Reducing cow urine nitrate leaching with Spikey-applied ORUN

Organisation: Pastoral Robotics Ltd
Grant Number: A17034
Grant Amount: $20,000

Pastoral Robotics Limited has dedicated itself to developing technology to address nitrate leaching whilst increasing the productivity of pastoral farming. Spikey® S1S, their first commercial product, has been developed to detect and treat cow urine patches with additives that stimulate the recovery of urine-nitrogen by pasture for more growth, rather than being leached into waterways as nitrate.

Spikey® detects and treats the urine patches when pulled over the paddock in a ‘follow the cows’ manner (daily after the cows are shifted to a fresh paddock). The treatment formula, ORUN®, encourages more grass growth which utilises the excess nitrogen, recycling it through the farming system. Spikey can also be used in conjunction with ONEsystem fertiliser urea technology to reduce the amount of fertiliser nitrogen required to maintain the current of farm production.

AGMARDT funding allowed PRL to undertake three plot trials of our ORUN treatment system on farms in different regions (Canterbury, Manawatu and Rotorua). These trials have led directly to our first system sale to a consortium of farmers in the Rotorua region. They have also added considerably to the depth of our knowledge and led to significant refinements in our treatment system.

“The AGMARDT seed funding grant has set us up with the knowledge we need to progress our business and to prepare for the next stage in our research and development program”. Geoff Bates, Managing Director

We are grateful for the assistance the AGMARDT Grant provided. It has allowed Freshco to direct sales and manage our own destinies in each market enabling us to extract more value from the supply chain to the consumer.

John Mangan / Director, Freshco

AGMARDT supports and enables. Projects and people benefit from funding; New Zealand benefits from development of ideas, technologies, approaches and leadership. In particular, the trust facilitates information dissemination: AGMARDT is the catalyst for ripples that spread through the primary sector.

Dr Jacqueline Rowarth /

AGMARDT's support of Texus in the above process tangibly accelerated the development of the above essential activities and testing of market entry strategy, while also exposing Texus management to cutting-edge thought leadership around market shaping and the levers that can be applied to scope and facilitate such shaping.

Nick Davenport / CEO, Texus Fibre Industry Leader Scholarship Winner

The support from AGMARDT has enabled us to gain greater insights into farmer behaviour across all sectors and which will assist accelerated uptake of the livestock exchange and enhance market opportunities for all farmers.

Jason Roebuck / Managing Director, Stock-X Limited