Amid changes to consumer tastes and a complex, global supply chain, agribusinesses are finding themselves under immense pressure from their stakeholders. The future of farming is becoming dependent upon a much more streamlined and efficient breed of modern machinery, and many digital technologies are starting to provide the innovations that agribusinesses need.
Emerging technologies, specifically the Internet of Things (IoT), are drastically changing the future of agriculture. The agricultural IIoT market is expected to further grow over the coming years, reaching almost 7 billion U.S. dollars by 2025. With AgriTech – the latest online telematic technologies applied to the agriculture industry – farm operators will be able to monitor their crops, manage their irrigation systems, conquer pests and disease, and even harvest automatically with pinpoint precision, all while increasing their profit margins.
What is Smart Agriculture?
Smart agriculture is the use of large-scale sensor networks in farms to gather information such as soil temperature, soil moisture, water level, electromagnetic sensing, chemical sensing (to determine the health of plants), and odours. Data from numerous sensors can then be aggregated onto a single cloud platform for greater efficiency.
We are indeed seeing smart agriculture in action right now. It is fast becoming a major trend that is likely to continue as we see more and more advancements in soil analysis technology that can help farmers maintain healthy crops while using fewer resources. Sensors, wireless communication, and wireless power are a few of the aspects being explored in these smart systems that are poised to revolutionise the way we farm.
The Role IoT plays in Smart Agriculture
The Internet of Things plays a massive role in the smart agriculture space. From monitoring sensors to data analysis, it provides insights that help agribusinesses make better decisions regarding their crops and livestock. There’s also a certain amount of convenience that comes with IoT here, as you can get notifications when something is going wrong with your crop to investigate before it’s too late. But above all else, IoT creates a more sustainable agricultural industry. With better data on crop production and livestock care, farmers can create less waste and optimise their growing process.
Benefits of Smart Agriculture
Increased Production and Enhanced Quality
IoT allows agribusinesses to monitor their agricultural activities better and measure variables such as temperature, humidity, nutrient levels, rainfall, etc. As a result, farmers can achieve accurate planting, watering, and harvesting, allowing each crop to receive exactly what it needs at the right time. This not only increases crop yields but also enhances product quality as farmers can analyse different treatments and their effects on crops to reduce the use of chemicals and fertilisers.
Water Conservation
An efficient water irrigation system is the foundation of a productive farmer’s practice. It is the most important aspect as it has been recognised for its ability to identify when, where, and how much water is needed, conserving water effectively. Using weather predictions and soil moisture sensors, farmers and agronomists are allowed a great deal of control over their land to successfully increase their crop yields while simultaneously protecting the environment.
Real-time Data and Production Insight
Smart agriculture presents insights and opportunities for farmers to better manage their operations on a daily basis. The ability to gather real-time data and production insight remotely gives agribusinesses an overview of their operations that was previously unavailable to them. This means they can act rapidly and proactively, optimising their production levels, conserving water, reducing energy consumption, and saving money.
Improved Livestock Farming
IoT offers a smart, accurate solution to meet livestock farmers’ daily operations management needs. Through sensors and geofencing tracking, smart agriculture can provide information to help farmers increase the number of breeding herds through remote monitoring strategies, use secure methods for collecting data, better manage resources, and always be prepared for a prompt response by using intelligent alarms and analytics tools.
Reduced Environmental Footprint and Minimised Costs
The most talked about benefit of smart agriculture is reduced environmental footprint. Through automation, farmers can use less fertilisers, water, and machinery, meaning lower environmental costs. Smart farming also helps reduce food waste by providing more accurate data on crop yields and harvesting times. In addition to reducing waste, smart farming also reduces labor costs by enabling machines to do work that used to be done by humans.
How Smart Agriculture Can Help Build a Sustainable World
By making agriculture more sustainable, technology helps achieve a safer and healthier world. Agriculture is a vital part of all economies around the world. Therefore, building a smart, sustainable agricultural system will not only help farmers make more money, but it also ensures that we do not deplete valuable natural resources or harm our environment through unsustainable practices. Also, by using new technology to optimise cultivation and increase yields, we can meet rising food demand while using fewer resources and growing crops on smaller plots of land. Thanks to digital technology and advanced data analysis techniques, agriculture is entering a new era of innovation that will help to support long-term sustainability.
Conclusion
In conclusion, the agricultural industry faces plenty of challenges as it moves forward. However, smart agriculture is poised to become an integral and necessary part of the industry in the upcoming years. The potential of big data, and the automation it can enable for a traditionally labour-intensive sector, is clear for all to see. We expect to witness an increasing number of applications for smart agriculture in the years ahead. Agribusinesses can look forward to reduced costs and greater productivity, and consumers can look forward to fresher produce and potentially lower grocery bills. Thanks to IoT, the future of agriculture is here, and it’s contributing to a smart, sustainable world.
Are you looking for a Smart Agriculture solution for your smart city? Connect with one of our IoT experts to discuss how we can help you.
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