New Zealanders have taken to removing rats from remote places in huge numbers, passionately doing their bit to move Aotearoa closer to being predator free by 2050. Backyards and neighbourhoods have never sounded so good as this effort has brought birdlife home. We’re seeing more hotspots on the Chirp map than ever before and have dived into designing a new rat trap.

When we began Goodnature, our ambition was to remove the rats and stoats from New Zealand. Last week we turned 15. That’s 15-years since the first A24 went out in the bush, on farms and - increasingly - in people’s backyards getting on top of their rat and stoat problems.

While we’re constantly improving the A24, we reckon that by selectively targeting rats (ship and Norway rats) and applying what we’ve learnt over the years, we can make an even more effective rat trap, one that requires even less effort and gets rid of more rats faster.

It’s this last point that’s the key to unlocking a better rat trap. The faster you can kill each rat, the quicker you’re getting on top of the problem, you reduce the rate they can breed while limiting the range they roam. With this new trap, our aim is to significantly reduce the time from when a rat first investigates a trap to when it meets its end.

Designing this new trap will allow us to push innovation in other areas too. As a trap is only as good as its bait, we’ll be exploring new longer life lures to ensure the trap remains highly attractive as long as possible. And, we’ll be thinking of smart ways to ensure it’s super simple to use for anyone who has a rat problem, while also building on the data capability of trapping.

By putting the knowledge and the right technology in the hands of as many Kiwis as possible we might be rid of rats before 2050.

So when will it be available?

While the time to kill each rat will be fast, the research and development process is not. The Autorat 2.0, as it’s currently known, will take our team of scientists, engineers and designers three years to bring this new trap to life.

The A24 Rat & Mouse Trap remains our number one tool for controlling rats in a wide range of environments - at home, on the farm and in the bush.

The project is co-funded through PF2050 Limited’s Products to Projects initiative. Like our existing products, this new rat trap will be produced right here in Newtown, Wellington.