Future frontiers in Agtech & Geospatial technologies

As one of the participants and also as a speaker, personally I had a great opportunity to learn about many new technologies and keep myself abreast on the current and future trends particularly in Agtech. An amazing array of avenues in agriculture for the application of geospatial technologies was on showcase at the exhibition. Given below is a summary of key discussions points and some ideas for moving forward.

GeoAgri 2016, Kuala Lumpur witnessed some interesting discussions that enlightened the participants about the growing applications of geospatial technologies in agriculture and plantation sectors and also many questions that need to be answered as the industry is still evolving globally. Overall, GeoAgri 2016 served as a wonderful platform for diverse participants representing the technology developers, private companies managing large plantations (mainly palm oil), senior officials from Government agencies focusing on technology and innovation from different countries in Asia Pacific, certification bodies, representatives from academia and research institutions, civil society organizations, and agri-food industry experts from Asia and across the world to share their perspectives and foster mutual learning. 

Precision propels profits

It was simply amazing to note the level of precision – down to an individual palm tree – and accuracy achieved by the latest technologies. At a time when resource use efficiency, stewardship and environmentally sustainable practices in the supply chains (particularly for palm oil), assume greater importance, precision helps adopt variable rates of application (VAR) to cut down excess and unnecessary application of inputs including irrigation, fertilizer, and chemicals. Treatments can be site-specific or even tree-specific as data from the drones and other UAVs helps accurately pinpoint a site or a tree that needs attention. This high level of precision leads not only to huge savings on input costs and limiting the interventions within the targeted areas but most importantly prevents excess application which impacts non-targeted areas including sensitive or vulnerable spots for biodiversity. Further, owing to judicious application of inputs, environmental issues such as runoffs and leaching of nutrients are avoided to the extent possible. All these not only improve the profitability of the plantations but also ensure sustainable operations. Other examples from Indonesia proved drainage designs can be improved with the use of high-resolution satellite imagery, which boosted yields besides preventing flooding in the plantations. Obviously, these insights can be applied for other crop sectors as well.

Data drive decisions

Investment on latest technologies cannot be justified unless decision support systems can convert massive amounts of raw data into timely, relevant and actionable insights. Further, accuracy and reliability of the data collected will be very critical for taking correct decisions at the right time. However, any improvement in these aspects is going to be continuous and cumulative. Examples from several countries signify growing popularity of on-the-go “mobile-based” systems. Further, improved and accurate surveillance through drones helps take timely decisions on proactive measures for example preventative or prophylactic chemical spraying when initial signs of pest attack or disease infestations show up.

Responsible businesses reap rewards

In the conservation and sustainability aspects, the potential is rather enormous. For example, geospatial technologies were demonstrated to have helped accurately measure, map and track forest areas and help in efficient land use planning, administration and management of natural resources in South East Asia.

Several plantations particularly, palm oil in Malaysia and Indonesia widely use these technologies as a critical component of their commitment to sustainable production specifically, deforestation.

Enhanced Occupational Safety and workers’ welfare

Application of geospatial technologies combined with robotics and automation offers huge opportunities to limit or completely eliminate human labour involvement in agronomic operations in the plantations thereby preventing human

error such as exposure to hazardous chemicals, indiscriminate or misuse besides avoiding unexpected or accidental release of contaminants or pollutants in the environment including waterways. Use of drones and UAVs is of great utility particularly in terrains that are unsafe (e.g. during heavy downpour) or inaccessible for the labourers.

Enabling policies and regulations: Still evolving

As the industry is still in its nascent stages, newer applications are evolving day by day posing challenges for the governments and policymakers in terms of regulating this growing sector. Particularly, Asia is just waking up to the use of geospatial applications but catching up fast in terms of their applications in agriculture with the developed world. Though existing policies and regulatory frameworks (for example, licenses and permits for using UAVs or drones etc) in the developed countries can serve as references, the agri-food landscape in Asia is very different. Hence, it is important to understand the local situation perhaps in each country and crop sector in the process of making scientifically sound, evidence-based and unbiased policies and regulations.

“One Voice” to earn the industry’s LTO (License to Operate)

Gone are the days when policies are made in the highest echelons of governments with very limited or no participation from the public and other stakeholders. But in today’s interconnected world, policy making process is heavily influenced by public perception.

