Food and Farming
Agriculture Technology

The Future of Food and Farming: Connecting Agriculture with Sustainable Solutions

Nations around the world must take a global view of the world's food supply and encourage more local agricultural production. Due to climate change and supply chain issues, the tradition of growing produce is changing. Here's a look at how modern food farming solutions are helping farmers transition toward more sustainable agricultural solutions.


A Need for More Sustainable Agriculture

The food industry represents about 17 percent of all CO2 emissions, but new more efficient methods of farming are starting to help reduce greenhouse gases that come from agricultural production. It's imperative that all businesses work together in the next few decades to reduce the carbon footprint of manufacturing industries. Farmers need to pay attention to doing more with less water since drought is a part of climate change.


Pioneering New Farming Processes

Infarm is a European vertical farming startup that began in 2013. The company has grown to 200 in-store farms, creating a network for cultivating over 150,000 plants per month. It houses vertical farming modules in France, Switzerland and Germany with plans to expand into the UK. The company supplies various types of vendors with indoor modules for growing different crops. The produce includes all types of fruits and vegetables. It allows restaurants to harvest their own food.

Recently Infarm gained over $100 million in funding, which will help the company expand in Europe, Asia and even the United States. Due to the need for farms to cut costs on water, electricity and other resources, the new agricultural model being pioneered by Infarm will likely spread wherever there's a need for agricultural streamlining.


How Farming-As-A-Service Contributes to Sustainability

The underlying technology that connects the modules in the cloud is known as farming-as-a-service. A command center monitors various data using IoT sensors to measure nutrient content in the soil, as well as light and water usage. The system eliminates various processes of traditional agriculture including the use of pesticides with the help of big data analysis. The result of this new process is a streamlined supply of fresh, organic food.

Thanks to smart technology, Infarm has reduced water usage by 95 percent and fertilizer by 75 percent. Another benefit that adds to more efficient production is it reduces transportation involved with agriculture by 90 percent. The reason this figure is significant is that about half of all nutrients in produce are lost in the shipping stage of distribution.

connected food

Find out more about the latest innovations in the food, agritech, restaurant and grocery sectors. Click the button below to watch the replay of our "Connected Food" webinar.

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Sustainable Food Systems

A key reason for local communities to embrace local food farming is to avoid the disruptions associated with supply chains. When food is shipped around the globe, it must go through busy seaports where fees and storage costs keep rising. Supply shortages can result due to issues surrounding transportation including fuel costs and labor deficiencies. But the impact of these disruptions is reduced when a community has plenty of local produce for food choices.

When food is produced locally, it has a better chance of being sold as a fresh product rather than if it goes through a global supply chain. Knowing who your farmer is and where your food comes from helps you feel more confident about eating healthy. Food is perishable and can spoil quickly, so ideally, it shouldn't have to travel far.


Rethinking Barren Land

One of the keys to expanding sustainable farming is to educate people about indoor farming, which allows for crops to be grown year-round. Indoor farming can also be a solution to climate change, which is destroying crops due to overly dry or stormy conditions. Farmers have more control over their crops in indoor settings with the help of digital technology that provides measurements for appropriate harvesting conditions.

The United States and Canada have plenty of barren lands that could be used for developing sustainable solutions. Not only can it be used for solar and wind farms, but barren lands can also be used to build communities that rely on indoor harvesting. It could provide a consistent supply of seasonable crops.


Urban Farming in the Future

Since indoor farming is part of the solution to agricultural sustainability, it should be part of urban planning for the future. Empty malls and buildings can be repurposed for indoor farms. In other words, growing food no longer needs to be on the outskirts of cities, as it can be done almost anywhere indoors.

The investment community is increasingly looking at indoor farming in urban areas as a path to sustainability. There will likely be an increasing demand for local indoor farming the more communities feel the economic effects of climate change. Sustainability has also become an important factor in commercial real estate, so the more farmers invest in sustainable solutions, the more it can raise the value of their properties.

Revitalization is another strong reason for communities to invest in indoor farms. Cleveland and Detroit are examples of cities that have promoted community gardens and farms for revitalizing neighborhoods. Detroit now has over 1,400 urban gardens and farms. In 2011 the Michigan Urban Farming Initiative purchased an old building in Detroit to repurpose it as a resource center for growing produce that it supplies local restaurants and consumers.

