tag:theconversation.com,2011:/us/topics/precision-agriculture-15446/articlesPrecision agriculture – The Conversation2023-11-29T13:39:07Ztag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2132102023-11-29T13:39:07Z2023-11-29T13:39:07Z3 ways AI can help farmers tackle the challenges of modern agriculture<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/560543/original/file-20231120-21-t0o5ng.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C0%2C3286%2C2189&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Farming today is as much about data as hardware.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://newsroom.ap.org/detail/SoybeanPlanting/e00d9f234ea143488571871fb2ff4bb5/photo">AP Photo/Nati Harnik</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>For all the attention on flashy new artificial intelligence tools like ChatGPT, the challenges of regulating AI, and doomsday scenarios of superintelligent machines, AI is a useful tool in many fields. In fact, it has enormous potential to benefit humanity. </p>
<p>In agriculture, farmers are increasingly using AI-powered tools to tackle challenges that threaten human health, the environment and food security. Researchers forecast the market for these tools <a href="https://finance.yahoo.com/news/artificial-intelligence-ai-agriculture-market-111600303.html">to reach US$12 billion by 2032</a>.</p>
<p>As a researcher <a href="https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=EtTFUl8AAAAJ&hl=en">studying agricultural and rural policy</a>, I see three promising developments in agricultural AI: federated learning, pest and disease detection and forecasting prices. </p>
<h2>Pooling data without sharing it</h2>
<p>Robotics, sensors and information technology are increasingly used in agriculture. These tools aim to help farmers improve efficiency and reduce chemical use. In addition, data collected by these tools can be used in software that uses machine learning to improve management systems and decision-making. However, these applications typically require data sharing among stakeholders. </p>
<p>A survey of U.S. farmers found that more than half of respondents said they <a href="https://www.trustinfood.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/05/Farmer-Data-Perspectives-Research_final.pdf">do not trust federal agencies or private companies with their data</a>. This lack of trust is linked to concerns about sensitive information becoming compromised or being used to <a href="https://doi.org/10.1080/23299460.2022.2071668">manipulate markets and regulations</a>. Machine learning could reduce these concerns. </p>
<p>Federated learning is a technique that trains a machine learning algorithm on data from multiple parties <a href="https://research.ibm.com/blog/what-is-federated-learning">without the parties having to reveal their data to each other</a>. With federated learning, a farmer puts data on a local computer that the algorithm can access rather than sharing the data on a central server. This method <a href="https://ts2.space/en/the-use-of-federated-learning-in-smart-agriculture-and-farming/">increases privacy and reduces the risk of compromise</a>.</p>
<p>If farmers can be persuaded to share their data this way, they can contribute to a collaborative system that helps them make better decisions and meet their sustainability goals. For example, farmers could pool data about conditions for their chickpea crops, and a model trained on all of their data could give each of them <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.atech.2023.100277">better forecasts for their chickpea yields</a> than models trained only on their own data.</p>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/DjHGG7eQevY?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
<figcaption><span class="caption">An AI-driven giant robot armed with lasers is a major threat – to weeds.</span></figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Detecting pests and disease</h2>
<p>Farmer livelihoods and global food security are increasingly at risk from plant disease and pests. The Food and Agriculture Organization estimates that worldwide annual losses from disease and pests <a href="https://www.fao.org/news/story/en/item/1402920/icode/">total $290 billion, with 40% of global crop production affected</a>.</p>
<p>Farmers typically spray crops with chemicals to preempt outbreaks. However, the overuse of these chemicals is linked to harmful effects on <a href="https://doi.org/10.2478%2Fv10102-009-0001-7">human health, soil and water quality and biodiversity</a>. Worryingly, many pathogens are <a href="https://www.chemistryworld.com/features/the-growing-problem-of-pesticide-resistance/4013465.article">becoming resistant to existing treatments</a>, and developing new ones is proving to be difficult. </p>
<p>Reducing the amount of chemicals used is therefore paramount, and AI may be part of a solution. </p>
<p>The Consortium of International Agricultural Research Centers has created <a href="https://www.cgiar.org/innovations/tumaini-an-ai-powered-mobile-app-for-pests-and-diseases/">a mobile phone app that identifies pests and disease</a>. The app, “Tumaini,” allows users to upload a photo of a suspected pest or disease, which the AI compares with a database of 50,000 images. The app also provides analysis and can recommend treatment programs. </p>
<p>If used with farm management tools, apps like this can improve farmers’ ability to target their spraying and improve accuracy in deciding how much chemical to use. Ultimately, these efficiencies may reduce pesticide use, lessen the risk of resistance and prevent spillovers that cause harm to both humans and the environment. </p>
<h2>Crystal ball for prices</h2>
<p>Market volatility and fluctuating prices affect how farmers invest and decide what to grow. This uncertainty can also <a href="https://www.oecd.org/agriculture/topics/risk-management-and-resilience/">prevent farmers from taking risks on new developments</a>.</p>
<p>AI can help reduce this uncertainty by <a href="https://doi.org/10.3390/agriculture13091671">forecasting prices</a>. For example, services from companies such as <a href="https://www.agtechtools.com/">Agtools</a>, <a href="https://www.agremo.com/">Agremo</a> and <a href="https://geopard.tech/">GeoPard</a> provide AI-powered farm decision tools. These tools allow for real-time analysis of price points and market data and present farmers with data on long-term trends that can help optimize production.</p>
<p>This data allows farmers to react to price changes and allows them to plan more strategically. If farmers’ economic resilience improves, it increases the likelihood that they can invest in new opportunities and technologies that benefit both farms and the larger food system. </p>
<h2>AI for good</h2>
<p>Human innovation has always produced winners and losers. The dangers of AI are apparent, including <a href="https://theconversation.com/eliminating-bias-in-ai-may-be-impossible-a-computer-scientist-explains-how-to-tame-it-instead-208611">biased algorithms</a>, <a href="https://theconversation.com/ftc-probe-of-openai-consumer-protection-is-the-opening-salvo-of-us-ai-regulation-209821">data privacy violations</a> and the <a href="https://theconversation.com/how-ai-could-take-over-elections-and-undermine-democracy-206051">manipulation of human behavior</a>. However, it is also a technology that has the potential to solve many problems. </p>
<p>These uses for AI in agriculture are a cause for optimism among farmers. If the agriculture industry can promote the utility of these inventions while developing strong and sensible frameworks <a href="https://doi.org/10.3389/frai.2022.884192">to minimize harms</a>, AI can help reduce modern agriculture’s impact on human health and the environment while helping improve global food security in the 21st century.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/213210/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Joe Hollis does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>AI is exciting and scary, but it’s also a very useful tool. Here’s how AI is helping farmers shore up their bottom lines, protect the environment and boost food security.Joe Hollis, PhD student in Rural Sociology and Sustainable Agriculture, Iowa State UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1818302022-08-11T12:13:39Z2022-08-11T12:13:39ZFarmers can save water with wireless technologies, but there are challenges – like transmitting data through mud<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/478568/original/file-20220810-12-v7tt1o.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C0%2C5300%2C3520&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Wireless sensors and data systems can help farmers use water much more efficiently by monitoring soil conditions.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.ie/detail/news-photo/pivot-irrigation-sprinkler-hanover-virginia-september-20-news-photo/623544064">Lance Cheung/USDA via Smith Collection/Gado/Getty Images</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Water is the most essential resource for life, for both humans and the crops we consume. Around the world, agriculture accounts for <a href="https://blogs.worldbank.org/opendata/chart-globally-70-freshwater-used-agriculture">70% of all freshwater use</a>.</p>
<p>I study <a href="https://www.google.com/search?kgmid=/g/11gr6_nlm6">computers and information technology</a> in the Purdue Polytechnic Institute and direct Purdue’s <a href="https://polytechnic.purdue.edu/facilities/environmental-networking-technology-laboratory">Environmental Networking Technology (ENT) Laboratory</a>, where we tackle sustainability and environmental challenges with interdisciplinary research into the <a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-35291-2_3">Agricultural Internet of Things</a>, or Ag-IoT. </p>
<p>The <a href="https://www.ibm.com/blogs/internet-of-things/what-is-the-iot/">Internet of Things</a> is a network of objects equipped with sensors so they can receive and transmit data via the internet. Examples include wearable fitness devices, smart home thermostats and self-driving cars. </p>
<p>In agriculture, it involves technologies such as wireless underground communications, subsurface sensing and antennas in soil. These systems help farmers track conditions on their land in real time, and apply water and other inputs such as fertilizer exactly when and where they are needed.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/460161/original/file-20220427-24-m731go.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="White sticks embedded in soil among corn stalks" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/460161/original/file-20220427-24-m731go.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/460161/original/file-20220427-24-m731go.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=423&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/460161/original/file-20220427-24-m731go.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=423&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/460161/original/file-20220427-24-m731go.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=423&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/460161/original/file-20220427-24-m731go.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=532&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/460161/original/file-20220427-24-m731go.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=532&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/460161/original/file-20220427-24-m731go.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=532&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Sensors installed in a corn field.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Abdul Salam</span>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nd/4.0/">CC BY-ND</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>In particular, <a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-50861-6_11">monitoring conditions in the soil</a> has great promise for helping farmers use water more efficiently. Sensors can now be wirelessly integrated into irrigation systems to provide real-time awareness of soil moisture levels. Studies suggest that this strategy can reduce water demand for irrigation by anywhere from <a href="https://doi.org/10.1007/s40003-021-00604-5">20%</a> to <a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.1109/WF-IoT.2015.7389138">72%</a> without hampering daily operations on crop fields. </p>
<h2>What is the Agricultural Internet of Things?</h2>
<p>Even in dry places such as the Middle East and North Africa, farming is possible with efficient water management. But extreme weather events driven by climate change are making that harder. <a href="https://www.ers.usda.gov/newsroom/trending-topics/drought-in-the-western-united-states/">Recurrent droughts in the western U.S.</a> over the past 20 years, along with other disasters like wildfires, have caused <a href="https://brownfieldagnews.com/news/drought-and-wildfire-the-costliest-disasters-for-crop-farmers-in-2021/">billions of dollars in crop losses</a>.</p>
<p>Water experts have measured soil moisture to inform water management and irrigation decisions for decades. Automated technologies have largely replaced hand-held soil moisture tools because it is hard to take manual soil moisture readings in production fields in remote locations. </p>
<p>In the past decade, wireless data harvesting technologies have begun to provide real-time access to soil moisture data, which makes for better water management decisions. These technologies could also have many advanced IoT applications in public safety, urban infrastructure monitoring and food safety. </p>
