Varo for dairy farms

Milk, diesel and farm worker paperwork, kept by talking to Mercial.

On a dairy farm the numbers are said out loud, not typed: litres at the milking, diesel at the tank, who worked today. With Varo you tell Mercial when it happens and the record builds itself.

What it does on a dairy farm

• Keeps your milk figures in a daily log. Tell Mercial "1 840 litres today", typed, spoken or on WhatsApp, and it goes into your Daily log with the date and your own words beside it. Wrong? Correct it or undo it. Your herd size and what a usual milk day looks like come from setup.
• Tracks diesel. Say "used 400 litres of diesel". Once Varo has a starting diesel count (from setup, or counted on the Stock screen), what you log moves it, so the Stock screen and your dashboard show what is on hand. Every litre you log stays in your Daily log.
• Keeps farm dates in one list. UIF, COIDA, a herd test, a water use licence, anything else: you enter the date with your own label, and Mercial checks the list every few hours and reminds you of anything overdue or due inside two weeks.
• Shows the essentials on one dashboard. Four tiles: milk, herd, diesel and feed on hand, and your next deadlines. A figure you gave in setup says so, "from setup", and a diesel count that has not been made says "not counted yet", so a number you only said is never shown as if it were measured.
• Lets the farm manager join by WhatsApp. Add a name and a number. They install nothing, and what they send is logged to your workspace under their name.

Setting up takes a few questions

When you sign up, Mercial asks what the business does and sets up the screens that fit. Then it offers an optional longer part, "Got a few more minutes?". For a dairy farm that asks for a usual milk day in litres, herd size, diesel use in a month, how many farm workers you have, whether you claim the diesel refund, and whether you are registered for UIF and COIDA. Mercial reads each figure back once and keeps it only after you say yes. You can skip any question, or the whole part, and it waits for you on Home. What you answer shows on the dashboard marked "from setup" until real figures replace it.

The diesel refund

SARS lets farmers claim back part of the fuel levy on diesel used in farming, and it expects records of what was used. Varo keeps the litres you tell it, by date, so the record is not rebuilt from memory at claim time. It does not work out the refund, does not submit a claim, and cannot tell you whether you qualify. Ask SARS or your accountant about that.

UIF and COIDA for farm workers

Mercial asks whether you are registered, but the dates are yours to enter: Varo does not work them out. Once they are in the list, Mercial reminds you before they are due, and email reminders (14, 3 and 1 days before) are optional and off until you switch them on. Varo reminds and prepares. You file.

What it does not do

• It does not read a milk meter or a tank gauge. It records what you or your people tell it, and says "nothing logged yet" instead of showing a made-up zero.
• It does not work out milk yield, feed costs or whether a diesel figure is reasonable for your tractors.
• It does not file anything with SARS, the UIF or the Compensation Fund for you.
• It does not send anything to anyone outside the farm without a person approving it first.
• It is not your accountant or your vet, and it does not replace their advice.
• You cannot phone Mercial yet. The web app and WhatsApp work today.