Machine learning software can identify individual pigs based on their facial features with high accuracy, which could help farmers give animals individualised food and veterinary care

Technology 20 September 2022

Pigs have unique facial features that can be identified by machine learning software

SRUC

Pigs could be issued with biometric passports based on facial recognition technology, giving farmers a more practical and welfare-friendly way of identifying individuals than ear notches or tags, the current industry standards.

Identifying pigs based on their unique facial features could enable them to receive individualised food and veterinary care, and be traced as they go through meat processing. With advanced algorithms and machine learning, it is possible to distinguish between the faces of even the most similar-looking …