QR Codes On Milk Cartons To Offer Window Into Livestock Health And Welfare

Nov 22, 2022

By Ali Jones

QR codes on milk cartons could be used to provide consumers with detailed information on the care and well-being of farm animals reared as livestock.

A simple QR code printed on the packaging could mean a carton of milk might one day offer a window onto the health and welfare of the cows that produced it. It would enable consumers to trace their milk to its farm of origin and access data on the well-being of its cows on that particular day.

Thanks to electronic monitoring tools known as Precision Livestock Farming (PLF), this level of detail could all be available to consumers. The technology is already on the market but its full potential has yet to be realized.

The ClearFarm project is advancing the use of PLF technology with the aim of creating a more sensitive, continuous and complete way of understanding animal welfare. It is bringing together producers, regulators, policy makers and consumers from six countries.

Focusing on pig and dairy cattle, the dominant livestock farmed in Europe, ClearFarm is partnering with a number of technology companies to create a new software platform that will fully exploit the possibilities of PLF to monitor lifelong animal welfare.

Cow care

"So far, certification schemes for animal welfare have based decisions on single visits to a farm, maybe once or twice a year, so information is pretty limited," said Dr. Pol Llonch, Technical Project Manager for ClearFarm based at Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona (UAB).

"ClearFarm will be the first platform to provide non-stop, real-time information on animal welfare. Consumers and producers will be able to view information from every single animal on the farm, every single day of the year."

Wearable sensors will continually collect information, including data on activity, eating patterns, and health, enabling the farmer to monitor their animals when they cannot be with them. Farmers can spot health and welfare issues early and take action as appropriate.

As well as a steady flow of information, ClearFarm will integrate the many different recognized 'domains' of animal welfare—health, nutrition, comfort, emotional state and natural behavior. It will combine all of this to give what Llonch describes as "an unprecedented, comprehensive picture of animal welfare."

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Video: Sweetener Effects on Gut Health - Dr. Kwangwook Kim

In this episode of The Swine Nutrition Blackbelt Podcast, Dr. Kwangwook Kim, Assistant Professor at Michigan State University, discusses the use of non-nutritive sweeteners in nursery pig diets. He explains how sucralose and neotame influence feed intake, gut health, metabolism, and the frequency of diarrhea compared to antibiotics. The conversation highlights mechanisms beyond palatability, including hormone signaling and nutrient transport. Listen now on all major platforms!

“Receptors responsible for sweet taste are present not only in the mouth but also along the intestinal tract.”

Meet the guest: Dr. Kwangwook Kim / kwangwook-kim is an Assistant Professor at Michigan State University, specializing in swine nutrition and feed additives under disease challenge models. He earned his M.S. and Ph.D. in Animal Sciences from the University of California, Davis, where he focused on intestinal health and metabolic responses in pigs. His research evaluates alternatives to antibiotics, targeting gut health and performance in nursery pigs.