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Agriculture Innovation: 10 Tech Trends to Watch in 2022

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By Robbie Richards

By 2050, the demand for food will surge 70%, in line with rapid population growth. A UN study found that about 9.9% of the world’s population still goes hungry, so the thought of feeding almost 10 billion mouths is a daunting prospect. With environmental changes hard to predict, we must turn to innovation in agriculture technology.

 Thankfully, the signs so far offer hope.
We don’t have to wait three decades to see how innovative agricultural solutions can influence human life in the future.
Read on to discover innovation and technology in agriculture to watch out for in 2022. We’ll explore technologies that change the way farmers grow, transport, store, and manage their produce.


1. BEE VECTORING TECHNOLOGIES

When it comes to U.S. crop production, honey bees are worth $20 billion. These insects are essential to human survival, so there is increasing innovation in agriculture equipment to help protect bees and maximize their pollination capabilities. BVT uses commercially reared bees to deliver targeted crop controls through pollination, replacing chemical pesticides with an environmentally safe crop protection system.The system doesn’t require spraying water or the use of tractors. Instead, the scientifically designed bumblebee hive allows bees to pick up a trace amount of pest control powders on their legs to spread as they travel within the field. This innovation in agriculture technology supports improved sustainable farming, crop yield, and soil quality. BVT’s solution is suitable for many crops, including blueberries, sunflowers, apples, and tomatoes, and it also works for farms of all sizes.
2. PRECISION AGRICULTURE
Precision agriculture is an agricultural resource management strategy that collects, processes, and evaluates data and offers insights to help farmers optimize and increase soil quality and productivity.Management decisions count on precision agriculture data points to improve farmland and farm produce across several key areas, including:
Resource use efficiency
Sustainability
Profitability
Productivity
Quality
This innovation in agriculture technology uses big data to aid management decisions, enabling farmers to control crop yield variables like moisture level, soil condition, and microclimates to maximize output. It relies on remote sensing systems, drones, robotics, and automation to improve crop health and optimize agricultural resources, leading to more productivity. Grand View Research projects that the global precision farming market will hit $16.35 billion by 2028, growing at a 13.1% CAGR. The organization believes increasing government support and the growing need for efficient crop health monitoring will drive market growth.
3. INDOOR VERTICAL FARMING
The average yield of rice per hectare is between three and six tonnes. However, farmers don’t have to face this limitation when using indoor vertical farming. This Indoor vertical farming grows farm produce stacked above another in a closed and controlled environment. The technology uses growing shelves mounted vertically to increase crop yield in limited spaces. Quite often, the shelves don’t require soil—they’re either hydroponic or aeroponic:
Hydroponics is a gardening practice that grows plants in water and nutrient solutions. 
Aeroponics suspends the roots of the crops in the air, with emitters intermittently spraying them with water and nutrients.
Indoor vertical farms enable growers to control variables such as light, temperature, water, and sometimes, carbon dioxide levels, allowing them to get healthier and bigger yields.Other benefits of the technology include 70% less water usage, which conserves energy, and reduced labor costs due to the use of robots for harvesting and planting.
4. LIVESTOCK FARMING TECHNOLOGY