<p>The Agricultural Internet of Things is a network of <a href="https://docs.lib.purdue.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1014&context=cit_articles">radios, antennas and sensors</a> that gather real-time crop and soil information in the field. To facilitate data collection, these sensors and antennas are <a href="https://doi.org/10.3390/s16122096">interconnected</a> wirelessly with farm equipment. The Ag-IoT is a complete framework that can detect conditions on farmland, suggest actions in response and send commands to farm machinery.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/478601/original/file-20220810-24-uwqksn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="Graphic showing satellites, drones, wireless underground communications systems and other digital components collecting and sharing signals around a farm" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/478601/original/file-20220810-24-uwqksn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/478601/original/file-20220810-24-uwqksn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=368&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/478601/original/file-20220810-24-uwqksn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=368&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/478601/original/file-20220810-24-uwqksn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=368&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/478601/original/file-20220810-24-uwqksn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=462&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/478601/original/file-20220810-24-uwqksn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=462&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/478601/original/file-20220810-24-uwqksn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=462&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Technologies that together comprise the Agricultural Internet of Things.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Abdul Salam/Purdue University</span>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nd/4.0/">CC BY-ND</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Interconnecting devices such as soil moisture and temperature sensors in the field makes it possible to <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.adhoc.2018.07.017">control irrigation systems and conserve water autonomously</a>. The system can schedule irrigation, <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.biosystemseng.2019.12.013">monitor environmental conditions</a> and control farm machines, such as seed planters and fertilizer applicators. Other applications include <a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.3934/mbe.2019273">estimating soil nutrient levels</a> and <a href="https://doi.org/10.1094/PDIS.2002.86.4.336">identifying pests</a>.</p>
<h2>The challenges of putting networks underground</h2>
<p>Wireless data collection has the potential to help farmers use water much more efficiently, but putting these components in the ground creates challenges. For example, at the Purdue ENT Lab, we have found that when the antennas that transmit sensor data are buried in soil, their operating characteristics change drastically depending on how moist the soil is. My new book, “<a href="https://link.springer.com/book/10.1007/978-3-030-50861-6">Signals in the Soil</a>,” explains how this happens. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/460334/original/file-20220428-9923-mehb2j.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="A scientist stands next to a wood-framed test bed containing equipment embedded in soil" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/460334/original/file-20220428-9923-mehb2j.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/460334/original/file-20220428-9923-mehb2j.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=449&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/460334/original/file-20220428-9923-mehb2j.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=449&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/460334/original/file-20220428-9923-mehb2j.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=449&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/460334/original/file-20220428-9923-mehb2j.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=565&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/460334/original/file-20220428-9923-mehb2j.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=565&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/460334/original/file-20220428-9923-mehb2j.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=565&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Abdul Salam takes measurements in a test bed at Purdue University to determine the optimum operating frequency for underground antennas.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Abdul Salam</span>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nd/4.0/">CC BY-ND</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Farmers use heavy equipment in fields, so antennas must be buried deep enough to avoid damage. As soil becomes wet, the moisture affects communication between the sensor network and the <a href="https://doi.org/10.3390/jsan7040047">control system</a>. Water in the soil absorbs signal energy, which weakens the signals that the system sends. Denser soil also blocks signal transmission. </p>
<p>We have developed <a href="https://docs.lib.purdue.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1005&context=cit_articles">a theoretical model and an antenna</a> that reduces the soil’s impact on underground communications by changing the operation frequency and system bandwidth. With this antenna, sensors placed in top layers of soil can provide real-time soil condition information to irrigation systems at <a href="https://docs.lib.purdue.edu/cit_articles/36/">distances up to 650 feet (200 meters)</a> – longer than two football fields. </p>
<p>Another solution I have developed for improving wireless communication in soil is to use <a href="https://docs.lib.purdue.edu/cit_articles/43/">directional antennas</a> to focus signal energy in a desired direction. Antennas that direct energy toward air can also be used for long-range wireless underground communications. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/460463/original/file-20220429-26112-lm4nw2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="Two metal radios on the ground" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/460463/original/file-20220429-26112-lm4nw2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/460463/original/file-20220429-26112-lm4nw2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/460463/original/file-20220429-26112-lm4nw2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/460463/original/file-20220429-26112-lm4nw2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/460463/original/file-20220429-26112-lm4nw2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/460463/original/file-20220429-26112-lm4nw2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/460463/original/file-20220429-26112-lm4nw2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Using software-defined radios to detect soil measurement signals. These radios can adjust their operating frequencies in response to soil moisture changes. In actual operation, the radios are buried in the soil.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Abdul Salam</span>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nd/4.0/">CC BY-ND</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>What’s next for the Ag-IoT</h2>
<p>Cybersecurity is becoming increasingly important for the Ag-IoT as it matures. Networks on farms <a href="https://theconversation.com/rise-of-precision-agriculture-exposes-food-system-to-new-threats-187589">need advanced security systems</a> to protect the information that they transfer. There’s also a need for solutions that enable researchers and agricultural extension agents to merge information from multiple farms. Aggregating data this way will produce more accurate decisions about issues like water use, while preserving growers’ privacy. </p>
<p>These networks also need to adapt to changing local conditions, such as temperature, rainfall and wind. Seasonal changes and crop growth cycles can temporarily alter operating conditions for Ag-IoT equipment. By using cloud computing and machine learning, scientists can help the Ag-IoT respond to shifts in the environment around it.</p>
<p>Finally, lack of high-speed internet access is <a href="https://www.theregreview.org/2022/07/09/saturday-seminar-regulating-the-digital-divide/">still an issue in many rural communities</a>. For example, many researchers have integrated wireless underground sensors with Ag-IoT in <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2bILpvH3EuQ">center pivot irrigation systems</a>, but farmers without high-speed internet access can’t install this kind of technology. </p>
<p>Integrating satellite-based network connectivity with the Ag-IoT can assist nonconnected farms where <a href="https://www.ntia.doc.gov/report/2019/american-broadband-initiative-milestones-report">broadband connectivity is still unavailable</a>. Researchers are also developing vehicle-mounted and mobile Ag-IoT platforms that use drones. Systems like these can provide continuous connectivity in the field, making digital technologies accessible for more farmers in more places.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/181830/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Abdul Salam does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>The Agricultural Internet of Things is making farming more efficient. An information technology expert describes some of the challenges of working with sensors and antennas underground.Abdul Salam, Assistant Professor of Computer and Information Technology, Purdue UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1875892022-08-08T12:21:01Z2022-08-08T12:21:01ZRise of precision agriculture exposes food system to new threats<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/477469/original/file-20220803-13-8yd7pe.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C4%2C3224%2C2234&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Agriculture is becoming increasingly dependent on technology.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/usdagov/50238208213">U.S. Department of Agriculture Photo by Lance Cheung</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Farmers are <a href="https://ag.purdue.edu/commercialag/home/sub-articles/2021/03/adoption-of-precision-agriculture-technologies/">adopting precision agriculture</a>, using data collected by GPS, satellite imagery, internet-connected sensors and other technologies to farm more efficiently. While these practices could help increase crop yields and reduce costs, the technology behind the practices is creating opportunities for extremists, terrorists and adversarial governments to attack farming machinery, with the aim of disrupting food production.</p>
<p>Food producers around the world have been under increasing pressure, a problem <a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/news/world/russia-ukraine-war-grain-blockade-global-food-crisis-rcna25910">exacerbated by the war in Ukraine</a> and rising fuel and fertilizer costs. Farmers are trying to produce more food but with fewer resources, pushing the food production system <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2021/12/15/global-food-crisis-pandemic/">toward its breaking point</a>.</p>
<p>In this environment, it’s understandable that many U.S. farmers are <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.gfs.2016.07.005">turning to modern information technologies</a> to support decision-making and operations in managing crop production. These precision agriculture practices lead to more efficient use of land, water, fuel, fertilizer and pesticides so that farmers can grow more, reduce costs and <a href="https://www.ars.usda.gov/oc/utm/benefits-and-evolution-of-precision-agriculture/">minimize their impact on the environment</a>. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/477746/original/file-20220804-5517-5r07f2.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="rows of plants growing out of black plastic bags, some with metal poles and wires holding white plastic devices attached to the plants" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/477746/original/file-20220804-5517-5r07f2.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/477746/original/file-20220804-5517-5r07f2.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=407&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/477746/original/file-20220804-5517-5r07f2.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=407&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/477746/original/file-20220804-5517-5r07f2.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=407&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/477746/original/file-20220804-5517-5r07f2.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=511&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/477746/original/file-20220804-5517-5r07f2.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=511&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/477746/original/file-20220804-5517-5r07f2.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=511&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Precision agriculture can include sensors that monitor crops, such as these avocado plants.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Avocado_plant_monitoring_Precision_Agriculture.png">Simple loquat/Wikimedia</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>As researchers in <a href="https://scholar.google.com/citations?hl=en&user=_VNMFmgAAAAJ&view_op=list_works&sortby=pubdate">cybersecurity</a> and <a href="https://scholar.google.com/citations?hl=en&user=CH2XK2wAAAAJ&view_op=list_works&sortby=pubdate">national security</a> at the <a href="https://www.unomaha.edu/ncite/index.php">National Counterterrorism Innovation, Technology, and Education Center</a>, we see cause for concern. The advent of precision farming comes at a time of significant upheaval in the global supply chain and as the number of foreign and domestic hackers with the ability to <a href="https://www.govtech.com/security/agriculture-industry-on-alert-after-string-of-cyber-attacks">exploit this technology</a> continues to grow.</p>
<h2>New opportunities for exploitation</h2>
<p>Cyberattacks against agricultural targets are not some far-off threat; they are already happening. For example, in 2021 a ransomware attack forced a fifth of the beef processing plants in the U.S. to shut down, with one company paying nearly $11 million to cybercriminals. REvil, a Russia-based group, <a href="https://investigatemidwest.org/2021/10/13/fbi-says-ransomware-attacks-on-food-and-agriculture-industry-are-increasing/">claimed responsibility for the attack</a>. </p>
