Now Agriculture Works on and also use Precision Agriculture , Biotechnology and the Big data Analytics
Now Agriculture Works on and also use Precision Agriculture, Biotechnology, and the Big data Analytics
Precision Agriculture
Environmental degradation prompts calls for sustainable solutions across all industries. Sustainability in agriculture refers to the use of eco-friendly methods and inputs which have zero or minimal negative impact on the environment. An example of this is site-specific crop management (SSCM), commonly known as precision agriculture. It is a method in which farmers use exact amounts of input, such as water, pesticides, and fertilizers, to enhance the quality and productivity of yield. Different tracts of land across the field have different soil properties, receive different sunlight, or have different slopes. The same treatment for the whole farm, thus, is inefficient and leads to a wastage of time and resources. Consequently, many startups are developing solutions in precision agriculture to improve profitability while addressing sustainability challenges.
Data Farming enables Cloud-based Precision Agriculture
Australian startup Data Farming delivers digital solutions in the area of precision agriculture with the help of pay-per-use cloud services. Their cloud-based platform, The Digital Agronomist, includes tools such as satellite images, soil mapping, auto-zone, and much more, empowering farmers with actionable insights into the field. The solution offers free soil mapping with NDVI, high-resolution satellite imagery, and variable rate technology. The variable-rate application ensures that the rate of application of farm inputs is based on the precise location, thereby establishing precision farming.
Agricolus develops Precision Agriculture Tools
Agricolus is an Italian startup that develops numerous tools for precision farming to improve farm management. They deploy satellites and drones for calculating parameters relating to vigor, water stress, and the quantity of chlorophyll. They also develop maps that facilitate variable rate application of fertilizers and other inputs. Further, the startup offers traceability of the farm operations and performance analysis via their hardware, AgriPlug. Overall, the solutions optimize production with the right treatment and inputs, while lowering the management costs incurred.
Agricultural Biotechnology
A lot of crop yield gets wasted due to pests and plant diseases. Although agrochemicals are utilized in fields, they are not the best solution when it comes to sustainability. On the other hand, the application of biotechnology in agriculture improves the quality of crops and livestock. Scientific techniques like plant breeding, hybridization, genetic engineering, and tissue culture facilitate the identification of better traits in plants. CRISPR-Cas9 is a genome editing technology that allows high target specificity with improved speed and precision. It produces transgenic plants with desired qualities like disease tolerance, drought tolerance, pest resistance, and high yield capacity. This enhances the profitability of farm production. Startups also leverage agri-biotech methods to provide solutions such as biopesticides, bioherbicides, biofertilizers, and bioplastics for fields. These solutions address soil toxicity concerns and ensure a minimal negative impact on the environment.
Agene specializes in Plant Breeding
AgGene is a Canadian agri-biotech startup that exploits plant breeding techniques to develop seeds and tissues with increased protein content. They specialize in manipulating genes for the accumulation of proteins. The startup addresses the surge in demand for plant proteins across the globe. They also deploy genetic editing platforms including CRISPR and MAD7 to incorporate desired traits in commercial crops.
XytoVet improves Livestock Productivity
Australian startup XytoVet is working on breeding techniques for sheep, cattle, and aquaculture. Their DNA technology assigns the right parentage to sheep and cattle, which helps farmers identify the good flock quickly. The startup also works to improve aquaculture by selecting genes with higher growth rates and disease resistance. They provide a range of genetic analyses to assist farmers in livestock decision-making.
Big Data & Analytics
Large volumes of farm data are generated every day, which is of no good if not analyzed. Big data and analytics techniques transform this data into actionable insights. Statistics of crop area, crop production, crop forecasts, land use, irrigation, agricultural prices, weather forecasts, and crop diseases, lay the foundation for the next farming season. Analytical tools make the use of data on weather events, farm equipment, water cycles, quality, and quantity of crops to extract information relevant to farm operations. This helps identify patterns and relationships that may otherwise remain hidden. Several startups are developing solutions in the area of farm analytics that enable farmers to take advantage of their field data. For example, analytical data fosters an understanding of the nutrient levels of the soil, soil acidity and alkalinity, fertilizer requirements, and several other parameters, which allow farmers to make the right choices for their fields.
Fyllo provides Crop Analytics
Fyllo is an Indian startup that leverages cloud services for the analysis of farm data. Their devices are installed across the farm for data sensing and reporting. The startup builds models with real-time farm data to empower farmers with an understanding of their crop needs, irrigation requirements, pests, and diseases. They also provide a personalized fertilizer schedule for crops based on the analysis of soil data.