Emerging livestock technologies provide farmers with data-driven insights, allowing them to streamline farm management, improve animal care, and boost productivity. Here are some of the many innovations redefining livestock farming:
Automated dairy installations milk cows automatically without human intervention, and the milk sensors also help farmers monitor the milk quality.
Automated cleaning systems remove waste, enabling cleaner as disease-free environments.
Armenta’s non-antibiotic treatment uses acoustic pulse technology (APT) for bovine mastitis, a cow disease responsible for over $6 billion annual losses in the U.S. and Europe.
Automated feeder systems provide animals with feeding mixtures tailored to their specific needs and in the right amount.
Faromatics employs robotics, A.I., and big data to increase animal welfare and farm productivity.
5. LASER SCARECROWS
Pesky birds or rodents can be a menace to growing crops in an open field. In the past, farmers relied on traditional scarecrows to ward off hungry invaders. But today, farm owners and managers are turning to high-tech devices with motion sensors to keep birds from pillaging crops.After discovering that birds are sensitive to the color green, a researcher from the University of Rhode Island helped design a laser scarecrow, which projects green laser light. The light isn’t visible by humans in sunlight, but it can shoot 600 feet across a field to startle birds before destroying crops.Early tests with laser scarecrows found that the devices can minimize crop damages by reducing the bird population around farmlands by up to 70% to 90%.
6. FARM AUTOMATION
Farm automation brings together agricultural machinery, computer systems, electronics, chemical sensors, and data management to improve equipment operation and decision-making, and ultimately, reduce human input and error. Reduced labor time, higher yields, and the efficient use of resources are driving the large-scale adoption of the technology. Farmers now use automated harvesters, drones, autonomous tractors, seeding, and weeding to transform how they cultivate their crops. The technology takes care of menial and recurring tasks, allowing them to focus on more critical functions. As with any field (no pun intended), automation can help employees save time, as the technology reduces the need for people to actively partake in a task. Thanks to automation, most farmers now spend more time with their families than before.


7. REAL-TIME KINEMATIC (RTK) TECHNOLOGY

Robert Salmon, a UK-based arable farmer, found that constraining farming machinery to a permanent lane significantly reduced damage to the soil. “Allowing machines unconstrained travel across the land can result in virtually all of the land being run over, which compromises the drainage and friability.” In 2016, Robert planned to transition his 4,800 acres to a 12-meter controlled traffic system where all the farm machines will use the same permanent traffic lane.

Implementing a controlled traffic system requires accurate techniques, which are almost impossible with traditional GPS systems. RTK technology can provide centimeter-level accuracy, which enables farmers to accurately map their fields and constrain vehicles permanently on the same lane. It transmits the correct positioning information to tractors by radio signal, allowing them to stay on track while moving. This innovation boosts soil health and productivity, increasing output with less input.


8. MINICHROMOSOME TECHNOLOGY
According to Agritech Tomorrow, the growing population and demand for food mean that farmers will need to increase crop production by at least 23% to maintain our current living standards. So, losing entire yields to pests is a major problem as the global population grows.

Genetically modified food has taken some flak over recent years, with studies suggesting it may be linked to allergic reactions or include harmful toxins that can expose humans to health risks. Another issue is that G.M. food production can disrupt natural biodiversity or release toxins into the soil.

Luckily, there is hope on the horizon. Agricultural geneticists can apply minichromosome technology to enhance a plant’s traits without altering the genes in any way. Since minichromosomes contain small amounts of genetic material, it’s possible to use this technology to make plants more drought-tolerant or resistant to pests without interfering with the host’s natural development.

In short, minichromosome technology allows genetic engineers to create crops that require fewer pesticides, fungicides, and fertilizers, reducing reliance on harmful chemicals. It also lets them achieve bio-fortification and enhance a plant’s nutritional content.


9. FARM MANAGEMENT SOFTWARE
Many farmers burn the wick at both ends as they struggle to keep on top of a heavy workload with little help. The bigger the farm, the more daunting it is to oversee all operations. But in the age of SaaS, there is an app for just about everything—including farm management. Farm management software is an integrated platform that provides real-time data and information, like a digital checklist, to assist farmers with tracking daily activities. With this monitoring and reporting software, farmers can improve decision-making throughout all operations.

FarmERP, an enterprise resource planning solution, allows farms to streamline their processes and enables seamless collaborations. It lets users manage procurement, supply chain, finances, and processing from a single hub. This innovation in agriculture technology will continue to advance as internet-enabled devices become ubiquitous. Mordor Intelligence predicts the farm management software market will witness a CAGR of 11.2% in the ten years leading to 2026. 


10. WATER MANAGEMENT TECHNOLOGY
Irrigation is a vital method of providing water to drylands that usually have insufficient rainfall in order to make them arable. However, while this is a crucial aspect of farming today, many farmers still irrigate their fields with wasteful amounts of water the same way the Mesopotamians did over 4,000 years ago.

