This project will make the onerous task of data collection at the farm level as simple as possible. The emphasis will be on commodity specific programs for beef, sheep and dairy goats. There is tremendous opportunity to build on an existing data collection and information platform rather than start afresh to build many new commodity specific platforms. This approach is also highly supportive of the whole farm focus of the Sustainable Farm and Food Initiative (SFFI).
Specifically, the project will enhance the Go 360 bioTrack system to capture commodity program data easily and in real time as well as provide an excellent user experience in searching and using information. That user experience will extend beyond the farmer as they will have the ability to grant defined access to third parties (e.g. veterinarians) and auditors. The final component of the project will be raising the awareness of farmers of this system to increase uptake and position each sector to better meet new demands from the marketplace.
This project will give farmers a system that meets their needs while they meet the needs of documenting the story of their product. With traceability already embedded in the bioTrack system, this project will also help to bring together several concurrent priorities: documentation for commodity programs; traceability; user-defined access for third parties (e.g. veterinarians and auditors).
This project was supported by Gay Lea, Ontario Dairy Goat Cooperative, Beef Farmers of Ontario, Ontario Sheep Farmers, SFFI and Grand River Agricultural Society, and funded in part through Growing Forward 2 (GF2), a federal-provincial-territorial initiative. The Agricultural Adaptation Council assists in the delivery of GF2 in Ontario.