14 Jun 2019
The opening ceremony of "Smart Farm" demonstration farm in Stepanavan
On June 14, 2019, the opening ceremony of "Smart Farm" demonstration farm, implemented by CARD foundation and financed by the Austrian Development Agency, took place in Stepanavan, Lori Region. Officials from RA Ministry of Agriculture, Lori Provincial Administration, international and local organizations, as well as farmers from Marzes were present during the ceremony.
The Smart Farms became a reality with funding from the Austrian Development Agency, and later with FAO’s support. The design has been implemented by T.A.H.G. GRIG company, through joint efforts with DeLaval. The farm got the name “Smart”, because the conditions of internal saturation and the territories provided for animals, comply with international standards and requirements. During the projection of the farm, all the details were taken into account, in order to keep the animals on the farm all year round. All the conditions ensuring cows’ comfort were also taken into account (clean air, water, lighting, the height of the ceiling), and they, in turn, will contribute to the increase of milk production.
The design of the farms has been developed for a free-range keeping of 12, 27 and 42 animals. The innovation is the fact that these farms are built on the base of greenhouse constructions, enabling the saving of time and money during the construction, and the correctly selected height of the ceiling provides for clean air and proper ventilation. Due to the penetration of the covering, proportionate lightning and lack of shades are provided inside the farms, which prevents the presence of stress during animal locomotion. As Artak Kamalyan, RA Deputy Minister of Economy mentioned in his welcome speech, "Our policy is not to develop agriculture, but innovative agriculture, which actually changes quality".