13 Jacquelin Labrecque, Ro-Main’s chief executive officer, joined the company in 2011. Born and raised on his family’s pig farm, Labrecque pairs firsthand knowledge of swine farming with his academic background in mechanical engineering and artificial intelligence. After rising through the ranks in both technical and leadership roles, he became CEO in early 2024. “In 2008, we stepped into the realm of data-driven decision-making, integrating software and algorithmic technologies into our family’s pig farms,” states Labrecque. “It started with PigWatch, a motion sensorbased Italian system designed to predict the optimal time for insemination, a product technology that RoMain eventually acquired.” Labrecque discovered a passion for artificial intelligence (AI) while pursuing his master’s degree. “Combining AI with our work on PigWatch revealed just how powerful these technologies could be in transforming swine farming by enhancing human decision-making and automating key processes.” The company has always been driven by innovation, but 2014-2015 marked a turning point. It was during this time that Ro-Main reinvented itself, embracing modern artificial intelligence—a set of tools previously untapped in livestock farming. This strategic shift placed them at the forefront of technological advancement in the swine industry, pioneering new ways to optimize production and animal care. “The evolution of our flagship products—PigWatch, SmaRt Breeding, and SmaRt Counting—reflects not just technological progress, but a deep understanding of how to bring AI into one of the most complex and traditional industries: livestock farming,” he notes. While the company’s PigWatch technology was groundbreaking at the time, Labrecque says that as deep learning and computer vision evolved, there was an opportunity to transform the foundation of the system. This led to the birth of SmaRt Breeding, which Labrecque calls a reimagined, camera-based system that gathers far richer data using a single camera to monitor four animals simultaneously. It reduced hardware costs and unlocked much higher precision. “From there, we focused on leveraging farm-collected data to improve the AI’s accuracy, especially for single-dose insemination,” he explains. “It was a major milestone that truly elevated SmaRt Breeding into a predictive, continuous learning platform.” The SmaRt Counting product followed a similar path but tackled a different challenge: accurate pig counting. The first hurdle was to ensure the AI could perform with high precision in vastly different farm environments, such as different lighting conditions, pig sizes, breeds, and behaviors. “It took two years of refining to get it right, and that was our first major milestone: a working, reliable counting algorithm.” Next came packaging. After starting with a consumergrade computer in a robust case, Ro-Main built its own Edge Intelligence Platform (EIP), an industrialgrade supercomputer in a rugged enclosure, designed entirely in-house to be farm-ready. “This iteration,” says Labrecque, “allowed us to shift the focus from technology to value delivery.” But, as he pointed out, even with powerful AI and hardware, adoption only happens if it fits into existing SOPs (standard operating procedures) and workflows. “We developed new features like usage compliance tools that act as auto-training systems for farmworkers while also alerting managers about potential usage issues or even animal welfare concerns—like pigs piling up during counting. “THE EVOLUTION OF OUR FLAGSHIP PRODUCTS—PIGWATCH, SMART BREEDING, AND SMART COUNTING— REFLECTS NOT JUST TECHNOLOGICAL PROGRESS, BUT A DEEP UNDERSTANDING OF HOW TO BRING AI INTO ONE OF THE MOST COMPLEX AND TRADITIONAL INDUSTRIES: LIVESTOCK FARMING.”
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