This growing industry certainly has lots of significant avenues and opportunities to show case its contribution towards promoting environmental sustainability through improving precision and minimizing impacts on non-target organisms, ecological benefits including biodiversity conservation, while saving costs and improving profitability of the users. But learnings from other sectors (e.g. Agbiotech, Agrochemicals, Nuclear energy) suggest that the industry needs to earn its “License to Operate” to avoid burdensome regulations or policies that instead of being proactive, may cripple its growth. But before that it needs to have “One voice” to better articulate its immense positive contributions to the farming industry, communities, national economies and also feeding the world sustainably to shape public perception which in turn will influence the policymaking process.

Scale-neutral technologies for Smallholders

There are understandably important concerns about practical utility and arguments on affordability of these technologies in Asia where small and marginal farmers dominate (close to 450 million small holdings). Further questions were raised about the prospects, suitability and scope for adoption of these technologies beyond plantations in other small-holders dominated crop sectors such as vegetables. Since these technologies essentially require significant initial investments and supportive infrastructure such as farm machinery and other equipment, the extent of adoption and applicability in smallholder farms in Asia and elsewhere in the world remain debatable. Unlike in the West, small and marginal farmers of the developing countries certainly need greater support through impactful extension methods in order for them to understand the significance and applicability of these hi-tech advancements.

When farmers join hands and transform themselves into a producer community, cooperative, collective farms and/or producer organizations, they can take full advantage of these advanced technologies. Recently several Asian countries started promoting producer companies through appropriate policy amendments related to land leasing and tenancy to help smallholders consolidate to leverage economies of scale. Learnings from Bangladesh proved though the geospatial data available was for the entire river system in the delta region, individual farmers receive alerts on their mobiles when they need to irrigate their crops contributing to conserving precious freshwater.

Enhancing input-use efficiency for smallholdersFrom the above example, it is evident that these technologies pave way for significant improvements in efficiency of input-use, results in huge cost savings on inputs and precious resources (e.g. water); manage risks (e.g. weather, price and market) better; improve yields, food quality and ultimately profitability of smallholder farmers.

It is paramount to note mapping of soil, landscape and crops serve as the basis for all improvements that can happen on the farms. Further, accurate yield mapping for strategically important crops on a provincial level or country level can help the Governments improve accuracy of production forecasts and ensure sufficient availability of food stocks. This is particularly most important in Asia and Africa where many countries are still vulnerable to any shock in production, supply and price shocks of key food commodities.

Nurturing talent for a tech-driven tomorrow

As the global food system is getting transformed quickly, talent scarcity in agriculture has become a gargantuan challenge.

While it is important to train the present day farmers on the use of these technologies, younger generation who will eventually become future farmers (aka Young MacDonalds), policy makers, agricultural researchers, teachers, technicians, entrepreneurs or agribusiness professionals need to be nurtured and groomed for a tougher tomorrow. Governments, universities, private sector and the civil society organizations must join hands to enhance the knowledge and skills to use technologies through hands-on trainings to the farmers and other stakeholders.

Asia: Here and Now

Though Asia is one of the fast growing regions to power the world’s economic growth in the next decade, it still remains highly vulnerable in the context of food insecurity.

These technologies help improve disaster management and emergency humanitarian response particularly during natural calamities to help countries and vulnerable communities improve their resilience and recuperation. Governments, civil societies, regulators and policy makers can rely on these technologies to make evidence-based, science-backed, and data-driven decisions; analyze past trends accurately to help future forecasts better and more reliable; drive developmental interventions more efficiently; improve efficiency of delivering targeted programs or support measures including provision of subsidies and other assistance. For example, accurate estimation of extent of drought or flood affected geographical areas and crop damages can be possible through geospatial technologies. Accordingly, relief measures and insurance coverage can be targeted at the critically affected areas and stakeholders on priority.

Way forward

With the advent of more technologies including GIS, GPS, GNSS and LIDAR, farming has undergone greater transformation. Precision farming, improved input use efficiency, adopting sustainable practices that minimize farming’s ecological footprint, better crop and yield and soil mapping, better and accurate weather forecasting (such as drought) to improve responsiveness and the list of potential applications of geospatial technologies is getting only longer. These are essential components in transforming the food value chain but cannot yield holistic benefits without other key elements that are necessary such as an appropriate regulatory framework to tackle issues including privacy, and a conducive policy environment that fosters innovation.

Use of any technology will remain futile when not used in sync with other branches of sciences such as agronomy, genetics, post-harvest practices, storage, transportation, marketing and distribution. Hence, before proclaiming these technologies as silver-bullets to solve all the issues related to food insecurity or disaster management, one needs to understand some of the underlying rationale of the whole argument of using geospatial technologies.

The whole food value chain and the entities involved therein have just woken up to the sea of opportunities and benefits these technologies can offer as showcased in the GeoAgri 2016, Kuala Lumpur.

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