Urban farms can also be built for educational reasons. Baltimore's Urban Gardening with Students (BUGS) program educates kids about developing skills for growing foods locally. The more people become aware of sustainable farming techniques, the better prepared society will be for the growing pressures related to climate change and supply chain disruptions.


Conclusion

Local communities will be more sustainable if they rely on local farms rather than global farms, which become part of supply chain issues. Developing a digital infrastructure that integrates with modern food farming solutions is the best way to prepare for the future of agriculture.


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Agrifood
Agriculture Technology

Top Trends in the Agri-Food Industry

From laboratory-grown meat to insect protein, lab-grown milk and mushrooms, fresh salads, and processed foods made with algae or yeast, we are experiencing new methods of producing food. The techno-agrarian revolution is here as scientists, farmers, and entrepreneurs harness technology to reimagine what we eat and how we grow it.

Vertical farms and smart farming are becoming a reality now. In this blog, you will learn about these innovations in food production, how they can help us grow food more efficiently and sustainably, why they're important to the future of farming, and how we can get involved with their development at every level.


IoT is Disrupting Food Production 

You have seen some IoT-related coverage already, but the more you learn about the topic, the more exciting its potential becomes. The Internet of Things is nothing new—in fact, it has been around for many years now. However, as time passes and technology improves, this innovative framework keeps evolving to meet new demands and solve new problems.

Problems exist in the food industry—but they are enormous and complex ones. Fortunately, IoT solutions can offer real solutions to these issues. Some might argue that society needs a complete paradigm shift to address these issues; others would say we need to embrace innovation and be prepared to change outdated practices.

Whichever camp you happen to fall into, there is no denying that IoT is disrupting food production as we know it—and from what we can see so far, these changes will be very good indeed!

Agriculture is the foundation of human civilization, and as the global population continues to expand, food production will need to increase if we are going to keep up rapidly. IoT can help farmers produce more food through increased yield, reduced waste, and increased efficiency.

IoT technology helps farmers optimize the way they produce their crops. Farmers have been collecting data on weather patterns and soil quality for years. As a result of this process, they have a good idea of when to plant and which types of crops will work best in certain climates and conditions.

With IoT providing access to even more information, farmers can focus on higher-level tasks like managing large amounts of data and predicting what factors will most affect future harvests.

connected food

Find out more about the latest innovations in the food, agritech, restaurant and grocery sectors. Click the button below to watch the replay of our "Connected Food" webinar.

Watch Now

Automation in Agriculture

In the field of agriculture, automation is certainly a disruptive technology. With it, farmers can now use precision farming methods and avoid human error. Automation enables higher yields through unified data collection and smart inventory management.

This results in reducing costs incurred by the farmer; how does it not? And ultimately, this allows for increased efficiency in farming processes. In other words: more food at lower prices!


Precision Agriculture

We often think of huge technological advances and flashy gadgets when we think of the future. But sometimes, the best innovations are the simple ones that make life easier and more efficient.

Precision agriculture—which uses GPS and other technologies to monitor the yields in a given field—is one way to do this. It's a method that can be used on both small and large industrial farms, which means it's accessible to just about anyone interested in smart farming with a little bit of tech know-how.

Precision agriculture allows farmers to track how much fertilizer or water their plants are getting so they don't waste money on unnecessary supplies. It also reduces environmental impacts by reducing runoff from fields into the surrounding environment.

In short, precision agriculture helps farmers do their jobs better! As more people move into cities and buy their food from supermarkets instead of growing it themselves, precision agriculture is one way to ensure that everyone will have access to enough healthy food in the future.


Vertical farming

One of the most promising techniques in the agriculture sector today is called vertical farming. It consists of stacking plants on shelves in tightly packed rows and controlling their growing environment, including humidity, temperature, lighting, and nutrients. This means food can be grown indoors in any climate.

By stacking crops vertically and using artificial lighting, vertical farms can operate year-round without losing a single day to rain or winter weather. Vertical farms also allow for more efficient use of land and water, becoming increasingly scarce resources as the world urbanizes. Vertical farms minimize both land and water usage by growing crops closer together than is possible with conventional farming methods. The tight spacing maximizes land usage while reducing water loss through evaporation.


Blockchain in the Food Industry 

You can go to the supermarket and see where your food products come from. It might sound like science fiction, but it is possible, thanks to blockchain technology.