<p>Similarly, a grain storage cooperative in Iowa was targeted by a Russian-speaking group called BlackMatter, who claimed that they had <a href="https://www.reuters.com/technology/iowa-farm-services-company-reports-cybersecurity-incident-2021-09-20/">stolen data from the cooperative</a>. While previous attacks have targeted larger companies and cooperatives and aimed to extort the victims for money, individual farms could be at risk, too.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/477748/original/file-20220804-23-ffc4lt.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="three squat cylindrical structures with conical tops connected by a pipe stand in a row perpendicular to a cluster of narrower, taller vertical cylindrical structures topped by a catwalk" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/477748/original/file-20220804-23-ffc4lt.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/477748/original/file-20220804-23-ffc4lt.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=392&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/477748/original/file-20220804-23-ffc4lt.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=392&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/477748/original/file-20220804-23-ffc4lt.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=392&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/477748/original/file-20220804-23-ffc4lt.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=493&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/477748/original/file-20220804-23-ffc4lt.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=493&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/477748/original/file-20220804-23-ffc4lt.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=493&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">This grain storage facility is run by New Cooperative, a farm cooperative in Iowa that was hit by a ransomware attack in 2021.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:NEW_Cooperative_facility_Knierim_Iowa_20211104.jpg">Jstuby/Wikimedia</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>The integration of technologies into farm equipment, from GPS-guided tractors to artificial intelligence, potentially increases the ability of hackers to attack this equipment. And though farmers might not be ideal targets for ransomware attacks, farms could be tempting targets for hackers with other motives, including terrorists.</p>
<p>For example, an attacker could look to exploit vulnerabilities within fertilizer application technologies, which could result in a farmer unwittingly applying too much or too little nitrogen fertilizer to a particular crop. A farmer could then end up with either a below-expected harvest, or a field that has been over fertilized, resulting in waste and long-term environmental ramifications.</p>
<h2>Slow to appreciate the threat</h2>
<p>Disruption to sensitive industries and infrastructure gives attackers higher returns for their efforts. This means that the increasing stress on the global food supply raises the stakes and creates a stronger motivation to disrupt the U.S. agriculture sector.</p>
<p>Unlike other critical industries such as <a href="https://www.aba.com/banking-topics/technology/cybersecurity">finance</a> and <a href="https://doi.org/10.3233/THC-161263">health care</a>, the farming industry has been slow to recognize cybersecurity risks and take steps to mitigate them. There are several possible reasons for this sluggishness. </p>
<p>One is that many farmers and agricultural providers haven’t viewed cybersecurity as a significant enough problem compared with other risks they face such as floods, fires and hail. A 2018 Department of Homeland Security <a href="https://www.cisa.gov/uscert/ncas/current-activity/2018/10/03/Cybersecurity-Threats-Precision-Agriculture">report</a> that surveyed precision agriculture farmers throughout the U.S. found that many did not fully understand the cyberthreats introduced by precision agriculture, nor did they take these cyber-risks seriously enough.</p>
<p>This lack of preparedness leads to another reason: limited oversight and regulation from government. In 2010, the U.S. Department of Agriculture classified cybersecurity as a low priority. <a href="https://isalliance.org/sectors/agriculture/">While this classification was upgraded in 2015</a>, the farming sector is likely to be playing catch-up for years. While other critical infrastructure industries have developed and published numerous <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.diin.2017.07.006">countermeasures</a> and <a href="https://www.pcisecuritystandards.org/document_library/?category=pcidss&document=pci_dss">best practices</a> for cybersecurity, the same cannot be said for the farming sector. </p>
<p>The Biden administration has indicated that it is willing to <a href="https://www.wsj.com/video/events/agriculture-secretary-tom-vilsack-on-food-farming-and-climate-change/3D9C4481-4197-4672-B263-D0483DC007E3.html">help farmers take steps to protect their cyber infrastructure</a>, but as of this writing it has not released public guidelines to assist with this effort. </p>
<h2>All-hands approach</h2>
<p>In addition to the pressing need for policy guidance and resources from federal, state and local governments to prevent this type of cyberattack, there is room for academia and industry to step up. </p>
<p>From an academic research perspective, multidisciplinary efforts that bring together researchers from precision agriculture, robotics, cybersecurity and political science can help identify potential solutions. To this end, we and researchers at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln have launched the <a href="https://www.unomaha.edu/news/2022/06/grispos-cybersecurity-testbed.php">Security Testbed for Agricultural Vehicles and Environments</a>. </p>
<p>Farming equipment manufacturers and other industry organizations can help by designing and engineering equipment to account for cybersecurity considerations. This would lead to the manufacture of farming equipment that not only maximizes food production yields but also minimizes exposure to cyberattacks.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/187589/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Austin C. Doctor receives funding from the Department of Homeland Security. </span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>George Grispos does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Bringing advanced technologies to the ancient practice of farming could help feed the world’s growing population, but it could also open the door for people looking to disrupt the global food system.George Grispos, Assistant Professor of Cybersecurity, University of Nebraska OmahaAustin C. Doctor, Assistant Professor of Political Science, University of Nebraska OmahaLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1690782021-11-03T12:29:54Z2021-11-03T12:29:54ZUnlike the US, Europe is setting ambitious targets for producing more organic food<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/429622/original/file-20211101-19-1mjepl0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C19%2C4252%2C2488&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">An organic food market in Berlin.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/germany-berlin-prenzlauer-berg-organic-food-shop-lpg-news-photo/548153731">Schöning/ullstein bild via Getty Images</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>President Joe Biden has called for an <a href="https://theconversation.com/biden-plans-to-fight-climate-change-in-a-way-no-u-s-president-has-done-before-152419">all-of-government response</a> to climate change that looks for solutions and opportunities in every sector of the U.S. economy. That includes agriculture, which emits <a href="https://cfpub.epa.gov/ghgdata/inventoryexplorer/#agriculture/entiresector/allgas/select/all">over 600 million metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalent every year</a> – more than the total national emissions of the <a href="https://stats.oecd.org/Index.aspx?DataSetCode=AIR_GHG">United Kingdom, Australia, France or Italy</a>.</p>
<p>Recent polls show that a majority of Americans are concerned about climate change and willing to <a href="https://theconversation.com/pews-new-global-survey-of-climate-change-attitudes-finds-promising-trends-but-deep-divides-167847">make lifestyle changes to address it</a>. Other surveys show that many U.S. consumers are worried about possible health risks of eating food produced with <a href="https://www.pewresearch.org/science/2018/11/19/public-perspectives-on-food-risks/">pesticides, antibiotics and hormones</a>.</p>
<p>One way to address all of these concerns is to expand organic agriculture. Organic production generates <a href="https://rodaleinstitute.org/wp-content/uploads/fst-30-year-report.pdf">fewer greenhouse gas emissions than conventional farming</a>, largely because it doesn’t use synthetic nitrogen fertilizer. And it prohibits using synthetic pesticides and giving hormones or antibiotics to livestock.</p>
<p>But the U.S. isn’t currently setting the bar high for growing its organic sector. Across the Atlantic, Europe has a much more focused, aggressive strategy.</p>
<h2>The EU’S Farm to Fork plan</h2>
<p>The European Union’s <a href="https://ec.europa.eu/food/horizontal-topics/farm-fork-strategy_en">Farm to Fork</a> strategy, often described as the heart of the <a href="https://ec.europa.eu/info/strategy/priorities-2019-2024/european-green-deal_en?_ga=2.201656977.1662622590.1631910401-1915539932.1631910401">European Green Deal</a>, was adopted in 2020 and <a href="https://www.politico.eu/article/farm-to-fork-strategy-europe-food-production-sustainability-agriculture/">strengthened</a> in October 2021. It sets forth ambitious 2030 targets: a 50% cut in greenhouse gas emissions from agriculture, a 50% cut in pesticide use and a 20% cut in fertilizer use. </p>
<p>Recognizing that organic production can make important contributions to these goals, the policy calls for increasing the percentage of EU farmland under organic management from 8.1% to 25% by 2030. The European Parliament has adopted a detailed <a href="https://ec.europa.eu/info/law/better-regulation/have-your-say/initiatives/12555-Organic-farming-action-plan-for-the-development-of-EU-organic-production_en">organic plan</a> to achieve this goal. </p>
<p>Today the U.S. is the world’s largest <a href="https://www.fibl.org/fileadmin/documents/shop/1150-organic-world-2021.pdf">organic marketplace</a>, with US$51 billion in sales in 2019. But the EU is not far behind, at $46 billion, and if it achieves its Farm to Fork targets, it is likely to become the global leader. </p>
<p>And that ambition is reflected in national food policies. For example, in Copenhagen 88% of ingredients in meals served at the city’s 1,000 public schools <a href="https://www.fibl.org/fileadmin/documents/shop/1150-organic-world-2021.pdf">are organic</a>. Similarly, in Italy school meals in more than 13,000 schools countrywide contain organic ingredients. </p>
<p><iframe id="jhUPe" class="tc-infographic-datawrapper" src="https://datawrapper.dwcdn.net/jhUPe/4/" height="400px" width="100%" style="border: none" frameborder="0"></iframe></p>
<h2>The U.S. strategy is technology-driven</h2>
<p>In contrast with the EU, the U.S. has no plan at the national level for expanding organic production, or even a plan to make a plan.</p>
<p>Less than 1% of U.S. farmland – about 5.6 million acres (2.3 million hectares) is farmed according to national organic standards, compared with 36 million acres (14.6 million hectares) in the EU. This small sector doesn’t produce enough organic food to meet consumer demand, so much of the organic food consumed in the U.S. is imported from nearly <a href="https://organic.ams.usda.gov/integrity/">45,000 foreign operations</a>. While the U.S. government tracks imports of only 100 organic food products – a small sliver of what comes in – spending in 2020 on these items alone <a href="https://news.wp.prod.gios.asu.edu/files/2021/08/US-organic-imports.pdf">exceeded $2.5 billion</a>. </p>
<p>I see this gap as a huge missed opportunity. President Biden has called for a <a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/speeches-remarks/2021/04/29/remarks-by-president-biden-in-address-to-a-joint-session-of-congress/">“Buy American” strategy</a> to bolster the U.S. economy, but today consumers are spending money on organic imports without reaping the <a href="https://nifa.usda.gov/topic/organic-agriculture">environmental</a> or <a href="https://www.stlouisfed.org/community-development/publications/harvesting-opportunity">economic</a> benefits of having more land under organic management. More domestic production would improve soil and water quality and <a href="https://doi.org/10.1080/21683565.2017.1394416">create jobs in rural areas</a>. </p>
<p><iframe id="7f996" class="tc-infographic-datawrapper" src="https://datawrapper.dwcdn.net/7f996/1/" height="400px" width="100%" style="border: none" frameborder="0"></iframe></p>
<p>While the U.S. and the EU are working together to <a href="https://twitter.com/SecVilsack/status/1455243583251001349">address agriculture’s contribution to climate change</a>, they have <a href="https://www.farmprogress.com/farm-policy/vilsack-defends-us-farm-practices-world-stage">very different views on the role of organic farming</a>. At a U.N. <a href="https://www.un.org/en/food-systems-summit/summit">Food Systems Summit</a> on Sept. 23, 2021, Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack launched a new international coalition on <a href="https://www.fas.usda.gov/newsroom/secretary-vilsack-remarks-g20-open-forum-sustainability">sustainable productivity growth</a>, calling on countries and organizations to join the U.S. in the cause of increasing yields to feed a growing world population. In his press briefings, Vilsack promoted <a href="https://www.politico.eu/article/farm-to-fork-europe-united-states-food-agriculture-trade-climate-change/">voluntary, incentive-based and technological approaches</a> to producing more food, such as gene editing, precision agriculture and artificial intelligence. </p>
<p>Vilsack asserts that the European Union’s emphasis on organic production will <a href="https://www.politico.eu/article/farm-to-fork-europe-united-states-food-agriculture-trade-climate-change/">reduce output and push up food prices</a>. This argument reflects a long-standing debate about whether organic farming can <a href="https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-017-01410-w">produce enough food to meet demand while using fewer chemical inputs</a>.</p>
