Livestock movements, identification and tracing: Livestock Register - South West Livestock Pilot (SWLP)
The SWLP began in early 2005 and was completed in January 2007. It was delivered in partnership between Defra and the Livestock Industry and was overseen by the Meat South West Board. Twenty Three South West sheep farmers and their vets were involved along with an abattoir (HR Jaspers Ltd), agricultural IT companies (Shearwell Data Ltd and NLMD Ltd), a Farm Health Planning provider (Good Health Plans), Duchy College in Cornwall and IBM.
The pilot aimed to establish whether there was a farmers’ business case for the capture of better quality livestock management information, by evaluating the cost/benefits of accurate, timely data. It also aimed to establish successful industry-led approaches to capturing and using good quality data in order to improve management and profitability. This was particularly relevant in view of recent Common Agricultural Policy reform and the current commercial climate for farmers to increase their overall farm management performance by reducing production costs and increasing efficiency.
From Defra’s perspective the pilot’s purpose was to support industry development and to inform the policy approach to the implementation of new livestock identification and traceability systems - the Livestock Register. It has also added to other work informing Defra’s approach on the EU Directive on mandatory electronic identification (EID) for sheep and work on farm health planning. If the farmers’ business case was demonstrated, it would encourage industry investment in improved data management systems and this would provide spin-off benefits for government in terms of more accurate and timely livestock identification and traceability data.
Phase One: desktop review
Phase One was completed in April 2005 in collaboration with Exeter University’s Centre for Rural Research and consisted of a review of existing information about the value of data in commercial farm businesses. The report from Phase 1 
(553 KB) is available.
Phase Two: field trial based in the South West of England
The SWLP Field Pilot took a number of existing industry systems and joined them up within a commercial farming situation, enabling a pilot group of farmers to make better use of information about their livestock enterprises. In this way it aims to evaluate commercially viable approaches that could be transferred to benefit the wider industry. The systems used were:
- Individual electronic identification (on farm and at the abattoir);
- A web-enabled Central Data Repository (NLMD) to provide reports and analysis of individual and batch carcase quality and condemnation data to farmers and their vets;
- Flock health planning;
- Financial benchmarking;
- Farm livestock records software;
- Farmer forums (benchmarking and discussion groups).
The full SWLP field pilot began in October 2005. Funding ended as planned in July 2006 and an interim phase two report (July 2006) (718 KB) was completed. Following this the industry partners and participants continued working together and using the data in their day to day management. The Defra team completed its final evaluation and report (601 KB) in January 2007. A brief summary (70 KB) of the final report is also available.
Benefits Reported by SWLP Participants
Farmers
Data had a positive influence on flock management and performance through:
- Improved slaughter selection & grades;
- Lambs being sold earlier;
- Increased value of cull sheep;
- Improved breeding selection and identification of poor performers;
- Changes in health policy and Improved flock health;
- Consultations with the vets to discuss lamb carcase condemnation data;
- Fewer condemnations;
- Better targeted medicine use;
- More lambs born;
- Decreased lamb mortality.
Vets
- Greater understanding of their clients’ needs;
- Improved ability to give cost-effective advice;
- Farmers were using veterinary medicines more effectively.
Abattoir
Potential for:
- Improved ability to predict of margins from stock;
- Improved stock quality and ability to identify sources of best stock;
- Efficiency improvements through the ability to forward plan stock to meet different orders;
- Use of data in marketing;
- Waste disposal costs savings through fewer condemnations and trimmings;
- Improvements in software over the last six months, in part driven by the SWLP, make it easier to collect and analyse data;
- Improved traceability may offer benefit for buyers.
Further Action
Two meetings were held with pilot participants and industry representatives in March 2007 to discuss the SWLP findings. The meetings found that a vital aspect of the pilot had been better communications and data sharing between farmers, vets and the other industry partners. Improved communications, cooperation and collaboration will be key to progress across the wider industry. It was agreed that wider uptake of SWLP approaches and benefits should be encouraged by identifying key drivers, targeting all sectors involved and encouraging them to work together - farmers, vets, abattoirs, retailers software suppliers and the MHS.
The follow-up actions agreed were:
- The England Implementation Group (for the Animal Health and Welfare Strategy) to take responsibility for overseeing future actions;
- To secure continuing data supply for the SWLP farmer group;
- To re- evaluate the SWLP participants in 2 years time;
- Various communications/promotions action.
Further information
Enquiries about the SWLP should be directed to Alison Morgan (07775 826165).
Page last modified:
11 January, 2008
Page published: 12 February, 2007