Blockchain is a decentralized ledger of transactions that verifies the authenticity and origin of data without an intermediary or central authority. The main advantage is that the information can't be modified or deleted by anyone once recorded. It provides a secure way for businesses to share sensitive information with their clients or partners without compromising its integrity. The technology also grants access to valuable insights that can help streamline operational processes and improve management decision-making.

Blockchain can be used across all agriculture sectors, from initial production stages to shipping, retailing, and consumption. For instance, farmers will be able to track data about soil conditions, humidity levels, temperature fluctuations, crop yields, and other weather conditions over time by using IoT devices connected through sensors on their farms.

Blockchain solutions are already being developed for the agriculture industry in Australia as part of an effort by IBM and its partners to use IoT technology in agriculture supply chain management.


Other Modern Farming Methods

Lab-grown meat

In the case of lab-grown meat, it's a question of ethics. Do you see animal cruelty as killing animals to use their cells, or would you rather eat lab-grown meat than traditional meat? There are also pros and cons to eating lab-grown meat. As scientists continue to improve their methods, they're hoping that lab-grown meat will be cheaper than traditional meat.

The world's first lab-grown burger was created in 2013. And lab-grown meat made its debut in restaurants in 2020; the menu item was priced at $23. However, since this is the future of food production, it is likely still decades away from being adopted by the general public.

Hydroponics

Hydroponics is a method of growing plants in water with nutrients. One of the primary reasons this technique has gained popularity is because it allows people to grow food in places with poor soil conditions, like rocky areas and deserts.

It also uses less water than traditional methods. One of the latest developments in hydroponics involves using LED lights to grow plants indoors, which could give rise to futuristic indoor farms that produce all kinds of foods year-round.

Sustainable Aquaculture

Aquaculture is an agricultural method where aquatic life is farmed or raised. It's the practice of raising fish, shellfish, and other organisms. While it does not involve fishing in the traditional sense, aquaculture still relies on natural bodies of water.

Sustainable aquaculture is of course a better option than overfishing. Sustainable aquaculture operations can be run at a small scale; some even rely on human labor instead of heavy machinery. Reducing energy consumption and pollution is vital for sustainable food production.

Sustainable aquaculture operations are often situated closer to urban centers so that the product doesn't have to travel far to reach its customers. Locally grown foods ensure peak freshness while supporting local farmers and reducing carbon emissions from vehicles such as trucks and trains.

Sustainable aquaculture supports biodiversity by improving the substrate (the material at the bottom of a body of water) and restoring habitat in regions that have been overfished or otherwise damaged by traditional fishing practices.


Sustainable Farming Is the Future of Food Production 

A key component of the future of food production is sustainable farming. We all want to eat quality produce and consume animal products that are responsibly sourced but achieving that requires more than buying organic from Whole Foods.

Food sustainability is also about reducing our carbon footprint, conserving resources, reducing waste, generating renewable energy, and building healthy soil. In other words, sustainable farming is about maximizing the harvest without sacrificing the health or productivity of the land for future generations to come.

Fortunately, today's farmers have an ally in agtech—the Internet of Things (IoT) combined with emerging technologies such as artificial intelligence (AI), robotics, and automation. A growing market sector known as "smart farming" gives hope that we can have our cake and eat it too by growing healthy crops while minimizing negative environmental impact.

In conclusion, technology is changing the agriculture and food industry. From healthier food to a smaller carbon footprint and smarter farming practices, tech innovations can help us create a more sustainable food system for generations to come.


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Sustainable Agriculture
Agriculture Technology

How IoT Contributes to Sustainable Agriculture

Every April 22nd is Earth Day which marks a celebration of our planet, the importance of reducing individual carbon footprints, and keeping human activity ecologically balanced with the environment. While the concept of sustainable agriculture has existed for decades, it has become more relevant as farmers and agribusinesses begin focusing on ways to improve efficiency and optimize production. Here's a look at how IoT is helping pave the way for more sustainable farming.


Rise of Sustainable Agriculture

Plants need fertile soil with a balanced level of minerals and frequent watering for optimal growth. The key for transforming to more efficient farming practices is installing smart sensors in fields to detect crop conditions. This real-time data can alert farmers when cultivation problems occur relating to temperature, humidity, and other environmental factors that affect plant health. By knowing the level of moisture and nutrients already in the ground, farmers can coordinate fieldwork and distribute resources with as little waste as possible. The practice of sustainable agriculture coupled with IoT sensor technology provides solutions that save both time and money.


