systems’ benefits grow.

Emerging Robotics Use Cases

Before long, robotics could do far more around dairy farms. Some farmers today use skid steers to guide cattle or transport sick cows. As self-driving farm vehicles become more common, robotic skid steers could perform these tasks autonomously.

Automated waste handling systems could include waste-to-energy systems in the future. These machines could automatically move manure out of cow enclosures, then feed it through a system that converts it into biofuel. These renewable energy production systems paired with robots’ energy efficiency could make dairy a more sustainable industry.

Remote monitoring systems for water quality can help farmers manage agricultural runoff and reduce water pollution. Remote monitoring has the added benefit of allowing farmers to monitor from a computer, smart phone or tablet, so water contamination issues can be quickly addressed for the health of water that impacts both herd health and the local area’s water quality.

Some emerging robotics use cases disrupt the entire dairy production process. Lab-crafted dairy has recently emerged, posing an alternative to traditional farms. These robotics-driven processes can reduce greenhouse gas emissions by up to 97%, further pushing dairy towards sustainability.

The Dairy Industry Will Soon Be Inseparable from Robotics

As demand rises while the workforce and natural resources dwindle, robotics will become increasingly crucial for the dairy industry. Automated machines have already made dairy production more efficient and sustainable. Further innovation will take these advantages to another level, transforming the dairy sector to meet a more agile market’s demands.

If these trends continue, robots will become a standard part of virtually every aspect of dairy production. Dairy farmers can’t afford to ignore these benefits, nor can the consumers who buy their products or manufacturers that make the machines. In some ways, the future of dairy depends on robotics.