Farmers are gradually embracing new technologies and methods to increase profitability, efficiency, and sustainability.

FREMONT, CA: There is an increasing pressure on farmers to optimize productivity and produce more with less. At the same time, reducing environmental impact and improving crop yields also seems to be prioritized. There is an acceleration in technological development within the agricultural industry. Here's what's next for agtech in the years to come, and how emerging technology can affect the bottom lines of farmers and landowners.

Satellite Imaging

Since remote satellite imagery has become more sophisticated, real-time crop imagery is enabled. Crop imaging allows a farmer to inspect crops in real-time. Also, weekly photo analysis can save considerable time and money on a farm. This technology can also be combined with crop, soil, and water sensors to allow farmers to receive notifications along with appropriate satellite images when the thresholds for danger are reached.

Sensor Technology

Soil and water sensors might be the devices with the most immediate effect. Such sensor technology are durable, secure, and relatively inexpensive. Farmers find distributing them across their land cost-effective, and the sensors also provide numerous other benefits, such as measuring levels of moisture and nitrogen. The farmers can use this information to determine schedule watering and fertilizing. This can further lead to more efficient use of resources, thereby reducing costs.

Farming as a Service (FaaS) 

In recent years, subscription and pay-per-use farming services, known as FaaS in the Software as a Service (SaaS) model, have become more popular. FaaS is a good model for farmers and landowners to manage the volatility of ever-changing demand and product prices. By converting fixed upfront costs into variable ongoing costs, FaaS helps farmers and landowners to make data-driven decision-making smarter.   

These are just a few innovative farming practices changing the future of crop production, and agricultural technology has certainly more to offer.

See Also: Top AgTech Startups