Issues and Challenges to Feed a Growing Population

Even though the agricultural industry feeds the world, it has also contributed to climate change due to emissions from farm equipment that releases carbon dioxide into the atmosphere. Additional farming activities such as the application of pesticides and distribution of synthetic fertilizers also contributes to man-made nitrous oxide emissions.

Other challenges facing farmers due to climate changes have to do with drought conditions and the creation of heat tolerance crops. One result of research and development for dealing with this issue has produced drought-tolerant corn, which helps minimizes crop losses.


Land Limitations

Only so much land is available for agricultural purposes and what exists must be protected to ensure the soil remains viable and free of contaminants. Smart technology has solutions for both of these issues through the ability to detect the presence of unwanted chemicals in the ground, as well as monitoring for the favorable conditions that lead to improved crop yields.


Digital Evolution of Agriculture

As a fast-growing technological solution, digitization of agriculture is attracting big investors. AgTech startups, for example, raised $4.7 billion in 2019 after a 370 percent growth rate over six years. While this growth might not get much media coverage, it reflects widespread expansion of startups in the agricultural industry aimed at sustainability.


IoT and Sustainable Farming

Smart Irrigation - The use of IoT sensors in crop fields allows for more efficient water distribution, reducing wasted water. Farming equipment manufacturer John Deere has created machine data as a service to supplement its tractors used for irrigation, along with spraying and harvesting.

Drone Assistance - Drones can be used in farming to monitor and gather data on crops from the air. Because farmers have so much land to cover, drones can help alleviate the need for time consuming surveys by foot. Agricultural drones can use advanced image data analytics to identify problems with irrigation, pest infestation, and soil variation.

Greener Greenhouses - Modern greenhouses can be made greener by using solar power and sensors that monitor temperature, humidity, energy, and water consumption. The use of these smart devices will lead to greater conservation of resources in a more eco-friendly manner.

Big Data - At the core of digital transformation is the ability to collect data generated by RFID sensors placed throughout a field. As crops are harvested, irrigation water can be continuously tested with sensors to determine if it is free from E. coli and other contaminants. This tracking may contribute to reducing the number of illnesses caused by foodborne pathogens.


Future of Digitized Agriculture

The use of IoT technology in agriculture will increase as farming embraces smart technology to monitor, protect, and expand crop yields. The implementation of precision agriculture has the ability to positively impact many facets of traditional farming. All over the world, farms will benefit from processes that help reduce waste and preserve resources.


Conclusion

Digital transformation is creating a clear path for sustainable agriculture, which will play an increasingly important role in making food production more efficient with less damage to the environment. The shift towards more data-centric methods with the ability to make adjustments in real-time empowers farmers to revolutionize their methods to be able to do more with less.


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e-agriculture
Agriculture Technology

Why Farms Are Adopting E-Agriculture for Future Improvements

Agriculture is at the forefront of Industry 4.0 transformation. The growing adoption of information and communication technologies (ICTs) in farming is improving cultivation processes, as well as supply chains. It's leading to safer food and greater production efficiency. Here's a deeper look at how e-agriculture is transforming commercial farms.


Reasons for Growth in Smart Agriculture

Making the agriculture industry more efficient is crucial to the global economy, especially in developing countries. Agriculture is one of the economic areas that distinguishes developed countries from developing nations. Making agricultural technology smarter helps rural areas connect better with the broader economy in dealing with suppliers of all sizes. Soil testing and the use of 3D printers can also improve both the quantity and quality of crops.


Understanding the Nature of Smart Farming

The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) defines e-agriculture as an emerging field that mixes agricultural informatics, agricultural development, and entrepreneurship. Data monitoring of these processes through the internet is leading to more operational efficiency.

The tools involved with improving farming processes include telephones, radio equipment, the internet, and satellite communications for weather monitoring and remote sensing. Other elements for achieving efficiency include data storage and analysis tools. This technology can bring together greater awareness for warning farmers about drought and storms. It will provide tools for better risk management and will be especially useful for making quick enhancements that would've been impossible a decade ago.

