Nofence is a Norwegian company that makes

GPS The Global Positioning System (GPS) is a satellite-based hyperbolic navigation system owned by the United States Space Force and operated by Mission Delta 31. It is one of the global navigation satellite systems (GNSS) that provide geol ...

collars for farm animals (cattle, sheep, and goats) that discourage them from crossing virtual fence boundaries. Oscar Hovde Berntsen has been working on the idea of virtual fencing, as an alternative to fixed electric fencing, since the 1990s. Nofence was incorporated in 2011. In 2016, there was a pilot project in Norway with 850 goats. The

Norwegian Food Safety Authority Norwegian Food Safety Authority () is a Norwegian government agency responsible for safe food and drinking water, and works within the fields of human, plant, fish and animal health as well as environmentally friendly production and ethically a ...

approved the use of Nofence for goats in 2017, then for cattle and sheep in 2020. Nofence were founded in

Batnfjordsøra Batnfjordsøra is the administrative centre of Gjemnes Municipality in Møre og Romsdal county, Norway. The village is located at the end of the Batnfjorden at the mouth of the river Batnfjordelva. European Route E39 passes through the village ...

Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and the archipelago of Svalbard also form part of the Kingdom of ...

, and is today based in

Molde Molde () is a List of towns and cities in Norway, town and the seat of Molde Municipality in Møre og Romsdal county, Norway. It is located in the Traditional districts of Norway, traditional district of Romsdal. It is located on the Romsdal Pen ...

Trondheim Trondheim ( , , ; ), historically Kaupangen, Nidaros, and Trondhjem (), is a city and municipality in Trøndelag county, Norway. As of 2022, it had a population of 212,660. Trondheim is the third most populous municipality in Norway, and is ...

, and

Oslo Oslo ( or ; ) is the capital and most populous city of Norway. It constitutes both a county and a municipality. The municipality of Oslo had a population of in 2022, while the city's greater urban area had a population of 1,064,235 in 2022 ...

in Norway, with offices in the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

Ireland Ireland (, ; ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe. Geopolitically, the island is divided between the Republic of Ireland (officially Names of the Irish state, named Irelan ...

Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...

and the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

. The

solar-powered Solar power, also known as solar electricity, is the conversion of energy from sunlight into electricity, either directly using photovoltaics (PV) or indirectly using concentrated solar power. Solar panels use the photovoltaic effect to conve ...

collars play an audible tone when the animal reaches the pasture boundary, and if they continue, the collar delivers a small shock, similar to what an animal might receive from a fixed

electric fence An electric fence is a barrier that uses electric shocks to deter humans and other animals from crossing a boundary. Most electric fences are used for agricultural purposes and other non-human animal control. They may also be used to protect hig ...

. Farmers can use a

mobile app A mobile application or app is a computer program or software application designed to run on a mobile device such as a smartphone, phone, tablet computer, tablet, or smartwatch, watch. Mobile applications often stand in contrast to desktop appli ...

to change boundaries and monitor the animals throughout the day, and avoid

over-grazing Overgrazing occurs when plants are exposed to intensive grazing for extended periods of time, or without sufficient recovery periods. It can be caused by either livestock in poorly managed agricultural applications, game reserves, or nature ...

. Fenceless grazing is being supported by

conservationists The conservation movement, also known as nature conservation, is a political, environmental, and social movement that seeks to manage and protect natural resources, including animal, fungus, and plant species as well as their habitat for the ...

and farmers, particularly in sensitive areas or difficult upland areas where physical fencing would be impractical, expensive or inappropriate. In September 2020, The Times reported that trials were being conducted at six sites in the UK, including

Epping Forest Epping Forest is a area of ancient woodland, and other established habitats, which straddles the border between Greater London and Essex. The main body of the forest stretches from Epping in the north, to Chingford on the edge of the Lond ...

in Essex. In December 2020, Nofence stated that 17,000 collars were in use in Norway. By January 2025, over 150,000 collars were in use worldwide, and the number of customers had surpassed 8,000. In May 2025, Nofence featured on the farming documentary show

Clarkson's Farm ''Clarkson's Farm'' is a British television documentary series about Jeremy Clarkson and his farm in the Cotswolds. The series documents Clarkson's attempts at running a farm near Chipping Norton in West Oxfordshire. Described by Clarkson as "g ...

.https://www.farminguk.com/news/virtual-fencing-gains-ground-as-clarkson-s-farm-leads-the-charge_66657.html

References

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External links

Official website
Fences Perimeter security Norwegian companies established in 2011 Manufacturing companies established in 2011 Livestock Norwegian inventions Global Positioning System Companies based in Møre og Romsdal Technology companies of Norway