Besides wasting over two-thirds of the water, flood irrigation can overwater plants, affecting their growth. It could also carry excess fertilizers into streams and lakes, contaminating freshwater sources. Innovation and technology in agriculture offer farmers more sustainable ways to provide sufficient water to plants. For instance, N-Drip, a micro drip irrigation system, allows water to slowly drip to plants’ roots, creating the right environment for crops to thrive. The technology reduces water usage by up to 50% and improves crop quality.


FINAL THOUGHTS
In an age where environmental concerns and climate change fears are at an all-time high, sustainable farming is a hotbed issue. Our population is growing, and increasing shortages of land and water pose a significant threat to the longevity of the human race as we know it. But while many politicians stall and deflect, agriculture technology startups are busy taking action.From advancements in precision agriculture to farm automation, genetics, and water management tech, innovations in agriculture technology provide the means of smarter, safer, more productive farming. MassChallenge offers new startups the opportunity to partner with rising talent in the Agtech industry. As you connect with experts, corporations, and communities in the industry, you can pursue the latest trends and agricultural technologies to transform your business and the future of our world.
Culled from Masschallenge.org

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Agriculture

Mrs Soludo Launches Organic Garden Competition in Anambra Secondary Schools

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Wife of the Anambra State Governor, Dr Nonye Soludo, on Saturday launched the organic garden competition in secondary schools in Anambra to encourage children to learn more about food and farming.

Soludo, while addressing Healthy Living Teacher Ambassadors in Awka, said the organic garden competition would help teach children the importance of food and farming and its impact on their lives.

She described organic farming as a process that involved the use of natural food sources and nutrients for farming practices without fertiliser or other chemicals.

“This competition is part of the Healthy Living with Nonye Soludo Campaign to achieve a culture of health consciousness, drive organic agriculture with emphasis on food safety and sustainable living.

“It will help our students learn valuable lessons about where their food comes from, the benefits of eating fresh and healthy foods, and how to care for the environment.

“Vegetable seeds will be distributed to schools and at the end of every term, schools with the three best gardens will be rewarded.

“Our children at a tender age will start to appreciate agriculture as an essential way of life and the need to be part of building solutions that foster healthy foods in the society,” she said.

Also speaking, Dr Afam Obidike, the state’s Commissioner for Health, said the schools garden competition would increase student’s knowledge about the nutritional value of foods.

In her remarks, Prof. Nkechi Ikediugwu, Chairperson, Post Primary Schools Service Commission, said schools in the state would offer Health Living lecture every Wednesday after break to help students learn how to be healthy and grow into healthy adults.

Reports says that the programme featured distribution of okro, carrot, pepper, tomatoes, watermelon and cucumber seeds to the school teachers to begin the process of their school gardens.(NAN)

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Agriculture

Food Inflation: Agric Ministry Receives 2.15m Bags of Fertilisers from CBN

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The Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security has received 2.15 million bags of assorted fertilisers from the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).

Reports says that the assorted fertilisers would be distributed to farmers to curb food inflation in the country as well as boost food production and food security.

Sen. Abubakar Kyari, Minister of Agriculture and Food Security, who spoke at the event on Wednesday in Abuja, expressed gratitude to the President Bola Tinubu and CBN for the gesture.

Kyari assured the CBN Governor,  Mr Olayemi Cardoso, that the inputs would be judiciously used and delivered to the intended farmers.

“Thank you very much; this is more than goodies; 2.

15 million bags of assorted fertilisers; we want to express our profound appreciation on behalf of the Nigerian farmers and President Tinubu.

“Also, we appreciate you, our dear brother, the CBN governor and your team for giving us this wonderful gift.

“I want to assure you that it will be judiciously used and it will be delivered to the last man and intended farmers where they can reap the benefits of this huge gesture.

“They (farmers) can in turn cultivate and produce more that would stem the galloping food inflation that is affecting our country.’’

He said that challenges such as food prices, food cultivation, flooding and climate change among others had impacted on agricultural production in the country, adding that insecurity was on decline.

“l am happy to say that those things I mentioned are on the decline; insecurity is on the decline and we are mitigating against climate change.

“We are sensitising farmers to go into dry season agriculture.’’