Key E-Agriculture Benefits

  • Improving farming processes - Switching to smart farming allows farmers to collect, store and analyze data that helps them make daily adjustments to crops or equipment. It will require investing in IoT sensors that track multiple processes.
  • Greater market efficiency - E-agriculture makes rural life easier in the sense it will lower costs for transactions and improve communications within supply chains. It will reduce food waste at various production stages and point farmers toward safer and faster growing techniques.
  • Network sharing -The sharing of agricultural data through supply chains will give partners access to cost-saving intelligence and supply availability. This type of transparency can help increase trust among vendors across the supply chain.
    Better services - Rural farmers will have the opportunity to be more connected with suppliers in real-time, which will help produce more accurate forecasts in the future.
  • More safe and secure food nutrients - Supply chain management will improve with access to comprehensive data analysis that will add traceability and transparency to processing that involves transporting crops to warehouses and retail outlets.


How E-Agriculture Changes Global Farming

Many of the ICT strategies that have emerged over the past few decades started out as a call toward exploring ways to make food more nutritious. It then evolved with concepts about smart technology with the proliferation of smartphones. Mobile devices used for remote monitoring can communicate with vendors throughout a supply chain to improve knowledge about availability of specific products. More and more retailers will use the data to prioritize suppliers and supplies.

However, e-agriculture is about more than just sophisticated technology that will transform farms around the world into more efficient global operations. Smart agriculture will integrate technology with cultural knowledge, which will help farmers on a local level. It will facilitate a new set of improved farming standards and greater ability for agricultural professionals to interact with each other.


Conclusion

The adoption of e-agriculture is already underway in various parts of the world. It will only spread throughout the next decade since it will be a win-win-win for farmers, suppliers, and consumers alike. It will help cut production costs, reduce waste and improve the nutritional value of food. Look for more talk about it in the coming years as part of a larger social plan for a sustainable society.


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5G in Agriculture
Agriculture Technology

How 5G and Smart Farming Will Transform Agriculture and the Environment

Addressing climate issues has become a priority for government, business, and society alike. One of the emerging innovations that helps accelerate solutions toward a cleaner environment is 5G. This new internet networking technology allows for faster data collection and transmission of data through electronic sensors placed strategically in a business operation ecosystem. Here are ways 5G will help agriculture, consumers, and the environment


More Efficient Ways to Manage Population Growth

According to a recent UN Food and Agriculture report, meeting global food demand for a rising population requires increasing crops harvested from farms while reducing the amount of required labor. Faster internet speeds provided by 5G, paired with machine learning software, allow for greater collection of data that can point to system inefficiencies with recommended solutions. Technological changes over the next several decades will accelerate the goal toward a more sustainable society that provides a sufficient amount of food through agriculture.


The Advent of Smart Farming

Smart farming gets its name from IoT technology, in which sensors are placed throughout a farm to measure growing conditions and crop performance. These sensors generate valuable data collection that reveals areas needing immediate attention such as wasteful production.

IoT technology allows farmers to monitor specific agricultural equipment and operational activity, along with weather and other climate conditions. Just like smart infrastructure for utilities, smart farms that run on 5G deliver a wealth of data for farmers to analyze, and this can help them adjust their farming operations in order to improve yields and crop quality.


How 5G Improves Farming

  • 5G farm machinery - In order for 5G in agriculture to help improve farming efficiency, the machinery needs to be connected with IoT sensors. However, much more computing power will be required to run this machinery. Centralized AI is also an essential element, as it can provide instant access to vast amounts of real-time data monitoring operations.
  • Drone spraying - Soon, anonymous battery-powered drone sprayers will help farmers improve cultivation of crops by using the right amount of pesticide for carefully timed durations. Drones will provide aerial photographic views of crops and help farmers identify weeds that need herbicide treatment. Another advantage to drone surveillance is it can identify crop ripeness by color.
  • Weed and crop monitoring - Now that drone cameras can detect differences between crops and weeds, farmers can spray appropriate areas rather than overuse pesticide. John Deere agricultural firm Blue River now uses 5G along with high-resolution cameras that generate 20 images per second. The technology includes AI software that identifies weeds, so it helps farmers apply weedkiller exactly where it's needed instead of blanketing a field with chemicals.
  • Real-time livestock tracking - The AI and 5G combination will be able to locate livestock in real-time through radio monitoring. Ultimately, it will reduce the current costs of livestock monitoring. This technology will also improve the food intake, health, and fertility of cows and other farm animals. Additionally, knowing the precise location of each animal is particularly helpful during calving season.
  • Reduced water consumption - Farms depend on water, but it's still important for farmers to conserve water as much as possible, especially in dry, arid, and remote areas. When Nokia set up a Worldwide IoT Network Grid (WING) to help peach farmers in Algeria improve crop yields, the trial resulted in a 40 percent drop in water consumption as it helped farmers manage irrigation cycles and soil nutrition better. The technology also probes soil conditions to check for moisture which helps ensure less wasteful water consumption


