Onside raises $2.5m to allow farmers to set their boundaries

Christchurch-based Onside has come up with a system that allows farmers and rural property managers to keep tabs on who is on their property and why. Photo / Supplied

Christchurch-based Onside, which has developed technology aimed at allowing farmers and orchard owners to keep track of who is on their property, has raised $2.5 million for overseas expansion.

Onside has come up with a digital check-in solution for the rural sector.

It's a mobile-based digital register which allows rural property managers to know with far greater accuracy who is on site, their specific location and purpose, while also making sure visitors are aware of potential hazards.

The fundraising was led by Hamish Kennedy, founder of packhouse technology firm Compac, and supported by other investors including K1W1, New Zealand Growth Capital Partners (NZGCP) and Icehouse Ventures.

The company was founded in 2015 by Juliet Maclean, who at the time headed up Synlait Farms, Michael Falconer, chairman of Orion Health, and Onside's current chief executive Ryan Higgs.

The founders remain the majority owners of the company after the capital raise.

Higgs said the Onside product forms a "virtual boundary," or "geofence" around the property, via an Onside app.

"When people come and go, they can check in and check out," he said.

The product provides visitors with a map and highlights any potential health and safety issues.

"A big part of it is about making communications seamless and a simple way of sharing information across a broad range of people," he told the Herald.

Right now, Onside has the capital for the next phase of the business, he said.

In general, Higgs said people did not appreciate how sophisticated some rural operations have become.

"What we are seeing is a general digitisation of these businesses," he said.

"There are a lot of cool tools out there to make businesses run more efficiently, so that's the theme that we are seeing," he said.

Onside says it is seeing 20 per cent revenue growth, month-on-month, and has more than 20,000 registered users in New Zealand.

The aim is expand into Australia next, Higgs said, and expressions of interest in the technology have been shown in the United States.

"Investors believe Onside's highly scalable technology can capture significant opportunities internationally by introducing operational efficiencies to how large, complex farming and horticultural businesses comply with a range of health and safety regulations," the company said in a statement.

Large, rural properties have long grappled with maintaining accurate visitor records for workers and suppliers, and ensuring visitors consistently receive safety briefings.

"Modern farms, vineyards and orchards are fast-moving, complex businesses spread over multiple properties visited by hundreds of employees, contractors, and suppliers daily.

"We want Onside to become the standard for digital check-in on every rural property, and are gearing up to leverage the R&D developed in New Zealand into international markets," Higgs said.

The company, which has 18 staff, has received support from Callaghan Innovation and AgMardt, a trust specialising in funding innovation in primary industry.