<p>The strongest <a href="https://www.usda.gov/media/press-releases/2021/10/26/usda-announces-initial-supporters-sustainable-productivity-growth">support for the USDA strategy</a> is no surprise. It comes mostly from conventional agriculture groups, including Syngenta, Bayer and Corteva – three of the four <a href="https://www.statista.com/statistics/257489/ranking-of-leading-agrochemical-companies-worldwide-by-revenue/">largest global agrichemical companies</a> – along with their lobbying arm, <a href="https://www.croplifeamerica.org/">CropLife America</a>.</p>
<figure>
<iframe src="https://player.vimeo.com/video/541541773" width="500" height="281" frameborder="0" webkitallowfullscreen="" mozallowfullscreen="" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
<figcaption><span class="caption">Patrick Barbour, winner of a climate-friendly farming competition sponsored by the National Farmers Union of Scotland, explains steps he is taking on his organic sheep and cattle farm to reduce carbon emissions and deliver environmental benefits.</span></figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>More organic doesn’t mean going backward</h2>
<p>In my view, these U.S. talking points are outdated. The world’s farmers already produce enough food to feed the world. The question is why <a href="https://www.who.int/news/item/15-07-2019-world-hunger-is-still-not-going-down-after-three-years-and-obesity-is-still-growing-un-report">many people still go hungry</a> when <a href="https://www.fao.org/3/cb1329en/online/cb1329en.html#chapter-2_1">production increases year over year</a>. </p>
<p>At the U.N. Food Systems Summit, many world leaders called for reforms to <a href="https://www.unep.org/news-and-stories/story/first-un-food-systems-summit-seeks-new-recipe-healthy-people-and-planet">eradicate hunger, poverty and inequality, and address climate change</a>. Food systems experts understand that global <a href="https://doi.org/10.1038/s43016-019-0002-4">nutrition security</a> depends on empowering women, eliminating corruption, addressing food waste, preserving biodiversity and embracing environmentally responsible production – including organic agriculture. Not on the list: increasing yields.</p>
<p>Addressing agriculture’s role in climate change means changing how nations produce, process, transport, consume and waste food. I believe that when leaders call for cutting-edge, science-based solutions, they need to embrace and support a broad spectrum of science, including <a href="https://www.fao.org/3/i9037en/i9037en.pdf">agroecology</a> – sustainable farming that works with nature and reduces reliance on external inputs like fertilizers and pesticides. </p>
<p>The Biden-Harris administration could do this by developing a comprehensive plan to realize the untapped potential of organic agriculture, with clear goals and strategies to increase organic production and with it, the number of organic farmers. Consumers are ready to buy what U.S. organic farmers raise.</p>
<p>[<em>Get the best of The Conversation, every weekend.</em> <a href="https://theconversation.com/us/newsletters/weekly-highlights-61?utm_source=TCUS&utm_medium=inline-link&utm_campaign=newsletter-text&utm_content=weeklybest">Sign up for our weekly newsletter</a>.]</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/169078/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Kathleen Merrigan directs the Swette Center for Sustainable Food Systems at Arizona State University, which receives funding from the Organic Trade Association. She is co-director of a project on inadvertent chemical contamination of organic crops funded by the US Department of Agriculture. Merrigan is a member of the Advisory Committee for the Organic Farming Research Foundation. She also is an advisor to S2G Ventures and a Venture Partner at Astanor Ventures, two agtech firms that have some organic companies in their much broader portfolios. As a US Senate staffer, Merrigan drafted the Organic Foods Production Act of 1990. She has served on the National Organic Standards Board, as Administrator of the USDA Agricultural Marketing Service and as Deputy Secretary of Agriculture. </span></em></p>An expert on organic agriculture argues that the US is missing an economic and environmental opportunity by not working to scale up organic production.Kathleen Merrigan, Executive Director, Swette Center for Sustainable Food Systems, Arizona State UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1269932021-04-11T11:47:58Z2021-04-11T11:47:58ZBlockchain could play an important role in future agriculture and food security<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/393376/original/file-20210405-15-12utux1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=11%2C0%2C3822%2C2155&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Technological advances can help manage more efficient, sustainable and accountable farming practices.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">(Shutterstock)</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>Global food supply chains proved brittle during the COVID-19 pandemic, leading for calls to boost the resilience of global food supply chains through improved efficiency in production, distribution and consumption of nutritious food. How could technologies like blockchain that provide data to producers, distributors and consumers be part of the solution? </p>
<p>Big data applications may present opportunities to address inefficiencies from farm to table and improve global food security. </p>
<p>Blockchain, <a href="http://www.fao.org/3/CA2906EN/ca2906en.pdf">a linked decentralized database that stores auditable data throughout entire supply chains</a>, may change the game for food producers across the globe. </p>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/vQ1uqUsGyis?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
<figcaption><span class="caption">The Food and Agriculture Organization reviews challenges and opportunities for agrifood systems.</span></figcaption>
</figure>
<p>With global-scale food systems such as seafood, <a href="https://doi.org/10.1111/faf.12109">nearly 40 per cent of which is traded globally</a>, data transparency and traceability through technologies like blockchain are important for socially and environmentally conscious decision making and <a href="https://doi.org/10.1093/icesjms/fsz036">to facilitate trust among stakeholders</a>.</p>
<h2>Gathering information</h2>
<p>Blockchain technologies can be used to consolidate information on the quality of the seed, track how crops grow and record the journey once it leaves the farm. In Canada, for example, <a href="https://graindiscovery.com/home">Grain Discovery</a> - an online blockchain marketplace - is an example of data being leveraged by those involved in the food system to grow and market globally competitive crops. </p>
<p>The data could enhance transparency in supply chains by providing immutable records from production to consumption. Such data have the potential to facilitate information transfer throughout every step of the supply chain. And if blockchains are implemented with proper validation, it can prevent illegal and unethical production and distribution that undermines sustainability and community food security.</p>
<p>For example, <a href="https://doi.org/10.3389/fbloc.2020.00007">Wal-Mart, Tsinghua University and IBM’s chain-based food traceability platforms have aided in tracing pork and mango in China and U.S. respectively</a>, with positive results in creating trust and transparency in the supply chains. </p>
<p>This transparency also means consumers could make informed decisions to protect vulnerable producers and the environment. Access to product data may allow consumers to reward producers who employ good practices, such as rural smallholder farmers and fishermen who are among <a href="http://www.fao.org/3/i2953e/i2953e.pdf">the most food-insecure groups</a>.</p>
<p><div data-react-class="InstagramEmbed" data-react-props="{"url":"https://www.instagram.com/p/B6aIUxjqKvM","accessToken":"127105130696839|b4b75090c9688d81dfd245afe6052f20"}"></div></p>
<h2>Tracking pathways</h2>
<p>Currently, there is little evidence supporting the claim that blockchain and big data technologies are contributing to global food security. Even though the average farm is projected to generate <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/internet-of-things-smart-agriculture-2016-10">4.1 million data points by 2050</a>, up from 190,000 data points in 2014, increases in global food security have not been impressive.</p>
<p>Part of the challenge is how blockchains have been implemented until now. The corporate control of blockchains and big data platforms could even undermine food security. </p>
<p>For example, IBM and Walmart have teamed up to track produce from farm to fork. Producers and processors along the supply chain are required to input information into IBM’s blockchain for the process to be entirely transparent to consumers.</p>
<p>However, there is <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2018/09/24/business/walmart-blockchain-lettuce.html">skepticism around IBM’s definition of blockchain</a>, as privately owned blockchains can be <a href="https://munin.uit.no/bitstream/handle/10037/15820/article.pdf">tampered with more easily</a> and are less secure. This is because security of private blockchains are still highly dependent on permissions and controls set by private organizations.</p>
<p>Corporate-owned, <a href="https://colescottgroup.com/3-risks-of-centralizing-blockchain/">centralized databases of information do not meet the traditional definition of a blockchain, which is based on democracy and trust</a>.</p>
<p>Traditional blockchains are decentralized and democratized in order to ensure trust between users. Corporate control of supply chain information could also <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tifs.2019.07.034">leave out small-scale farmers</a> that lack the required size, scale and technological know-how to participate. This division between large and small food producers can contribute to global food insecurity, and many researchers believe that <a href="https://www.nationalgeographic.com/environment/future-of-food/photos-farms-agriculture-national-farmers-day/">small, as well as large farms, are required to feed the world’s growing population</a>. </p>
<h2>Data and food futures</h2>
<p>Before blockchain and other data technologies can help address food security, <a href="http://www.fao.org/3/ca2906en/ca2906en.pdf">a number of challenges need to be addressed</a>.</p>
<p>The implementation of blockchains must be be decentralized to include small farmers and rural people. This will enable sustainable and equitable food systems and allow consumers to make informed decisions.</p>
<p>However, as blockchains place additional responsibility on the end users, challenges such as limited digital literacy among the world’s poor and infrastructure constraints may undermine true decentralization. </p>
<p>Also, they must be integrated into broader food security promotion strategies to make them sensitive to social and environmental values critical to tackling food insecurity among diverse groups. </p>
<p>The untapped potential of harnessing big data through a transparent and decentralized food distribution system may support sustainable food production and provide accountability for food production. </p>
<p>This is crucial for efficient food systems and food security in the future. But it is important that these innovations are deployed equitably so that all stakeholders along the value chain may benefit.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/126993/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Abdul-Rahim Abdulai receives funding from the Arrell Food Institute at the University of Guelph and the International Development Research Centre, Canada. </span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Carling Bieg receives funding from NSERC.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Evan Fraser receives funding from the Canadian Government, the Ontario Government and George Weston Ltd. He is affiliated with the Maple Leaf Centre for Action on Food Security. </span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Sarah Marquis does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>The ongoing coronavirus pandemic has further destabilized global food chains supplies. Technological innovations like blockchain can help address these challenges.Abdul-Rahim Abdulai, PHD Student, Geography, Environment and Geomatics/Arrell Food Institute, University of GuelphCarling Bieg, PhD Candidate, Department of Integrative Biology, University of GuelphEvan Fraser, Director of the Arrell Food Institute and Professor in the Dept. of Geography, Environment and Geomatics, University of GuelphSarah Marquis, PhD Student, Environmental Sustainability, L’Université d’Ottawa/University of OttawaLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1538522021-02-18T18:10:04Z2021-02-18T18:10:04Z3 technologies poised to change food and the planet<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/384565/original/file-20210216-19-1guxlxc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=269%2C62%2C5541%2C2479&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Soon robotic smart tractors will drive themselves through fields and will use data to plant the right seed in the right place and give each plant exactly the right amount of fertilizer, cutting down on energy, pollution and waste.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">(Shutterstock)</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>Agriculture’s impact on the planet is massive and relentless. Roughly 40 per cent of the Earth’s suitable land surface is used for <a href="http://www.fao.org/3/y4252e/y4252e06.htm">cropland and grazing</a>. The number of domestic animals far outweighs remaining <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2018/may/21/human-race-just-001-of-all-life-but-has-destroyed-over-80-of-wild-mammals-study">wild populations</a>. Every day, more primary forest falls against a tide of crops and pasture and <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2019/sep/12/deforestation-world-losing-area-forest-size-of-uk-each-year-report-finds">each year an area as large as the United Kingdom is lost</a>. If humanity is to have a hope of addressing climate change, we must reimagine farming. </p>