Conclusion

In the next decade, 5G will become more common in agriculture, and particularly for agriculture businesses with large output. The use of IoT-powered sensors and 5G together will provide affordable and environmentally conscious solutions for farmers to run more efficient farming operations. This combination will save energy, which will reduce costs and improve the quality of produce.


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smart agriculture
Agriculture Technology

Smart Agriculture: The Next Agricultural Revolution

The world’s appetite is growing rapidly. To feed nine billion people in 2050, the world will need to produce 70 percent more food than it did in 2006. Farming methods have always evolved with the increasing demand for agricultural products. From simple, handheld farm tools from before the Industrial Revolution, to the mechanized farm equipment and the use of satellites for better monitoring, agriculture has always adapted to produce more at a lower cost. Smart agriculture combined with innovative technology is key to the future of farming.


Precision Agriculture Also Known as Smart Farming

Smart farming (precision agriculture) relies upon real-time date from sensors in the fields combined with images from drones or satellites and predictive analytics software to give farmers guidance regarding crop rotation, optimal planting times, harvesting times and soil management. Monitoring and collecting data for soil moisture, air temperature, air humidity and sunlight intensity across multiple fields can improve water usage and crop yield for small and large farms. Low-cost IoT sensors, data insights and IoT platforms are being introduced to help agriculture improve productivity and lower costs. According to a recent Markets and Markets report, the current Agricultural IoT market size was estimated to reach $7.5B in 2018 and has a CAGR of 12.39% between 2018 and 2023.

But, to feed nine billion people in 2050, agriculture also will need a paradigm shift. A shift from horizontal farming to vertical farming, from growing plants in the soil to growing plants with roots suspended in the air and from using sunlight to using horticultural lighting to grow plants.

Vertical Farming

Vertical farms use the latest technologies (hydroponics, aeroponics, IoT sensors, predictive analytics) and can grow crops in urban areas. Since it is a closed-loop agricultural system, it is a very clean industry that filters dirty air and rainwater during the process. A few of the advantages are:

  • Significantly increased and year-round crop production. An indoor acre is equivalent to four to six outdoor acres or more, depending on the crop. For strawberries, an indoor acre may produce yield equivalent to 30 outdoor acres.
  • Protection from weather-related quality and yield problems as crops will be grown in a controlled environment.
  • A large-scale production of organic crops. Controlled growing conditions will allow a reduction or total abandonment of the use of chemical pesticides.
  • Significant water conservation. Vertical farming technology with hydroponics uses approximately 70 percent less water than normal agriculture. Water usage can be further reduced with aeroponics.

Several indoor farm startups were launched in the past few years. One of these is Bowery based in Kearny, N.J. Bowery is applying machine learning and predictive analytics throughout the crop growth process. With small adjustments to water flow, light intensity, temperature and humidity – while meticulously monitoring the growing process and analyzing a large amount of data – Bowery is taking precision farming to the next level and is able to optimize quality, yield, taste and flavor.

A separate study from Global Market Insights estimates the current vertical farming market size to be $2.5B with a CAGR of 28 percent for the next 5 years.


Horticultural Grow Lighting

The purpose of horticultural lighting is to give the plants the right amount of light, as well as the right spectrum that they need in the different growth stages from germination to harvesting. It is well documented that plants need red light (which starts the photosynthetic process and impacts germination) and blue light (which is essential to control plant size, pigmentation, and, in some cases, taste) but experiments to characterize the benefits of light of a different color (including UV light) at different stages in the plant growth process are still ongoing.

