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Ann Anderson, a Texas rancher, deals in information, and that has taken her from her ranch to riding the range in cyberspace. A principle in AgInfoLink, she has developed new technology to more fully use information on her cattle, and others, to improve marketing, genetics and health programs. "It's an information transfer company," Anderson said. 
Data from calves collected on a ranch, usually with an electronic identification system, can be stored and added to as the animal moves through the sale barn, a stocker operation, a feedyard and a packing plant. Anderson's company collects and stores the information electronically for her customers. They can retrieve the information in report form that can help determine future breeding or management decisions. "We're the information recipient," Anderson said. "We take care of that data and make sure that it gets to nobody else. Nobody else has access to it." As data comes in for a given EID (electronic identification) number, they store it. "We are then able to disseminate that data back to those folks who've owned or had possession of the cattle," she said. That way, she said, a producer can make better decisions the next time around. "It's a little bit like a bus," Anderson said. "Envision a highway that runs up and down the entire productioin chain, to every ranch, every feedyard and every packing plant. It has nothing on it but post office boxes and every animal had its own post office box which is its EID number. Every time you get a piece of information, it goes in that post office box. It travels the whole world picking up information, and any time you want that information, you can get it out of that post office box. That's how the information system works." The information is available to her customers in various forms. If they need a report for the customer to take to his bank, then a report can be generated for that purpose. If one needs to be done for the veterinarian, then a report can be formated for him. Data can be returned in a format that can be plugged into a standard spreadsheet computer program. "We simply store that information, maintain its integrity and return it upon request," she said. Eventually, she said she envisions a producer using a credit card or ATM type card at a computer terminal located at a sale barn or feedyard. The producer could run his card through the computer terminal and the computer would print the report for the producer. The information is also available through a home computer system. While she ships cattle by truck, Anderson uses the information highway to keep up with them. |
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