<p>COVID-19 has also exposed weaknesses with <a href="https://theconversation.com/100-days-of-coronavirus-has-sent-shock-waves-through-the-food-system-140386">current food systems</a>. Agricultural scientists have known for decades that farm labour can be exploitative and hard, so it should surprise no one that farm owners had trouble importing labour to keep farms running as they struggled to ensure food workers stay free from the virus. </p>
<p>Similarly, “just enough, just in time” food supply chains are efficient but offer little redundancy. And pushing farmland into the wilds connects humans with reservoirs of viruses that — when they enter the human population — prove devastating. </p>
<p>To address these challenges, new technologies promise a <a href="https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2020/06/emerging-technologies-blockchain-build-resilience-food-system-covid-19/">greener approach</a> to food production and focus on more plant-based, year-round, local and intensive production. Done right, three technologies — vertical, cellular and precision agriculture — can remake the relationship to land and food.</p>
<h2>Farm in a box</h2>
<p>Vertical farming — the practice of growing food in stacked trays — isn’t new; innovators have been <a href="https://www.ancient.eu/article/446/what-the-roman-emperor-tiberius-grew-in-his-greenh/">growing crops indoors since Roman times</a>. What is new is the efficiency of LED lighting and advanced robotics that allow vertical farms today to produce 20 times more food on the same footprint as is possible in the field. </p>
<p>Currently, most vertical farms only produce greens, such as lettuce, herbs and microgreens, as they are quick and profitable, but within five years many more crops will be possible as the cost of lighting continues to fall and <a href="https://www.ft.com/content/0e3aafca-2170-4552-9ade-68177784446e">technology develops</a>. </p>
<p>The controlled environments of vertical farms slash pesticide and herbicide use, can be carbon neutral and they recycle water. For both cold and hot climates where field production of tender crops is difficult or impossible, vertical agriculture promises an end to expensive and environmentally intensive imports, such as berries, small fruits and avocados from regions such as California. </p>
<p><a href="https://new-harvest.org/">Cellular agriculture</a>, or the science of producing animal products without animals, heralds even bigger change. In 2020 alone, hundreds of millions of dollars <a href="https://www.marketwatch.com/story/is-cell-based-meat-the-next-big-thing-here-are-5-companies-leading-the-revolution-2020-10-06">flowed into the sector</a>, and in the past few months, the <a href="https://www.cnn.com/videos/world/2021/01/03/impacts-of-cultured-meat-fareed-gps-vpx.cnn">first products</a> have come to market. </p>
<p>This includes <a href="https://braverobot.co/">Brave Robot “ice cream”</a> that involves no cows and <a href="https://www.ju.st/">Eat Just</a>’s limited release of “chicken” that never went cluck. </p>
<p><div data-react-class="Tweet" data-react-props="{"tweetId":"1360025925937754115"}"></div></p>
<p><a href="https://croplife.ca/field-notes-precision-agriculture-canada/">Precision agriculture</a> is another big frontier. Soon self-driving tractors will use data to plant the right seed in the right place, and give each plant exactly the right amount of fertilizer, cutting down on energy, pollution and waste.</p>
<p>Taken together, vertical, cellular and precision farming should allow us the ability to produce more food on less land and with fewer inputs. Ideally, we will be able to produce any crop, anywhere, any time of year, eliminating the need for long, vulnerable, energy intensive supply chains. </p>
<h2>Is agriculture 2.0 ready?</h2>
<p>Of course, these technologies are no panacea — no technology ever is. For one thing, while these technologies are maturing rapidly, they aren’t quite ready for mainstream deployment. Many remain too expensive for small- and medium-sized farms and may drive farm consolidation. </p>
<p>Some consumers and food theorists are <a href="https://www.aljazeera.com/opinions/2021/2/5/the-big-tech-takeover-of-agriculture-is-dangerous">cautious</a>, wondering why we can’t produce our food the way our great-grandparents did. Critics of these agricultural technologies call for agri-ecological or regenerative farming that achieves sustainability through diversified, small-scale farms that <a href="https://time.com/5933677/covid-food-system/">feed local consumers</a>. Regenerative agriculture is very promising, <a href="https://agfundernews.com/regenerative-agriculture-is-getting-more-mainstream-but-how-scalable-is-it.html">but it isn’t clear it will scale</a>.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="A package of 'lab-grown' beef." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/384569/original/file-20210216-21-7n7xik.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/384569/original/file-20210216-21-7n7xik.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/384569/original/file-20210216-21-7n7xik.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/384569/original/file-20210216-21-7n7xik.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/384569/original/file-20210216-21-7n7xik.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/384569/original/file-20210216-21-7n7xik.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/384569/original/file-20210216-21-7n7xik.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Could cultured meats become common in grocery stores in the next decade?</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">(Shutterstock)</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>While these are serious considerations, there is no such thing as a one-size-fits-all approach to food security. For instance, alternative small-scale mixed-crop farms also suffer labour shortages and typically produce expensive food that is beyond the means of lower-income consumers. But it doesn’t have to be an “either/or” situation. There are benefits and drawbacks to all approaches and we cannot achieve our climate and food security goals without also <a href="https://www.nationalobserver.com/2020/05/07/opinion/exploring-world-post-covid-digital-agricultural-renaissance">embracing agricultural technology</a>. </p>
<h2>Agriculture’s hopeful future</h2>
<p>By taking the best aspects of alternative agriculture (namely the commitment to sustainability and nutrition), the best aspects of conventional agriculture (the economic efficiency and the ability to scale) and novel technologies such as those described above, the world can embark on an agricultural revolution that — when combined with progressive policies around labour, nutrition, animal welfare and the environment — will produce abundant food while reducing agriculture’s footprint on the planet. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/diet-resolutions-6-things-to-know-about-eating-less-meat-and-more-plant-based-foods-148871">Diet resolutions: 6 things to know about eating less meat and more plant-based foods</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>This new approach to agriculture, a “closed-loop revolution,” is already blooming in fields (and labs) from advanced greenhouses of <a href="https://www.hortidaily.com/article/9280423/harvesting-strawberries-every-day-of-the-year-in-led-greenhouse/">the Netherlands</a> and the <a href="https://www.hakaimagazine.com/news/farming-fish-in-the-sky/">indoor fish farms of Singapore</a> to the <a href="https://www.greenqueen.com.hk/alt-protein-expert-indiebio-cso-says-lab-grown-meat-is-scaling-like-the-internet/">cellular agriculture companies of Silicon Valley</a>.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="Cucumber plants growing indoors" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/381444/original/file-20210130-18933-6zs3q2.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/381444/original/file-20210130-18933-6zs3q2.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/381444/original/file-20210130-18933-6zs3q2.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/381444/original/file-20210130-18933-6zs3q2.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/381444/original/file-20210130-18933-6zs3q2.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/381444/original/file-20210130-18933-6zs3q2.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/381444/original/file-20210130-18933-6zs3q2.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Hydroponic cucumbers can be grown indoors with LED lights.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">(Lenore Newman)</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Closed-loop farms use little pesticide, are land and energy efficient, and recycle water. They can allow for year-round local production, reduce repetitive hand labour, improve environmental outcomes and animal welfare. If these facilities are matched with good policy, then we should see the land not needed for farming be returned to nature as parks or wildlife refuges. </p>
<p>Today’s world was shaped by an agricultural revolution that began ten thousand years ago. This next revolution will be just as transformative. COVID-19 may have put the problems with our food system on the front page, but the long-term prospect for this ancient and vital industry is ultimately a good news story.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/153852/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Lenore Newman receives funding from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council, Genome BC, and Genome Ontario. </span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Evan Fraser receives funding from the Canadian Government, the Ontario Government and George Weston Ltd. He is affiliated with the Maple Leaf Centre for Action on Food Security. </span></em></p>Year round local food production is within our grasp, and will slash agriculture’s climate impact — but only if we embrace agricultural technology.Lenore Newman, Canada Research Chair, Food Security and the Environment, University of The Fraser ValleyEvan Fraser, Director of the Arrell Food Institute and Professor in the Dept. of Geography, Environment and Geomatics, University of GuelphLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1288532019-12-20T11:12:29Z2019-12-20T11:12:29ZThree ways farms of the future can feed the planet and heal it too<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/308086/original/file-20191220-11891-1cd7ggs.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C0%2C6016%2C4007&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Nature and technology can combine to help farms of the future nourish the earth and its inhabitants.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/happy-farmers-using-digital-tablet-cultivation-548038507">SimplyDay/Shutterstock</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Intensive agriculture may be nourishing most of the Earth’s inhabitants, but it’s doing the opposite to earth itself. Its dependence on singular crops, heavy ploughing machinery, fossil-fuel based fertilisers and pesticides is <a href="https://theconversation.com/soil-is-our-best-ally-in-the-fight-against-climate-change-but-were-fast-running-out-of-it-128166">degrading our soils</a> <a href="https://theconversation.com/bees-how-important-are-they-and-what-would-happen-if-they-went-extinct-121272">wildlife</a> and nutrient cycles, and contributing <a href="https://www.annualreviews.org/doi/abs/10.1146/annurev-environ-020411-130608">a quarter of the planet’s unwanted extra heat</a>.</p>
<p>But we’re not powerless to change the future of food. Nature and technological innovation are tackling these problems head on – and if the solutions they’re offering are incorporated on a large scale and used together, a new agricultural revolution could be on its way. Here are three of the most exciting developments that can help farms not just feed the planet, but heal it too.</p>
<h2>Crops, trees and livestock in harmony</h2>
<p><a href="http://wedocs.unep.org/handle/20.500.11822/7862">Several UN reports</a> have <a href="http://www.fao.org/3/i9037en/I9037EN.pdf">highlighted agroecology</a> – farming that mimics the interactions and cycles of plants, animals and nutrients in the natural world – as a path to sustainable food.</p>
<p>The approach uses <a href="https://www.cell.com/action/showPdf?pii=S0169-5347%2818%2930273-8">a wide variety of practices</a>. For example, instead of artificial fertilisers, it improves soil quality by planting nutrient-fixing “cover crops” in between harvest crops, rotating crops across fields each season and composting organic waste. It supports wildlife, stores carbon, and conserves water through the planting of trees and wildflower banks.</p>
<p>It also <a href="https://link.springer.com/article/10.1186/2041-7136-1-26">integrates livestock with crops</a>. This may seem counter-intuitive given their <a href="https://theconversation.com/eating-less-meat-is-a-climate-priority-whatever-the-sceptics-say-105884">inefficient land use and high emissions</a>. But having a small number of animals grazing land doesn’t have to accelerate global heating.</p>
<p>Grassland captures carbon dioxide. Animals eat the grass, and then return that carbon to the soil as excrement. The nutrients in the excrement and the continuous grazing of grass both help new grass roots to grow, increasing the capacity of the land to capture carbon.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/308087/original/file-20191220-11904-3sboy4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/308087/original/file-20191220-11904-3sboy4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/308087/original/file-20191220-11904-3sboy4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/308087/original/file-20191220-11904-3sboy4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/308087/original/file-20191220-11904-3sboy4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/308087/original/file-20191220-11904-3sboy4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/308087/original/file-20191220-11904-3sboy4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Carefully managed grazing can help the environment, not harm it.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://unsplash.com/photos/qvVgDIE05PI">Millie Olsen/Unsplash</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/">CC BY-SA</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Keep too many grazing animals in one place for too long and they eat too much grass and produce too much excrement for the soil to take on, meaning carbon is lost to the atmosphere. But if small numbers are constantly rotated into different fields, the soil can <a href="https://www.fcrn.org.uk/sites/default/files/project-files/fcrn_gnc_report.pdf">store enough extra carbon</a> to counterbalance the extra methane emitted by livestock’s digestive rumblings.</p>
