Module 2: Data-driven Performance and Growth Monitoring

Understand how data use can benefit livestock systems, learn the importance of measuring growth and weighing livestock, and gain the skills to calculate Key Performance Indicators such as growth rate.

Picture of a piglet on some rocks

Using data for livestock monitoring and management

In the previous module, we discussed what "data" means, and started to see how data can impact farm animal productivity, health, and welfare. Now, we will delve deeper into the benefits of data-driven farm management, focusing on data-driven performance and growth monitoring. 

Learning Outcomes

By the end of this module you will be able to:

  • Understand the many ways in which data usage can benefit livestock systems
  • Explain how and why to weigh livestock and measure growth rates
  • Compare the pros and cons of manual weighing with more technological approaches
  • Utilise spreadsheet software to record weight data and calculate Key Performance Indicators such as growth rates to monitor performance

What are the benefits of data?

Collecting, understanding, and utilising data can be very beneficial to farm animal health and wellbeing. This, in turn, positively impacts farm productivity, efficiency, and economics.

In this video, you will hear more about the ways data-driven farm management can benefit animals and the people who depend upon them:

Weighing livestock

Weight data is invaluable for all livestock species, in any production system. Weighing animals can provide a useful measure of performance, and can be used to monitor changes over time. This can be done manually, or through more technological approaches.

As you will see in the following videos, there is no single "best" approach. Rather, each farmer can consider their own situation to see which approach is most suitable for their needs. 

An introduction to weighing

Ross Robertson, Head of Mixed Farming (Agri-Tech) at Agri-EPI, provides an overview of weighing livestock, discussing the pros and cons of both manual and automated approaches. 

Poultry weighing

While cattle, pigs, and small ruminants are typically individually weighed, poultry are unique in that they can be individually or bulk weighed. Dr Laura Dixon, a poultry scientist from Scotland's Rural College, explains how to collect weight data in both broilers and layers, and what to do with these data once they are collected. 

Practical on-farm data collection for sheep

In the following video, Dr Ann McLaren, from SRUC's Hill and Mountain Research Centre, discusses practical ways to record data on-farm.

Case study: Weighing livestock using technology

As you have seen, there are various ways to record and monitor weight data. For those who choose more technological approaches, agritech companies can provide hardware and software solutions to both collect and analyse your data. 

Key performance indicators for the pig sector

Looking at data relating to weight and growth is just one way of monitoring performance.

Production animal performance can be measured through various means, including:

  • comparisons over time
  • benchmarking against breed standards or national averages
  • through other variables such as mortality rates, feed efficiency, etc.

The Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) of different sectors of the agricultural industry can vary depending on species and farming system. In the following video, Professor Rick D'Eath, from Scotland's Rural College, discusses some of the KPIs for the pig sector, and the role of data in tracking performance. 

Data Tutorials

Calculating growth rates for cattle, pigs, and small ruminants

The following video will demonstrate how to calculate growth rates (i.e., changes in weight over a period of time) for individually weighed animals.

As with all the data tutorials, the process will be shown using the free online version of Excel. 

We suggest you make sure to have watched the data tutorials in Module 1 before beginning these ones, as they will show you the fundamentals of using spreadsheet software. 

Use of weight data for broiler chickens and laying hens

As Dr Laura Dixon discussed in her previous video, poultry can be weighed individually or in bulk. The following tutorial will take you through the calculations Laura showed you in her presentation, demonstrating how spreadsheet software makes these calculations fast and accurate. 

Additional Material

  • Agri-EPI Video | Monitoring lifetime productivity and quality in the beef industry (2 min): This YouTube video presents the Ritchie Beef Monitor, a stress-free and efficient water trough that automatically weighs cattle using tag reading technology, leading to reduced stress, consistent growth, and improved profitability for farmers.

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