AgriData Innovations (ADI) enables Data-driven Farming
Dutch startup AgriData Innovations facilitates the collection, analysis, and visualization of farm data, especially of greenhouses. ADI develops embedded data transfer and control software. They specialize in compartmentalization from an image up to a specific leaf of the crop, thereby enabling farmers to make accurate decisions. Further, the startup also deploys neural networks and image processing to measure crop health, leaf size, and more. Their insights from data analytics and visualization improve the overall productivity and operations of greenhouses.
Controlled Environment Agriculture
Fluctuating and extreme weather events constantly hamper conventional farming methods. Further, growing crops in populated cities, deserts, or other unfavorable conditions pose significant challenges. This is overcome by controlled environment agriculture (CEA). In CEA, plants are subjected to a controlled proportion of light, temperature, humidity, and nutrients. There are different growing environments, namely, indoor farming, vertical farming, greenhouses, among others. There is an increased deployment of techniques like hydroponics and aeroponics which involve growing soilless plants in a liquid nutrient medium or steam. Another such technique is aquaponics, where plants and fish are cultivated simultaneously. Fish provides nutrients to plants, while plants purify the water for the fish. CEA methods reduce pests and diseases, increase yield, and establish sustainable farming practices.
OnePointOne specializes in Vertical Aeroponics
US-based startup OnePointOne builds a vertical plane aeroponics farming space. They deploy vertical farming techniques to come up with space-saving, water-saving, and labor-saving solutions. Further, they deploy hyperspectral high-resolution imagery to analyze plants on the farm. The startup also provides personalized farming and nutrition services to farmers.
Baltic Freya offers Fogponics
Lithuanian startup Baltic Freya identifies existing problems in the field of hydroponics and aeroponics to give rise to a new and improved fogponics technique. Plants grown through hydroponics are likely to acquire root diseases, while aeroponics often deploys several nozzles. Existing fogponics techniques may overheat the nutrient solution or crack the piezoceramics discs. So, the startup has come up with Fogponics 2.0, where they ensure optimum fog generation so as to not overheat the solution or crack the discs. This sustains and improves the maintenance and operability of the environment where plants grow.
Regenerative Agriculture
Conventional farming practices lead to long-term erosion and crusting of soil. Often, the plowing, tilling, and overgrazing don’t allow much time for the soil to revive before the next cropping season. Regenerative agriculture, on the other hand, causes minimal soil disturbance while focusing on improving soil biodiversity and topsoil revival. It involves different practices like no-till farming, reduced tillage, crop rotation, and more. For example, cover crops are planted to cover the soil between cropping seasons to restore soil fertility. Further, regenerative farming facilitates fields to act as a carbon sink through sequestration. This leads to fewer carbon emissions into the atmosphere and a lesser negative impact on climate change.
Freesoil improves Soil Resilience
Freesoil is a Dutch startup that develops high-quality plant-based compost extract for the soil. Once the compost extract is applied to the soil, it is naturally selected by the plants, and this ensures its applicability to multiple crops. They also add microorganisms to the soil on a regular basis. This enhances the symbiosis between plants and microbes and ultimately leads to nutrient-rich soil. Thus, their solution enables plants to grow in healthier soil, making them more resilient to diseases.
Acterra deploys Fermentation Technology
Canadian startup Acterra specializes in fermentation technology for composting, seed, soil, and residue treatments. They develop a compost additive that accelerates matter breakdown, reduces the need for chemical fertilizers, and also enriches the existing manure with nutrients. Moreover, their method sequesters carbon into the soil making it a sustainable solution.
Connectivity Technologies
A lack of connectivity via an established network or broadband is a problem in rural areas globally. Smart farming is not possible without connectivity technologies like 5g, LPWAN, rural broadband, or satellite-enabled connectivity. 5g facilitates different IoT devices, robots, and sensors to communicate the data at ultrafast speeds. This enables farmers to monitor the data more accurately in real-time and take the required actions. High-speed internet using fiber optic cables enables the exchange of field data in real-time, which is crucial when it comes to improving accuracy. Connectivity technologies support other technologies like IoT, which ultimately work in coordination to form connected farms.
Ellenex manufactures Connectivity-based Sensors
Australian startup Ellenex offers a wide range of agricultural sensor products that are powered by connectivity technologies such as LoRaWAN, low-power satellite, Sigfox, and low-power WiFi, among others. These network technologies support battery-powered devices used for the measurement of pressure, flow, level, water quality, and temperature. This helps in on-time monitoring of the farm with farmers easily accessing accurate data.
AgriLinx creates a Self-deployed Network
AgriLinx is a US-based startup that develops its FLEX network, a LoRaWAN network that provides up to 5 miles of low-bandwidth data coverage. It helps farmers access farm data on their mobile devices and track irrigation, farm equipment, and more. The startup also provides wireless backhauls to connect remote farm locations with internet services. This ensures full connectivity across the fields for proper farm management.
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