<p>While this doesn’t make them a carbon sink, livestock bring other benefits to the land. They keep soil naturally fertilised, and can <a href="https://theconversation.com/can-livestock-grazing-benefit-biodiversity-10789">also improve biodiversity</a> by eating more aggressive plants, allowing others to grow. And if local breeds are adopted, they generally don’t require expensive feed and veterinary care, as they’re adapted to local conditions. </p>
<h2>Pesticides no more</h2>
<p>Pests, diseases and weeds cause almost 40% of <a href="http://www.fao.org/tempref/docrep/fao/010/i0142e/i0142e06.pdf">crop losses globally</a> – and without care, the figure could rise dramatically. Climate change is <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/nclimate1990">shifting where pests and diseases</a> thrive, making it harder for farmers to stay resilient.</p>
<p>Many commonly used <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2019/sep/04/germany-ban-glyphosate-weedkiller-by-2023">herbicides</a>, <a href="https://theconversation.com/yet-another-widely-used-insecticide-found-to-harm-bees-regulators-need-to-change-their-approach-126000">pesticides</a> and fungicides are now also under pressure to be banned because of their negative effects on the health of humans and wildlife. Even if they’re not, <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41559-018-0470-1">growing resistance to their action</a> is making controlling weeds, pests and diseases increasingly challenging.</p>
<p>Nature is again providing answers here. Farmers are starting to use <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S1470160X18302917">pesticides derived from plants</a>, which tend to be much less toxic to the surrounding environment.</p>
<p>They’re also using natural enemies to keep threats at bay. Some may act as repellents, <a href="https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007/978-3-319-99768-1_10#Sec2">“pushing” pests away</a>. For example, peppermint disgusts the flea beetle, a scourge to oilseed rape farmers. Others are “pulls”, attracting pests away from valuable crops. Plants that are attractive for egg-laying but that don’t support the survival of insect larvae are <a href="https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007/978-3-319-99768-1_10#Sec2">commonly used for this purpose</a>.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/308088/original/file-20191220-11946-qx4hma.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/308088/original/file-20191220-11946-qx4hma.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/308088/original/file-20191220-11946-qx4hma.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/308088/original/file-20191220-11946-qx4hma.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/308088/original/file-20191220-11946-qx4hma.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/308088/original/file-20191220-11946-qx4hma.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/308088/original/file-20191220-11946-qx4hma.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Nasturtiums are pest magnets – and they’re edible too.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/bright-nasturtium-flowers-green-colorful-leaves-1025596633">Shutova Elena/Shutterstock</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Technology is also offering solutions on this front. Some farmers are already using apps to monitor, warn and predict when pest and diseases will attack crops. Driverless tractors and intelligent sprayers that can <a href="https://www.fwi.co.uk/arable/crop-management/weed-management/video-worlds-first-robotic-weed-mapping-service-launched">target specific weeds or nutritional needs</a> have recently entered the market. Agritech companies are now also developing robots that can scan fields, <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-018-38343-3">identify specific plants</a>, and decide whether to <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0168169918316612">use pesticide</a> or to remove a plant mechanically.</p>
<p>In combination, these methods can dramatically reduce agriculture’s reliance on herbicides and pesticides without lowering crop yields. This is important, since the world’s population is set to <a href="https://www.un.org/development/desa/en/news/population/world-population-prospects-2017.html">rise by a quarter in the next three decades</a>.</p>
<h2>Small tech, big difference</h2>
<p>Soon, technology at an almost impossibly small scale could make a big difference to the way we grow our food. <a href="http://www.urthagriculture.com/nano-ag-fertilizer">Companies have designed nanoparticles</a> 100,000 times smaller then the width of a human hair that release fertiliser and pesticides slowly but steadily, to minimise their use and maximise crop yields.</p>
<p>New gene-editing techniques will also increasingly use <a href="https://www.cell.com/trends/biotechnology/comments/S0167-7799(18)30093-3">nanomaterials to transfer DNA to plants</a>. These techniques can be used to <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0882401018300901#fig1">detect the presence of pests and nutrient</a> deficiencies, or simply improve their resistance to extreme weather and pests. Given that <a href="https://issuu.com/easaceurope/docs/easac_statement_extreme_weather_eve">increasingly frequent and severe extreme weather</a> events due to global heating are putting the very functioning of the global food system <a href="https://theconversation.com/our-climate-is-like-reckless-banking-before-the-crash-its-time-to-talk-about-near-term-collapse-128374">at risk</a>, these advancements could be vital for preventing agricultural collapse.</p>
<p>Nanotechnologies aren’t cheap yet and researchers have yet <a href="https://www.efsa.europa.eu/en/press/news/180704">to conduct rigorous tests</a> of how toxic nanomaterials are to humans and plants, and how durable they are. But should they pass these tests, agriculture will surely <a href="https://www.azonano.com/article.aspx?ArticleID=1657">follow the path of other industries</a> in adopting the technology on a large scale.</p>
<p>Save for nanotechnology and advanced robots, the above solutions are already in use in many small-scale and commercial farms – just not in combination. Imagine them working in synchrony and suddenly a vision of sustainable agriculture doesn’t seem so far away anymore.</p>
<hr>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/263883/original/file-20190314-28475-1mzxjur.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/263883/original/file-20190314-28475-1mzxjur.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=140&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/263883/original/file-20190314-28475-1mzxjur.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=140&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/263883/original/file-20190314-28475-1mzxjur.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=140&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/263883/original/file-20190314-28475-1mzxjur.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=176&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/263883/original/file-20190314-28475-1mzxjur.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=176&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/263883/original/file-20190314-28475-1mzxjur.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=176&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption"></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p><em><a href="https://theconversation.com/imagine-newsletter-researchers-think-of-a-world-with-climate-action-113443?utm_source=TCUK&utm_medium=linkback&utm_campaign=TCUKengagement&utm_content=Imagineheader1128853">Click here to subscribe to our climate action newsletter. Climate change is inevitable. Our response to it isn’t.</a></em></p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/128853/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Karen Rial-Lovera does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>We’re not powerless to change the future of food. Nature and technology can combine to nourish both the earth and its inhabitants.Karen Rial-Lovera, Senior Lecturer in Agriculture, Nottingham Trent UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/796752017-06-26T15:13:09Z2017-06-26T15:13:09ZDemonstration farms can help revolutionise African agriculture<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/175160/original/file-20170622-12008-1ctvibk.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Demonstration farms showcase agricultural techniques and technologies to improve crops.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Flickr/Remi Nono-Womdim, FAO</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>Farms that are used to teach agricultural techniques and technologies – known as <a href="https://www.arec.umd.edu/extension/ume-arec-programs/demonstration-farms">demonstration farms</a> – are a smart investment that can help accelerate the adoption of game-changing innovations. Farmers can learn new ways of doing things without having to do it on their farms.</p>
<p>Demonstration farms are used to teach various agricultural techniques and technologies, showcase new or improved crops. They also serve as a venue to research and test new methods alongside traditional ones. </p>
<p>Their sizes can vary widely, ranging from small to big farms. Depending on what’s being tested or showcased, the demonstration farm could have different types of crops and crop varieties, livestock or poultry breeds, fertiliser treatments or technology, such as drip irrigation. They are often owned and operated by universities, government or private research institutions, private industries or agriculture focused start-ups and non-governmental organisations. </p>
<p>The importance of demonstration farms was first recognised over a century ago by agriculturalist <a href="https://tshaonline.org/handbook/online/articles/fkn02">Seaman Knapp</a>. He believed in the philosophy of teaching through demonstration. He’s credited as the father of <a href="https://ltlacey.wordpress.com/2012/11/14/seaman-knapp-the-father-of-extension-and-his-connection-to-education/">demonstration farms</a> which are used around the world in countries ranging from the US to Israel, Ghana and Nigeria. </p>
<p>But demonstration farms have the potential to do much more. There are still far too few of them in Africa. If carefully designed, they could help revolutionise African agriculture. They could help solve some of Africa’s most persistent challenges including degraded soils or the low adoption of irrigation technologies. </p>
<p>They could also help with the uptake of new concepts that are transforming agriculture including <a href="http://cema-agri.org/page/precision-farming-key-technologies-concepts">precision agriculture</a> – a farm management system that ensures soils and crops receive exactly what they need for optimal growth and productivity. Or <a href="http://www.fao.org/ag/ca/">conservation agriculture</a> – a sustainable agriculture production system comprised of three linked principles; minimal soil disturbance, mixing and rotating crops and keeping the soils covered as much as possible.</p>
<h2>Where it’s working</h2>
<p>The US Department of Agriculture recently funded <a href="https://www.nrcs.usda.gov/wps/portal/nrcs/detail/ne/newsroom/releases/?cid=NRCSEPRD1315211">statewide demonstration farms</a> to showcase soil health practices and related cropping system comparisons. </p>
<p>In Israel, a <a href="http://www.moag.gov.il/en/Ministrys%20Units/CINADCO/Pages/default.aspx">centre for agricultural development</a> has trained over 270,000 people from 132 countries in its various courses, 70% of which use <a href="http://www.jpost.com/Business-and-Innovation/Tech/Tell-us-how-you-made-Israel-470231">demonstration agricultural farms</a>. </p>
<p>There have also been substantial advances on the continent. In <a href="https://guardian.ng/business-services/notore-kaduna-government-partner-to-harness-agribusiness-opportunities/">Nigeria</a>, a fertiliser company has over 3,000 demonstration farms that it uses to showcase and teach farmers about modern farming practices. </p>
<p>In Ghana, the <a href="http://www.ghanaweb.com/GhanaHomePage/business/MoFA-establishes-demonstration-farms-in-districts-429177">Ministry of Food and Agriculture</a> has established over 1,242 community demonstration farms that showcase new agricultural technologies.</p>
<p>In Kenya a <a href="https://www.newsdeeply.com/womenandgirls/articles/2017/06/14/to-fight-drought-kenyan-women-farmers-adopt-conservation-agriculture">demonstration farm in Meru</a> is teaching women everything they need to know about conservation agriculture. This includes covering crops like grass or legumes, to provide seasonal soil cover to protect bare land. These kinds of steps <a href="http://www.fao.org/ag/ca/">improve crop productivity</a>, increase yields as well as profits and food security.</p>
<p>Farmers can see how practices work over time, ranging from one season to another to a period of years. They are then able to use them on their own farms. In Kenya <a href="http://www.fao.org/fileadmin/user_upload/FAO-countries/Kenya/docs/CA_Flyer.pdf">over</a> 10,000, of over <a href="https://wefarm.org/the-changing-tides-of-agriculture-in-kenya/">7 million</a> farmers, have adopted these practices.</p>
<p>China has rolled out 23 <a href="https://qz.com/788657/a-chinese-aid-project-for-rwandan-farmers-is-actually-more-of-a-gateway-for-chinese-businesses/">demonstration centres</a> across Africa with a goal of upgrading African farming by passing on successes in agriculture.</p>
<p>But China is not alone. Agriculture-focused companies like Amiran Kenya have used <a href="http://www.amirankenya.com/training-center-2/">demonstration sites</a> to showcase the technologies they sell. Their aim is to prove to farmers that these really work and that they can be used to improve productivity and generate income. Their kits have an easy to use gravity based drip irrigation system, a water tank and all the necessary agro-inputs. There were soon success stories from <a href="http://www.mediamaxnetwork.co.ke/features/215886/plucking-riches-the-success-story-of-a-limuru-start-up-farmer/">farmers</a> that bought these and this helped to spread the word. </p>