Kyari said that there was need to need to boost and repair irrigation infrastructure so as to have all year round farming.

“Which (irrigation) is even more secured than that of the wet season farming,” he said.

Earlier, Cardoso expressed enthusiasm for the visit and presentation which was to address the issue of escalating cost of food in the country.

According to him, food prices are crucial components of inflation.

He said that the CBN aimed to enhance its partnership with the ministry to improve food production.

“This is precisely why we convene today to strengthen our collaboration with the Ministry of Agriculture to mitigate the surge in food prices.

“The gesture is in alignment with our strategic shift towards focusing on our fundamental mandate.

“The CBN has veered away from direct quasi-fiscal interventions and transitioned towards leveraging conventional monetary policy tools for executing monetary policies effectively.

“In this light, we aim to extend our support and foster closer ties with Ministries, Departments, and Agencies (MDAs) with the mandate and expertise to undertake these critical initiatives.

“Consequently, we aim to enhance our partnership with the Ministry of Agriculture, bolstering your endeavours to enhance food productivity and security, ultimately curbing food inflation and fortifying our pursuit of price stability.

“In pursuit of these shared goals, we are delighted to announce the allocation of 2.15 million bags of fertilisers valued at over N100 billion which we humbly hand over to the Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security.

“This contribution from CBN aims to amplify food production capabilities and foster price stabilisation within the agricultural sector,” he said.(NAN)

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Agriculture

Nigeria will Soon Witness Food Sufficiency, Price Reduction – NACGRAB

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The National Centre For Genetic Resources and Biotechnology (NACGRAB), says Nigeria will soon witness sufficiency and price reduction in food commodities.

The NACGRAB Acting Director, Dr Anthony Okere, stated this at the end of a 2023 Technical Working Group (TWG) meeting on Seed For Resilience (SFR) organised by NACGRAB in collaboration with Global Crop Diversity Trust (Crop Trust) in Ibadan.

He said SFR came into existence in 2021 to improve the efficiency of NACGRAB genebank and enhance the use of conserved genepool by farmers and other users of genetic resources in Nigeria.

Okere said the project had exposed the diversity of sorghum, cowpea and other crops to farmers and other users in Nigeria in order to mitigate the effects of climate change and boost farmers’ productivity and ensure food and nutrition security in Nigeria.

He said that the project was successful, based on feedbacks from farmers and other users that the good quality seeds planted this season yielded well in multiples, compared to year 2022.

“Farmers now feeling free to come to NACGRAB genebank to demand more diversity of materials that could help them to get higher production which in turn would lead to food sufficiency and price reduction in Nigeria soon.

“There are availability of quality seeds in NACGRAB genebank that farmers can plant and generate good yield due to success of this project.

” Various farmers can now dwell in more crops instead of one or two crops; this project has made it possible for farmers to plant diversity of quality seeds and generate good yields which in turn will lead to food and nutrition security in Nigeria,” Okere said.

Dr Olabisi Alamu, the Activity Team Leader, User engagement of the project, said that NACGRAB and other stakeholders had been engaging with farmers about the project in the past three years.

Alamu said that farmers in Oyo, Niger and Kano states had been exposed to diversity of seeds of cowpea, sorghum accessions and other seeds conserved in the genebank.

He said that most farmers now had access to the seeds and were now using them to enhance production, increase their yields and income generation.

” In all the three states, we have 49 cluster groups; the Seed for Resilience (SFR) project has impacted over 1,000 farmers over the past three years.

“Some of them have been adopting it as a result of good quality, traits, early maturity varieties, high yields among others,” Alamu said.

The team leader said that some of the farmers had also multiplied the seeds they selected in year 2023 and as well disseminated it to other farmers, to enhance the use of the materials in the genebank.

The Oyo State Chairman of All Farmers Association of Nigeria (AFAN), Mr Abass Adewumi, said the project had exposed them to a lot of things they needed to know and apply on their farms for crops to germinate well.

Adewumi said that the research project had also exposed them to know suitable seeds for planting in certain environment which could give better yields, to maximise profit and shun the old ways of planting seeds. (NAN)

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