Vic cattle farmers hoping for virtual fencing regulations by Christmas
Victorian farmers are eagerly awaiting virtual fencing regulations by year's end, as NSW confirms it will have its regulations in place by Christmas.
Victorian cattle farmers are hoping virtual fencing regulations will be locked in by the end of the year, as they prepare for the 2026 season.
So far, the technology has already been approved and adopted in Tasmania, Queensland, Western Australia, and the Northern Territory. Earlier this month, NSW Agriculture Minister Tara Moriarty confirmed she wanted to have the state’s virtual fencing regulations in place by Christmas.
It leaves Victoria and South Australia yet to confirm their plans. The Weekly Times understands Agriculture Victoria is developing regulations that are also expected to come into effect by the end of the year.
Australian Dairy Farmers President Ben Bennet said he’s heard from many dairy farmers who are “pretty keen on it”, and anticipated the regulations to come through by the end of the year.
“At the end of the day, (the regulations) will be similar to what they’re doing in Tassie. (The government) don’t need to reinvent the wheel,” he said.
Livestock SA chief executive Travis Tobin said he too expected regulations in his state to be finalised by the end of 2025.
“Some farmers are ready to go with it,” he said.
“It’s just another example of a technological advancement that can help farmers get better outcomes for the operations, as well as better environmental and animal welfare outcomes”.
Currently virtual fencing and herding technology is run across Australia by two companies - CSIRO-developed Gallagher eShepherd, and New Zealand-based company Halter - with AgVic having undertaken a one-year trial of Halter’s technology at its Ellinbank SmartFarm on approximately 180 dairy cows.
“The demonstration showed that the first lactation and carryover cows in the trial all adapted well to the technology with milk yields in line with expectations,” a Victorian government spokesperson said.
“Our research scientists are actively sharing the outcomes of the trial with farmers and industry groups.”
Halter director of strategic relations Brent Thomas said the company was fielding calls from Victorian farmers everyday, who wanted to get the technology onto their farms as soon as possible.
“They’re telling us they’d love nothing more than to be able to install it by Christmas,” he said.
“It’s important for their planning processes. Psychologically, people plan their 2026, and make decisions on how they resource and staff their farms. Farmers would have loved this yesterday, but they’d really like to plan for it for the calendar year.”
‘Productivity gains in excess of tens of millions of dollars’
