Meat and Livestock Australia is starting a 'mega data' strategy to manage digital information for the entire meat business.

MLA managing director, Richard Norton, said the 'Value Chain Digital Strategy' would be the first in Australia to deliver a range of data solutions 'seemlessly' through the farm and food supply chain. Listen Duration: 4 minutes 26 seconds 4 m 26 s Listen Space to play or pause, M to mute, left and right arrows to seek, up and down arrows for volume. Managing director of MLA Richard Norton on big data ( Rose Grant ) Download 2 MB

He said farmers, meat processors, distributors and retailers each had intellectual property and could capture and use terra-bytes of data.

Mr Norton said digital data was also being generated by technology used in the MLA's own traceability and quality programs.

"We're doing lifetime traceability of close to eight million cattle slaughtered each year, let alone what goes through the sale yards and is exported live," he said.

"So the red meat industry, unlike a lot of others, through tis integrity systems is already managing mega data.

"So with the digital strategy, and it will evolve over 10 years, and all we want to do for the red meat sector or producers is deliver data for them that may increase productivity."

In launching the mega data strategy at a red producers forum in Launceston, Tasmania, Mr Norton said the MLA's National Livestock Identification Scheme could be extended from the radio frequency ear tags used to identify cattle to an electronic tracking system through to the consumer.

He said increasing automation and the use of sensors, robotics and drones could transform beef and lamb production systems and freight and logistics and consumer purchasing systems over the next ten years.

Mr Norton said the MLA strategy would help to inform commercial decisions, including capturing new market segments.

"If we're the first movers in the world, and we brand our product as high end premium product then we'll take advantage of those returns and the global consumption that is increasing around red meat, as opposed to being a commodity player," he said.