The horticultural lighting market size is estimated to be $2B in 2017 with a CAGR of 20.6 percent for the next five years according to a report from Market and Markets. The market for horticultural LEDs is driven by technology improvement and new construction for indoor farming facilities. Lighting manufacturers started introducing full spectrum tunable and dimmable horticultural LED lighting fixtures. These tunable light sources are designed to support the plant during different stages of the grow cycle, allowing farmers to monitor every known influence on the crop’s well-being. Optimal lighting also has shown to make plants more resilient and therefore better positioned to stave off pests and disease, reducing the need for pesticides or fertilizers.


Smart Cloud-Based Lighting: The Internet of Things

Automating the entire photosynthetic process allows for properly scheduled light cycles, giving full control over the dark and light periods. Cloud-based technology and digital connectivity allow cultivators to manage light schedules, monitor environmental conditions, and document and optimize the growing process from a phone or tablet from wherever they are on the farm.

Smart agriculture is the future. The Internet of Things is the driving force behind increased agricultural production at a lower cost. Agricultural IoT is a fast-growing industry with massive opportunities for engineers looking to bring a smart farming solution or IoT agricultural sensors to the market. IoT Marketing will be attending the IoT Tech Expo 2018 in Santa Clara. Visit us at Booth 569 if you want to learn more about IoT technology, markets and marketing. Talk to us and find out how we can help you launch and grow your business.

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Agriculture IoT
Agriculture Technology

Tomorrow’s Farm: Agriculture IoT

Over the last two centuries, the nature of agriculture has changed drastically. Humanity has gone from small, subsistence farms to sprawling, industrial compounds. This evolution has made providing crops to meet the world’s demands far more efficient. A new wave of agricultural evolution is at hand. With agriculture IoT, farms and farmers stand poised to change crop production in a way that the world has never known. The end results look to change the world forever.


Data-Driven Farms

Agriculture IoT alters the way in which people interact with the food they eat, the clothes they wear, and the cars they drive. Sensors manage and measure crops down to the single plant. Previous generations planned for their farms through weather patterns and intuition rather than accurate, measurable data.

Tomorrow’s farms utilize data from many different sources. Farmers place sensors in their fields to obtain information on topography and resources. These sensors also measure variables such as soil acidity and temperature. Farm equipment such as tractors and plows contain sensors to track crop yields, fertilizer, and pesticide levels. These innovations become widespread and precise, ensuring the highest degree of accuracy.

Given the bevy of sensors and data available, farmers can constantly keep up to date with their crops. Connectivity allows for remote monitoring. Producers keep track of crops and equipment, stats on livestock feeding, and predictive analysis for potential yields. IoT, in an agricultural sense, streamlines the entire operation to ensure the highest efficiency.


Impacts of IoT Farming

There have been huge capital investments made to promote the adoption of IoT in agriculture. Companies, many of them IT giants, spend millions of dollars in the industry. These corporations invest in everything from food startups to weather-data analysis firms. As the industry continues to develop, those influxes of capital continue to grow.

Modern industrial farming offers many improvements with the help of the Internet of Things. The results of these innovations affect people around the world. The ideal result is that hyper-efficient farms become the norm. Moving into the future, that standard is more important than ever.

As more people around the world enter the middle class, efficient production is essential. Booming economic growth in places like China and India means that more people require more resources. As their status improves, people desire the comforts of stability. They eat more meat and wear nicer clothes. These need far more materials and crops. If improving the economic state of others is to continue, efficiency is key.

Managing finite resources ensures the lowest amount of waste in agricultural production. With the ability to track all resource consumption, producers approach a state of full sustainability. Efficiency increases crop yields which can help ease the burdens of food insecurity. Struggling nations can have equal, open access to basic food and clothing. Countries experiencing famine or drought no longer have to suffer as intensely.

Increased transparency comes along with the ability to monitor resource consumption. Today, people are more concerned than ever about where their food comes from. They want food free of harmful pesticides and herbicides. Their food should be sustainable, relying safe, efficient methods. Oversight is possible when agricultural institutions take advantage of the IoT.


Conclusion

Though it may seem surprising, agriculture now stands as an avenue for unbridled innovation. Like the development of industrial farming, agriculture IoT promises to be a monumental shift in human history. Methods and means of production improve to a point where food insecurity and waste become a thing of the past. The effects of climate change and the finite nature of resources challenges farmers. Into today’s world, innovation is more important than ever. Standing at the threshold, tomorrow’s farm offers a promising future for humanity.

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