<p>Non-governmental organisations are also using demonstration farms. <a href="http://www.reaplifedig.org/">Development in Gardening</a> in Kenya, for example, uses <a href="https://www.aidforafrica.org/member-charities/development-in-gardening/">demonstration farms as classrooms</a>to showcase good agricultural practices.</p>
<p>One of the most successful initiatives is helping solve one of Africa’s greatest challenges – degraded soils. The <a href="https://agra.org/">Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa</a> has set up <a href="https://agra.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/09/Going-Beyond-Demos.pdf">over</a> 155,000 demonstration gardens to showcase best soil health practices across 13 countries. Farmers using these practices have doubled, and in some cases tripled, their crop yields.</p>
<h2>More to be done</h2>
<p>The need for demonstrations farms can’t be overemphasised – particularly in Africa. Challenges such as <a href="http://www.aljazeera.com/indepth/opinion/2017/02/tackle-repetitive-droughts-horn-africa-170214090108648.html">droughts</a>, degraded <a href="https://www.nrcs.usda.gov/wps/portal/nrcs/detail/soils/use/?cid=nrcs142p2_054024">soils</a> and low crop <a href="http://www.ifpri.org/blog/challenge-increasing-agricultural-productivity-africa-south-sahara">productivity</a> persist and threaten the livelihoods of millions of people.</p>
<p>One of the major challenges is funding. Setting up demonstration farms to try new technologies or best practices takes lots of funds, time and effort. </p>
<p>Luckily there are several funding agencies, including governments, that fund demonstration farms. The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation for example <a href="http://www.gatesfoundation.org/Media-Center/Press-Releases/2008/01/%24306-Million-Commitment-to-Agricultural-Development">funded</a> the Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa’s soil health initiative. The Ministry of Agriculture in Ghana has also recognised their importance and funded 1,242 demonstration farms. </p>
<p>This trend should continue.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/79675/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Esther Ndumi Ngumbi is affiliated with Auburn University and a 2015 Food Security Fellow with the New Voices, Aspen Institute</span></em></p>Demonstration farms are a key way in which new knowledge can be transferred to farmers around the world.Esther Ndumi Ngumbi, Research Fellow, Department of Entomology and Plant Pathology, Auburn UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/544422016-02-11T10:01:21Z2016-02-11T10:01:21ZWhy we won’t be able to feed the world without GM<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/110854/original/image-20160209-12606-13ekzgp.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">We're talking about a lot of seeds</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="http://www.shutterstock.com/cat.mhtml?lang=en&language=en&ref_site=photo&search_source=search_form&version=llv1&anyorall=all&safesearch=1&use_local_boost=1&autocomplete_id=&searchterm=feed%20the%20world&show_color_wheel=1&orient=&commercial_ok=&media_type=images&search_cat=&searchtermx=&photographer_name=&people_gender=&people_age=&people_ethnicity=&people_number=&color=&page=1&inline=44069140">Great Divide Photography</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>One thing I remember vividly from my childhood is The Day of the Triffids. In John Wyndham’s apocalyptic novel, the triffids were carnivorous plants that didn’t need roots and had developed three legs to allow them to find prey (whose nitrogen they fed on instead). They were originally bred by humans to provide high-quality vegetable oil, since the growing population’s demand for food was outstripping supply. Initially contained on farms, the triffids escaped following an “extreme celestial event” and began to terrorise the human population. </p>
<p>Replace “breeding” with “genetic modification” and you have the contemporary cautionary tale about the threat of “Frankenfoods” to human health and the environment. But this raises another question – if we ignore their potential, what does it mean for human food requirements in the future?</p>
<figure class="align-right zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/110860/original/image-20160209-12610-wmrcxz.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/110860/original/image-20160209-12610-wmrcxz.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/110860/original/image-20160209-12610-wmrcxz.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=879&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/110860/original/image-20160209-12610-wmrcxz.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=879&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/110860/original/image-20160209-12610-wmrcxz.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=879&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/110860/original/image-20160209-12610-wmrcxz.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=1105&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/110860/original/image-20160209-12610-wmrcxz.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=1105&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/110860/original/image-20160209-12610-wmrcxz.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=1105&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Leaf grief.</span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>The Day of the Triffids was first published in 1951, right at the start of the “<a href="http://geography.about.com/od/globalproblemsandissues/a/greenrevolution.htm">green revolution</a>”. The latest thing was breeding new varieties of cereal which were high-yielding. Together with other newly developed technologies including machinery – tractors and irrigation pumps – and synthetic inputs like pesticides and fertilisers, this <a href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/11584298">helped double</a> major commodity crop production between 1960 and 2000 to 2 billion tonnes worldwide, rebutting <a href="http://www.economist.com/node/11374623">Malthusian</a> fears about the world failing to feed its growing population. </p>
<p>In the last decade, the rosy glow has worn off a little. Growth in world crop yields <a href="http://www.nature.com/articles/ncomms2296">has declined</a> and is even stagnating, <a href="http://science.sciencemag.org/content/333/6042/616">perhaps due to</a> climate change – especially stress from heat and drought. Yields <a href="http://www.nature.com/doifinder/10.1038/ncomms3918">are no longer</a> increasing fast enough to keep pace with projected demand. If current trends continue, <a href="http://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0066428">we’ll need to</a> expand our crop land by 42% by 2050. As a consequence, forests will be lost. Along with associated costs from requiring more water, plus the effects on biodiversity, this <a href="http://www.fcrn.org.uk/research-library/importance-food-demand-management-climate-mitigation">will increase</a> agriculture’s greenhouse-gas emissions significantly. In total, agri-food <a href="http://www.fcrn.org.uk/research-library/importance-food-demand-management-climate-mitigation">is set to</a> emit enough greenhouse gases to surpass the entirety of the 1.5°C temperature-rise target <a href="http://newsroom.unfccc.int/unfccc-newsroom/finale-cop21/">called for in Paris</a> for 2050. </p>
<h2>Supply …</h2>
<p>There are basically two options: we can increase yields to meet demand without expanding area, and/or we can reduce demand enough to allow supply to catch up. Increasing supply in a sustainable way is perfectly possible. Some of this is about increasing efficiency through better farming, such as using <a href="https://soilsmatter.wordpress.com/2015/02/27/what-is-precision-agriculture-and-why-is-it-important/">precision agriculture</a> to target the right amounts of fertilisers and pesticides to the right places. </p>
<p>Some of it is about changing land management to get the most out of agricultural land while maintaining ecosystem services, for example by managing the edges of fields as buffer strips to prevent chemicals being washed away by heavy rains; and as <a href="http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.1755-263X.2008.00004.x/full">places with lots of wild flowers</a> where bees can thrive to improve crop pollination. And some of it is about developing new animal and plant varieties that are more efficient, more productive or better able to cope with the changing environment.</p>
<p>New varieties can come about from various means. Conventional breeding continues to be important. But modern laboratories have given us more strings to our bow. Not all biotechnological approaches are genetic modification in the legal sense. Using chemicals or X-rays to create genetic variation has <a href="https://www.geneticliteracyproject.org/2015/02/05/pasta-ruby-grapefruits-why-organic-devotees-love-foods-mutated-by-radiation-and-chemicals/">long been</a> a mainstay of “conventional breeding”, for example. Other techniques – such as <a href="http://sitn.hms.harvard.edu/flash/2014/crispr-a-game-changing-genetic-engineering-technique/">CRISPR</a> – are arguably post-GM, in that they can involve the clinical editing of single genes without leaving a signature of foreign DNA. CRISPR <a href="https://www.jic.ac.uk/news/2015/11/crispr-crop-genes-no-transgenes/#">can produce</a> identical plants to those produced conventionally, but much faster. Yet for some people, biotechnological crop or livestock modification conjures up “triffidophobia”. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/110863/original/image-20160209-12571-10asr0x.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/110863/original/image-20160209-12571-10asr0x.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/110863/original/image-20160209-12571-10asr0x.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=397&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/110863/original/image-20160209-12571-10asr0x.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=397&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/110863/original/image-20160209-12571-10asr0x.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=397&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/110863/original/image-20160209-12571-10asr0x.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=499&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/110863/original/image-20160209-12571-10asr0x.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=499&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/110863/original/image-20160209-12571-10asr0x.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=499&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Chop chop.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="http://www.shutterstock.com/cat.mhtml?lang=en&language=en&ref_site=photo&search_source=search_form&version=llv1&anyorall=all&safesearch=1&use_local_boost=1&autocomplete_id=&search_tracking_id=Pn9wL9qjtP2ie2RbShav7A&searchterm=CRISPR&show_color_wheel=1&orient=&commercial_ok=&media_type=images&search_cat=&searchtermx=&photographer_name=&people_gender=&people_age=&people_ethnicity=&people_number=&color=&page=1&inline=353873630">Mopic</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Just how wary should we be about new technologies? Conventional breeding has served us well, but can’t keep up with demand or the speed with which the weather is changing. Any change in farming practice has associated risks that need to be assessed and managed, but these also need to be weighed against the risks of doing nothing. To increase food supply to meet projected demand, farming in the same way as we do now, the emissions from deforestation and other changes will <a href="http://www.fcrn.org.uk/research-library/importance-food-demand-management-climate-mitigation">lock us into</a> a world of 4-5°C of climate change. Together with other significant costs to the environment and human health and well-being, that’s probably a greater risk than the alternative. </p>
<p>It is difficult to guess how much biotechnological approaches will contribute to the solution, though. We still need to develop precision agriculture and smarter land use. And even if the gaps between current and required yields are halved – a big ask across the world – we’ll still need more land to meet demand. This would still impact on the likes of our water supply <a href="http://www.fcrn.org.uk/research-library/importance-food-demand-management-climate-mitigation">and create</a> enough warming to challenge the Paris targets. </p>
<h2>… or demand?</h2>
<p>This is where the second option comes in – decreasing demand. <a href="http://link.springer.com/article/10.1007%2Fs10584-014-1104-5">Globally</a>, we feed livestock about a third of all the calories we grow – enough to feed all the people in Asia. About a third of the food we grow is also lost or wasted. And across the world, many people overeat enough to make themselves ill through obesity, diabetes and so on. If we made wiser purchasing and consumption decisions, potentially we could halve current global demand for food. That would create space for sustainably feeding the growing population as well as growing biofuels and carbon storage in new forests.</p>
<p>For me, the message is clear. We are unsustainably using the planet’s resources to produce the food we demand, and there will be very negative results if we continue on the same trajectory. New technology can help, but needs assessed as it is developed. Old technology still has a role; as does reducing waste, over-consumption and meat-heavy diets. There is no simple answer but there is a toolbox, and we’ll need every tool at our disposal to address the challenge we created. Our technology won’t produce The Day of the Triffids, but without it, we may create a future Apocalypse Now.</p>
