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The United Nations estimates that by 2050 the world population could grow to about 9.7 billion from today’s estimated 7.7 billion. To put it simply, there will be about 2 billion more of us and we will need to increase food production by up to 70% to meet future demands.
Boosting production to that degree is not easy coupled with limitations of land, natural resources, and climate change. Nonetheless, thanks to agricultural technology companies, we are on the verge of witnessing another fundamental transformation in agriculture called Smart Farming.
Innovation and Smart Farming
From the invention van oxen and horses for power, plows, en cotton gin to the introduction van tractors, innovation remains de cornerstone van agriculture.
Technology and agriculture have always been intertwined. Agriculture is the first principal human technological breakthrough because when de early men learned how to plant and harvest food, they stopped wandering around to gather food. This led to the creation van stable shelters, languages, leaders, towns, en trade.
Smart Farming today is a farming management concept van applying modern information and data technologies to increase de quality en quantity van agricultural products.
De key driver van Smart farming is IoT (Internet van Things). The Internet van Things refers to connecting physical devices to the internet for collecting en sharing data. The technological devices that make up Smart farming include mobile applications, sensors, global positioning technologies (GPS), data analytics tools, en robotics.
An interesting example van a physical device that has been connected to a smart farming technology is the ELIXIA LED grow licht. The additional compatibility met helioCORE™ control system transforms ELIXIA, giving it access to a suite van automation tools such as DLI, and on-target control modules.
The focus van Smart Farming is to access data and the application van the data. Smart Farming follows a cycle where de observed data is recorded, the data is fed to a cloud-hosted IoT platform met predefined decision rules that verify de condition van de object, en then data models identify any deficiency. Lastly, the information is sent to the user who in turn takes an action.
Different types van technologies involved in Smart Farming (Image credit: Beecham Onderzoek Ltd)
How Smart Farming is changing Agriculture
Let’s take a look at the benefits of implementing modern information and data technologies into your commercial or local farm.
1. Increase Production en Kwaliteit van Yields
Some agricultural IoT products are crop management devices thereby enabling precision farming for complete greenhouse automation. Parallel to weather stations, they can be placed in a growing environment or a field to collect specific data for gewassen. Elements like temperature, daily licht integral, licht intensity, en precipitation are collected en recorded by the devices. Data on these elements allow you to achieve better control over the production process and to onderhouden higher standards van crop quality. Optimized crop teelt practices such as accurate planting times, providing the right amount van licht to gewassen, watering, and harvesting directly increases production rates. Smart farming techniques also enable farmers to monitor the needs van individual plants and adjust their nutrition. This prevents disease en enhances drove en crop health.
2. Real-time Data
You can visualize production levels, licht intensity, daily licht integral, and more in real-time met some devices. This facilitates the decision-making process and saves time.
3. Accurate Forecasting
The potential to foresee the output van your production allows you to plan for better product distribution. Accurate production forecasts help you to onderhouden en guarantee a desired quantity van yields all year round. This supplies growers met an important tool when negotiating prices met resellers. You can also foresee issues ahead van their occurrence.
4. Remote Monitoring
You can monitor multiple fields in different locations, regardless if you are in the greenhouse, office or elsewhere. This enables you to make real-time decisions from anywhere.
5. Sustainable Agricultur
With amplified control van production, waste levels can be reduced, en costs can be more effectively managed. By using resources such as water en seeds more efficiently, you are also maximizing yields.
6. Efficiencies van Scale
You can automate multiple processes across production cycles met smart devices en control technologies. Automating processes in harvesting, planting en packaging reduce human labor, errors, and overall cost.
Looking to the Future
From the opportunities outlined above, Smart Farming has the real potential to deliver a more productive and sustainable form of agricultural production owing to the fact that it’s rooted in a more precise and resource-efficient approach. If every farming operation in the world becomes a smart farm, reaching that 70% increase in food production is inevitable. Want to automate and control your growing environment? Get started with helioCORE™ the market’s leading LED light control system providing growers with transcendent control and automation of their growing environments.
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