Article Summary: Big things often start small. For our founder and the brain behind Pasture.io’s groundbreaking idea, Ollie Roberts, it all began on his family’s dairy farm in Tasmania. Spotting a chance to shake up traditional pasture management, Ollie turned simple ideas into game-changing tools for farmers everywhere. Fast forward, and Pasture.io just snagged its second Tasmanian Export Award in a row! In a chat with ABC Radio, Ollie shares the story of how a need to farm smarter grew into a platform that’s helping farmers save time and get more done. Read on to learn more about Ollie!
Success often starts with something simple—a need, a new way of thinking, and the drive to make a change. For Pasture.io’s founder, Ollie Roberts, it all began on his family’s dairy farm in Tasmania, where he saw an opportunity to rethink traditional pasture management. Taking a straightforward approach to measuring grass yield and adjusting rotations, Ollie’s journey evolved from those early efforts into a tool helping farmers across Australia and beyond. And we’ve just been recognised again for the work we’re doing to change farming forever.
If you haven’t heard the news yet, we’ve had back-to-back wins!
In October 2024, Ollie was interviewed for ABC Radio about Pasture.io’s recent win at the Tasmanian Export Awards for the second year in a row (!) and the origin story of Pasture.io – born of a need to make farming smarter and less labour-intensive, all thanks to data and embracing available technology.
From humble beginnings to a farming revolution: The story behind Pasture.io
Ollie’s Story
Founder Ollie Roberts grew up in the heart of dairy farming in NW Tasmania, where he first got his hands on farm management while listening to his father and uncle talk about grazing rotations. Like them, he was a dairy farmer learning the ropes, but with a curious mind and deep passion for data.
After being challenged to “do a better job” with their pasture management, Ollie took the reins. He began by measuring weekly grass yield and creating a simple spreadsheet, capturing findings and recording numbers to refine his family’s grazing practices. That small start led to journey of discovery.
Realising that every farm could benefit from better grazing insights, Ollie developed what would become Pasture.io. In 2018, he launched the world’s first satellite pasture reading service, giving farmers instant insights into pasture health. From there, Pasture.io has continued to evolve, helping farmers make decisions based on data they can rely on.
Award Recognition
Winning the Tasmanian Export Award back-to-back in 2023 and 2024 is a proud achievement for Pasture.io. This recognition speaks to the real impact their platform has on both agtech and the daily work of farmers. “It’s an honour,” Ollie shared, “and a reflection of the journey we’ve been on, from the family farm to empowering farmers across the country.”
Innovation rooted in real farm life
Pasture.io’s mission has always been to empower farmers. By combining real-time data with advanced machine learning, the platform gives farmers insights that allow them to optimise pasture management and make informed decisions, season after season. What started as a humble spreadsheet on a dairy farm has transformed into a tool farmers worldwide depend on to get the most out of every paddock.
Looking forward
Pasture.io isn’t stopping here. With new advancements in satellite data and real-time technology, as well as creating plans that support all kinds of farms, the platform continues to evolve, aiming to make farming a bit easier, one paddock at a time. As Ollie says, “It’s about finding practical ways to help farmers do what they do best.”
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Full transcript here:
Ollie: They asked me one afternoon, after milking, if I thought I could make a difference with management on the farm. I’d been out getting the milk from outside the dairy, and I could hear my dad and uncle discussing management practices. They turned to me and said, “If you think you can do a better job, then you take over.” So, I took on the challenge.
That’s where my journey with grazing rotations started, right on our family dairy farm. I began experimenting with different ways to measure grass yield, jotting down weekly measurements in a spreadsheet. It wasn’t fancy, but it gave me insights on pasture performance and led me to question the traditional clockwise grazing rotation we’d been using for years.
I realised there was a way to look at the data and grazing patterns more effectively. Instead of just going around the farm in a set rotation, I started adjusting grazing based on the pasture’s performance. That simple spreadsheet let me see things in a new light.
From there, I wanted to develop something that didn’t just work on our farm but could be used by other farmers too. By 2018, we launched the world’s first satellite pasture reading service, giving farmers insights they could access from any device. Our goal was, and still is, to help farmers optimise their pastures, using the power of data and real-time information.
Interviewer Meg Powell: Congratulations on winning the Tasmanian Export Award again! This achievement must be a real reflection of all the hard work and value Pasture.io delivers.
Ollie: Thank you. Winning this award is truly an honour, and it really validates the journey we’ve been on, from my days on the dairy farm to supporting farmers across the country. At Pasture.io, our mission is to empower farmers with real-time insights. We help farmers record their data and put it through our machine learning systems to provide insights that genuinely help increase the productivity and performance of their operations.
Courtesy of: ABC Listen, Tasmania Country Hour, Tue 29 Oct 2024 at 12:00pm
Until we meet again, Happy Farming!
- The Dedicated Team of Pasture.io, 2024-11-05