PRESS RELEASE: Astana, Kazakhstan — Calgary, Canada — July 25, 2023 — COWMAS Qazaqstan LLP, a precision livestock farming company, has announced a strategic partnership with HerdWhistle Technologies Inc., a precision livestock monitoring company based in Canada. This collaboration aims to transform livestock management practices in Kazakhstan and enhance the efficiency and profitability of livestock farming operations.
By leveraging HerdWhistle Technologies’ proprietary UHF RFID-based livestock monitoring equipment, the HerdWhistle™ System, in conjunction with COWMAS™’s farm management platform, local expertise, and services, farmers in Kazakhstan can optimize operational processes, gain better control over livestock activities, and work towards a more sustainable future. COWMAS Qazaqstan LLP will serve as the general distribution partner for HerdWhistle Technologies Inc. in Kazakhstan, integrating their equipment with the COWMAS™ livestock farm management platform to deliver a localized and comprehensive customer experience for Kazakh livestock farmers.
HerdWhistle Technologies Inc., a subsidiary of A4 Systems, a Calgary-based cyber-physical system developer, brings extensive experience in precision livestock monitoring for cattle feedlots and breeders. A4 Systems, founded in 2010, is a renowned team of cyber-physical system product developers, transforming quality data into a primary competitive advantage. With their cutting-edge technology and expertise, HerdWhistle Technologies has successfully deployed the HerdWhistle™ System in Canada and the United States.
COWMAS Qazaqstan LLP, an agritech startup company founded in 2020 specializes in providing precision livestock farming services to smallholder livestock farms in Kazakhstan. They offer comprehensive livestock farm management, veterinary support, and zootechnical assistance, utilizing IoT tools and their proprietary COWMAS™ livestock farm management platform. The company is supported at its early stage by the Dutch agrifood tech accelerator StartLife, and later by the Kazakh national institute for innovations development «Qazinnovations» and the “AstanaHub” International Technological Park as a participant of the Techpreneurs 2022 program.
The partnership between COWMAS Qazaqstan LLP and HerdWhistle Technologies Inc. addresses various challenges faced by the Kazakh livestock market, including workforce shortages, limited access to knowledge and expert advice, and the need for automatic monitoring of farm animals. By combining COWMAS™’s integrated solutions and HerdWhistle Technologies’ equipment, farmers gain the ability to automatically count, track, and identify livestock, ensuring accurate records, optimized pen stocking, reduced handling costs, and instant inventory verification.
«We are excited to partner with A4Systems represented by HerdWhistle Technologies Inc. Canada is a pioneer in livestock breeding, employing advanced agricultural technologies and agri-science. The HerdWhistle™ equipment allows us to collect up-to-date data for livestock accounting on farms, enabling better identification and record-keeping of livestock operations while enhancing overall control of farm animals and business processes at farm level,» said Askhat Zhanibek, General Director of COWMAS Qazaqstan LLP.
«We are delighted to collaborate with COWMAS Qazaqstan LLP and explore the promising livestock market in Kazakhstan. Through our combined expertise and efforts, we aim to address the current challenges of livestock identification, record-keeping, and monitoring, enabling farmers to develop sustainable and efficient livestock businesses,» said Adam Morand, CEO & Director of HerdWhistle Technologies Inc.
Pilot operations and testing of the solutions are scheduled for August 2023 in Kazakhstan. Commercial production of products and services tailored to the needs of Kazakh farmers engaged in cattle and sheep breeding is expected to commence in autumn 2023. Pre-orders are now being accepted, and both companies are available to answer farmers’ questions. They are also open to collaborations and projects with market stakeholders, including cooperatives and farmer associations. Regional distribution programs will be launched to ensure comprehensive coverage of the Kazakh market with these innovative solutions.
