In Conversation with Dr. Shari van de Pol

Dr. Shari van de Pol, a 2014 graduate of the Ontario Veterinary College’s (OVC) Doctor of Veterinary Medicine (DVM) program, is the founder and CEO of CATTLEyticsーan agricultural technology company that has created an innovative data system for proactive health management and sustainability on dairy farms. 

Van de Pol’s education and background in computer engineering and veterinary medicine catalyzed her successful career in the agri-tech industry. Since CATTLEytics launched, she has been internationally recognized with several honours, including a top-five finalist for the WE Empower United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, a Coralus Venture, Entrepreneur of the Year for the Women in Communications and Technology’s Leadership Excellence Awards and a finalist for the Canadian Ag-Tech Awards. 

Most recently, CATTLEytics became one of eight recipients of the Canadian Agri-Food Automation and Intelligence Network funding competition to build the next generation of dairy management software solutions for Canadian farmers.

You have a unique background in computer engineering and veterinary medicine. How did you decide to pursue two very different degrees?

When I was in high school, it seemed like practical sense to become an engineer, although my childhood dream was to do something more creative or work with animals. After graduating from computer engineering at McMaster University, I began working at a small engineering startup in the U.K. before joining IBM as a developer. Ten years into my career, I realized my job was disconnected from who I was, my creativity and what was important to me. I decided to return to my childhood passion and pursue a Doctor of Veterinary Medicine (DVM) degree.

Was it a difficult decision to switch careers after 10 years as a computer engineer?

Realizing I wasn’t happy in my career was a turning point for me. It seemed risky to leave a stable job, but it felt riskier to stay in a job where I was unfulfilled. With some planning and dedication, I got where I was going without taking any major leaps of uncertainty. 

Before applying to OVC, I shadowed a large animal veterinarian on his non-routine calls every weekend, and I found that this style of work connected with me. I loved the problem-solving aspect of treating cattle, especially working with the farmers. 

Becoming a student again after 10 years was a big adjustment. Within the first month of school, I also moved to a new city, got married and adopted a dog! It was a period of dramatic changes, but it was definitely worth it.

How did you decide to merge your expertise as a veterinarian and engineer to start CATTLEytics?

During my time at OVC, I was always using my “engineering brain” to find innovative solutions in veterinary medicine. I would take data sets from farmers we were working with and create computer models to monitor milk production. When I realized I could quantify the impact of factors like heat, humidity, time of year or specific animal measures on the farm’s productivity, it was a light bulb moment. We can use data to help inform this process!

Between my third and fourth years at OVC, I completed the Summer Dairy Institute program at Cornell University, where I met people who were applying strong, data-driven approaches to veterinary medicine. I networked with companies in this field, forming CATTLEytics in 2014, and began consulting for larger groups like Feedlot Health Management Services, which is now TELUS Agriculture.

In addition to consulting with larger companies, CATTLEytics operates a dairy software development vertical. How would you describe these work streams to someone who may not be familiar with them?

Our consulting vertical solves problems at the intersection of veterinary medicine and technology. Our team understands the challenges that producers and veterinarians are facing and the technology that’s needed to manage them. We look at a farm’s existing software, tools and equipment, and find ways to streamline their use. It’s a unique crossover of expertise that the groups we consult with find very valuable.

CATTLEytics provides dairy farmers with a management system that creates a digital twin of all their farm’s people, animals and activities, makes data-driven decisions on the farm, forecasts outcomes and understands their systems through machine learning and data modelling and derives actionable insights from farm data analysis. We work with clients to understand their current processes and build features in this platform to optimize daily operations. For example, the task management module “Moo To Do” coordinates herd management and task tracking across many farm employees, including an employee shift scheduler to schedule and communicate with employees.

I want farmers to be empowered by our technology rather than burdened by it. Farmers know their herds best. CATTLEytics offers them the data analysis and tooling to guide them through informed decision making. Our programs are a lot more user-friendly than anything else on the market and our dairy farm partners are the co-authors of all our technology. Collaborations with other large[1]animal veterinarians help integrate their insights, identify challenges, address pet peeves and gather feedback.

