Livestock Facilities Indoor Air Monitoring
Fresh air is equally important for animals as it is for human beings, so adequate ventilation in livestock facilities is vital for animal welfare. Typically, good air quality is defined in terms of temperature, relative humidity, and carbon dioxide.
The most obvious reason to measure CO2 in livestock facilities is safety. Broken ventilation systems or blackouts can even result in animals dying, but an early-warning system gives farmers the time to take action. There are also regulations and laws in place to protect animal welfare. Today, consumers are increasingly interested in the origin of the food they buy and consume. For example, in the poultry industry many customers prefer suppliers that can provide assurances that the animals are treated well – but this is not only about creating a positive image. Animals whose well-being has been properly monitored and maintained are healthier, which often makes the end-product quality better.
The environment is also an important aspect of carbon dioxide measurement. Controlling ventilation in livestock facilities by measuring CO2 allows for heating and ventilation to be optimized, resulting in energy savings. For example, if cattle are released outdoors on a warm, sunny spring day, automatic CO2 measurement can detect that the barn is empty and stop the ventilation system, whereas a time-based system would continue running regardless.
Although it is important to optimize operational costs in order to save energy, it’s not the only reason, CO2 emissions will play an increasingly important role in all businesses in the future.
Vaisala’s handheld and fixed instruments for monitoring carbon dioxide, relative humidity, and temperature in livestock facilities are designed to tolerate the humid, dusty, and even corrosive conditions typical of these environments.
Read in the application note How reliable CO2 monitoring improves animal welfare and the sustainability of meat production.
Learn how a turkey farm clears the air.
Or attend this on-demand webinar on Measuring carbon dioxide reliably in demanding conditions and get tips on how to achieve it.
Air quality and animal welfare
The ever stricter demands on food safety, animal welfare, and emissions control are driving the increasing adoption of new digital tools and measurement technologies to help farmers manage their daily work more efficiently, secure the welfare of their livestock, and improve the sustainability of their operations.
A prime example of this is the use of CO2 measurement sensors based on Vaisala’s CARBOCAP® technology in automated systems for pig and poultry farming.
The reliable and stable Vaisala CARBOCAP® sensor has been delivering accurate measurements since the late 1990s across a wide range of industries and applications.
Smart, sustainable operations in animal shelters
Adequate air exchange in shelters is crucially important for the wellbeing of animals. The parameters typically controlled to ensure good air quality are temperature, relative humidity, and carbon dioxide.
The Vaisala CARBOCAP® Carbon Dioxide Probes GMP251 and GMP252 are intelligent, standalone probes especially designed for harsh and humid environments like animal shelters. They have an operating temperature range of -40 ... +60 °C. The GMP251 has a measurement range of 0 ... 20 % CO2 while the GMP252 is intended for ppm ranges and has a measurement range of 0 ... 10 000 ppm CO2 .
To enable farmers to monitor and manage air quality data from their shelters remotely, Vaisala offers the Vaisala Jade Smart Cloud system. It provides real-time data logging and long-term data storage and easy access to the data using any portable devise with a web browser.
Application note: How reliable CO2 monitoring improves animal welfare and the sustainability of meat production
With its temperate climate, residual flows from the food industry, and connection to the affluent markets of northwest Europe, the Netherlands is an ideal base for livestock farming. It comes as no surprise, then, that the country’s highly developed livestock husbandry sector is recognized globally as a leader in terms of efficiency, productivity, and sustainability.
The Dutch company that is the market leader in complete automated systems for agriculture uses Vaisala’s CARBOCAP® technology to control CO2 levels in animal shelters such as pig and poultry houses.
The company's systems combine an energy-efficient climate system, a smart feeding system, and a biometrics system into a single entity that optimizes the conditions for animal growth.
As well as providing valuable information that helps farmers to optimize the efficiency of their operations, these systems are a way for farmers to demonstrate how their animals are housed and raised. One of the most important aspects in this regard is air quality
The Dutch company uses Vaisala’s CARBOCAP® technology to control CO2 levels in animal shelters such as pig houses, which are especially demanding environments because of the combination of dirty surroundings, high relative humidity, and the presence of corrosive ammonia in the air.
Livestock Facilities Indoor Air Monitoring related products
Indigo500 Series Transmitters
Indigo200 Series Transmitters for Vaisala smart probes
CO₂ Probe GMP252
