Dairy Farmers Benefiting from Robotic Feed Pusher

Jul 11, 2012

How the ‘Juno’ is Revolutionizing the Dairy Farm

Say goodbye to late night trips to the barn and those early morning feed sweepings thanks to the newest robotic tool to hit the dairy industry. It’s called the ‘Juno’ and farmers agree that it`s time saving, cost reducing technology is a boon to farmer who manually push feed with a broom.

Able to operate 24/7, the Juno is changing the way dairy farmers spend their time – eliminating the constant trips to the barn with broom-in-hand by using a robot that glides up and down the alleys of the barn, pushing feed back to where it belongs – in reach of the cows. Although, this technology has been around for more than five years, it’s just starting to resonate with farmers now and is being seen on more and more dairy farms as well as other livestock operations.

At a staggering $24,000 to $26,000 installed, the large Juno 150 has historically been seen as a luxury item by dairy farmers, as opposed to a time saving tool that can also bring down labour costs. But users of the Juno suggest that they are saving at least 20 to 30 minutes a day of time thanks to the robot, which adds up to about three weeks a year of labour time.

But there are other benefits of the Juno working on the farm and it relates to the well-being of the cows themselves. With the feed well within reach around the clock, the cows don’t have to stretch out their necks to reach the feed, preventing them from forming sores, hair loss or lumps on the back of their necks as the result of rubbing against the head rail of the feed fence. The Juno also reduces the amount of leftovers and with the continual access to feed, the cows often produce more milk.

Take a look at the Juno in action below:

Video: How Can We Grow More Food With Less Impact?

For over two decades, Dr. Mitloehner has been at the forefront of research on how animal agriculture affects our air and our climate. With deep expertise in emissions and volatile organic compounds, his work initially focused on air quality in regions like California’s Central Valley—home to both the nation’s richest agricultural output and some of its poorest air quality.

In recent years, methane has taken center stage in climate discourse—not just scientifically, but politically. Once a topic reserved for technical discussions about manure management and feed efficiency, it has become a flashpoint in debates over sustainability, regulation, and even the legitimacy of livestock farming itself.

Dr. Frank Mitloehner, Professor and Air Quality Specialist with the CLEAR Center sits down with Associate Director for Communications at the CLEAR Center, Joe Proudman.