CATTLEytics aligns with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals related to supply chain practices. Why is sustainability so important in your work?

Behind CATTLEytics is my love and appreciation for nature, which comes from spending so much time outdoors as a kid. Through all the work we do, we must preserve a healthy environment for future generations. Farms that are economically efficient tend to be more carbon efficient; there are strong business and ethical aspects to sustainability.

It’s great that we’re seeing so many large-scale sustainability initiatives in Canada, but they often miss the connection to local dairy. Unless farmers are using software to monitor carbon and methane trends on their farms, it’s impossible to quantify their emissions estimates or monitor the impact of more sustainable choices. This makes it very difficult for local farmers to show that they are making progress toward the Dairy Farmers of Canada net-zero by 2050 goal. 

To help close this gap, CATTLEytics software has sustainability baked into it. Our programs quantify many aspects of the farm – for example, general inventory, feed, reproduction program success, antibiotic use and production data – and quantify how the farm is doing from a methane production standpoint. When a farmer knows more, they can make decisions leading to better animal welfare, economic growth and reduced carbon emissions.

At the end of the day, farmers have a tough job and should be appreciated for all the work they do to keep our population fed. Canada’s next steps should be figuring out how we can jointly take responsibility for carbon emissions and create a win-win for farmers, so that it makes sense for them to embrace technology and sustainability practices. 

You were recently named Entrepreneur of the Year at the Women in Communications and Technology’s Leadership Excellence Awards. What’s the secret to building and leading such a successful business?

People often think of engineering or veterinary medicine as conventional, non-creative jobs. At CATTLEytics, this couldn’t be further from the truth. So far, we’re completely self-funded apart from grants and prizes. This gives us the autonomy to run with new ideas knowing we have the freedom and creative liberty to take chances in our work, which isn’t always possible in a larger company. Because we see our work with a unique, personal perspective, we end up with unique and personal products.

One of our biggest strengths is how solid our team is. Everyone brings valuable experience from a variety of backgrounds. We’re a small company but technically the most powerful team of top players in the dairy technology world, and we truly enjoy working together. We seek out individuals who may not be what you think of as your typical engineer and we also have a larger percentage of female employees than many tech companies. 

We’ve found success in structuring our work environment to be very flexible and family-friendly. I have two amazing daughters who are a definite motivation for what we do, so we’ve worked hard to foster a work environment that’s conducive to a family lifestyle. Ultimately, it’s really great running a company that operates on a solid foundation of trust and respect for one another! 

You were awarded $800,000 by the Canadian Agri-Food Automation and Intelligence Network to build the next generation of dairy management software solutions for Canadian farmers. What advancements are you working on?

CATTLEytics is using this funding to help producers with big-picture thinking. If a farmer doesn’t have insight into where their current path is taking them, they can’t expect to make decisions to correct for this. CATTLEytics is putting this power into the hands of producers while creating a more detailed version of this for veterinarians and nutritionists. These professionals will have a toolkit so that they can answer questions in seconds rather than days. We have additional work being done under this grant, but this is one of the more exciting aspects of what we are creating. 

For example, when considering whether or not to breed an open cow, that decision is tied to bite-sized secondary data specific to that cow. For instance, production levels, chronic issues, space for new animals, production in line with their quota, potential incentive days next year and more. If a farmer isn’t aware of their current and desired trajectories, they are trying to walk forward while looking backward. Using modelling based on lactation, population and reproduction models, we are allowing dairy farmers to easily visualize what their future is based on their current situation. 

If a cow has been pregnant for two months, you can anticipate she will be adding her milk to the bulk tank seven months from now. From this you can predict the overall milk, fat and protein outputs as well as things like inventory. Once you see clearly what your future is, CATTLEytics tools give you the ability to steer that trajectory toward a more desirable outcome. 

For more information about CATTLEytics, or to inquire about working together, please visit cattleytics.com.