<p><em>For more coverage of the debate around GM crops, <a href="https://theconversation.com/uk/topics/gm-food">click here</a>.</em></p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/54442/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Tim Benton receives funding from NERC, BBSRC, ESPA and the EU. He is also the Champion of the UK's Global Food Security programme. </span></em></p>The concerns about genetically modified foods are well known. But when we look at population and climate projections, what happens if we don’t use them to increase our food supply?Tim Benton, Professor of Population Ecology, University of LeedsLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/406012015-05-27T10:18:52Z2015-05-27T10:18:52ZTechnologies will tackle irrigation inefficiencies in agriculture’s drier future<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/82721/original/image-20150522-32551-104g79z.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Water makes all the difference for agricultural crops.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/usgeologicalsurvey/17858228815">US Geological Survey</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/">CC BY</a></span></figcaption></figure><p><em>This article is part of The Conversation’s series on drought. You can read the rest of the series <a href="https://theconversation.com/us/topics/living-with-drought">here</a>.</em></p>
<p>Water is a finite but crucial resource. In most river basins around the world, water is diverted for industrial, municipal and domestic consumption. It’s also a critical component of wetlands and other natural ecosystems that are of tremendous value to society. Worldwide, the bulk of water use is tied to <a href="http://www.jstor.org/stable/4314529">agriculture</a> – it accounts for approximately 66% of water diverted from natural sources for human use and 85% of water consumption. In the arid western United States, it’s not uncommon for irrigation to represent 75%-90% of all diversions. </p>
<p>Historically, much of the development that’s made these diversions possible in the US was subsidized by the federal government. This, together with water rights mechanisms that tend to preserve agriculture’s favored access to the water supply, has made water relatively inexpensive for agriculture. Few farmers have had much incentive to achieve greater efficiencies in their use of water for irrigation. As a result, the amount of water <a href="http://www.fao.org/docrep/t7202e/t7202e08.htm">diverted for irrigation</a> is about two to three times as much as is needed for crop production. On average, more than half of the water diverted for irrigation percolates into the groundwater or returns to surface streams without watering crops.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/82848/original/image-20150525-32555-1ylbbuc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/82848/original/image-20150525-32555-1ylbbuc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/82848/original/image-20150525-32555-1ylbbuc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=392&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/82848/original/image-20150525-32555-1ylbbuc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=392&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/82848/original/image-20150525-32555-1ylbbuc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=392&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/82848/original/image-20150525-32555-1ylbbuc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=493&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/82848/original/image-20150525-32555-1ylbbuc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=493&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/82848/original/image-20150525-32555-1ylbbuc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=493&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Water likely won’t flow as freely forever.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/paul_garland/3494721184">Hadley Paul Garland</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/">CC BY-SA</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Globally, about <a href="http://www.fao.org/docrep/MEETING/004/Y6441e/Y6441e00.HTM">40% of the world’s total food supply</a> comes from irrigated land; in the US, the irrigated fraction of our agricultural land has <a href="http://www.agcensus.usda.gov/Publications/1997/History/history1997.pdf">reached 18%</a>, but this relatively small area produced half the total crop value. As the Earth’s population grows, demand for food will also grow. Only a tiny minority of the <a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/ird.170">required increase</a> in food production can come from expanding development of arable land, or by increasing the number and types of crops grown per year. The remaining must be met via <a href="http://www.fao.org/docrep/005/y4252e/y4252e00.htm">yield increases and better water-use efficiency</a>. </p>
<p>And as population increases, the demand for water for non-agricultural purposes will also grow. World water demand is <a href="http://www.globalwaterforum.org/2012/05/21/water-outlook-to-2050-the-oecd-calls-for-early-and-strategic-action/">projected to increase</a> by 55% between 2000 and 2050, and most of this increase will come from manufacturing, electricity production, and urban and domestic use. So in a drier world, getting the amount of water used by irrigation under control is a necessity. New technologies might go a long way toward helping us reach that goal.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/82841/original/image-20150525-32583-1a9bzgq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/82841/original/image-20150525-32583-1a9bzgq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/82841/original/image-20150525-32583-1a9bzgq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/82841/original/image-20150525-32583-1a9bzgq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/82841/original/image-20150525-32583-1a9bzgq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/82841/original/image-20150525-32583-1a9bzgq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=501&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/82841/original/image-20150525-32583-1a9bzgq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=501&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/82841/original/image-20150525-32583-1a9bzgq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=501&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Irrigation water that doesn’t make it to the crop’s roots is wasted.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/agrilifetoday/5012314598">Texas A&M AgriLife Research, Kay Ledbetter</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/">CC BY-NC-ND</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Using water or losing water?</h2>
<p>Irrigation can “lose” water in several ways. Water can seep out of reservoirs or transmission canals before it ever gets to the field. After water is applied to the crop in the field, some of it can percolate into the groundwater system, where it’s no longer available to the roots of the crop, or it might run off the field altogether. Water losses that happen in the field are called “on-farm” losses. Total losses, including seepage from reservoirs, canals and so on, are called “system” loses.</p>
<p>Over the past 50 years, several technologies have been developed to decrease on-farm <a href="http://www.cprl.ars.usda.gov/pdfs/Howell-Irrig%20Efficiency-Ency%20Water%20Sci.pdf">irrigation losses</a>. Precision land-leveling uses laser-guided equipment to level the field so that water will flow uniformly into the soil, not run down any little hills or collect in little gullies. It makes it easier to limit the amount of water that seeps beneath where the roots of the crop can reach.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/82846/original/image-20150525-32555-2qgwnr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/82846/original/image-20150525-32555-2qgwnr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/82846/original/image-20150525-32555-2qgwnr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=252&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/82846/original/image-20150525-32555-2qgwnr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=252&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/82846/original/image-20150525-32555-2qgwnr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=252&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/82846/original/image-20150525-32555-2qgwnr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=317&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/82846/original/image-20150525-32555-2qgwnr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=317&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/82846/original/image-20150525-32555-2qgwnr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=317&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Micro-subsurface drip irrigation applies water beneath the surface, increasing efficiency.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/usdagov/17017674883">US Department of Agriculture</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/">CC BY</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Compared to older, conventional furrow and flood application technologies, center pivot and other sprinkler methodologies and drip irrigation systems improve the uniformity of water application, reducing the amount of water lost to deeper percolation or runoff from the field. They’re expensive, though, and are done largely to reduce the costs of other inputs to production, such as labor. And they don’t necessarily result in significant improvements in overall efficiency, since they don’t address the losses that happen during storage, transmission and distribution of irrigation water.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/82851/original/image-20150525-32562-3l5h0h.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/82851/original/image-20150525-32562-3l5h0h.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/82851/original/image-20150525-32562-3l5h0h.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=464&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/82851/original/image-20150525-32562-3l5h0h.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=464&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/82851/original/image-20150525-32562-3l5h0h.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=464&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/82851/original/image-20150525-32562-3l5h0h.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=583&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/82851/original/image-20150525-32562-3l5h0h.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=583&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/82851/original/image-20150525-32562-3l5h0h.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=583&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">More data means more efficient water use. Different spectral band images, like this false-color infrared view of a field, can be combined to provide high-resolution information about surface temperature, water use, plant nutritional status, soil moisture and so forth.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Mac McKee</span>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/">CC BY-NC-ND</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Pinpointing water needs and availability</h2>
<p>Monitoring and information technologies are emerging that show promise for reducing water losses at both the system and farm levels.</p>
<p>For example, it’s now possible to use a supervisory control and data acquisition (SCADA) system to provide precise, integrated control over an entire irrigation system, in real time. A SCADA system automatically measures the amount of water available in reservoirs, quantities of water flowing in canals, and amounts of water being diverted onto fields. SCADA systems also can be used to easily and remotely control releases from reservoirs, diversions into canals and so forth. The users of a SCADA system – typically reservoir and canal operators, but also individual farmers – can easily see where all the water is and how it’s being used, and they can make better decisions for what to do next with respect to releases and diversions. There are several successful <a href="http://www.sevierriver.org">examples of such systems</a>, especially those based in internet communications and display of information.</p>
<p>Relatively few farmers or irrigation system operators currently use remote sensing as a source of information to reduce losses and improve irrigation efficiency. But this is likely to change as the cost of newly emerging technologies declines and as the information they produce becomes more readily available.</p>
<figure class="align-right zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/82843/original/image-20150525-32558-17f4kji.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/82843/original/image-20150525-32558-17f4kji.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/82843/original/image-20150525-32558-17f4kji.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=676&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/82843/original/image-20150525-32558-17f4kji.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=676&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/82843/original/image-20150525-32558-17f4kji.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=676&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/82843/original/image-20150525-32558-17f4kji.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=850&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/82843/original/image-20150525-32558-17f4kji.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=850&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/82843/original/image-20150525-32558-17f4kji.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=850&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">A farmer can access water stress information for an individual field, even via smartphone.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Alfonso Torres-Rua</span>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/">CC BY-NC-ND</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>For example, it is possible now to use satellite imagery to estimate quantities of water used in individual irrigated fields almost anywhere in the world. Such a system, developed here at the <a href="http://uwrl.usu.edu">Utah Water Research Laboratory</a> at Utah State University, is now available in the Lower Sevier Basin of Utah. It is a website that allows irrigators to see a season-long summary of water use and the soil moisture <a href="https://sites.google.com/a/aggiemail.usu.edu/lower-sevier-river/crop-health">status of their crop</a>. It allows individual farmers to monitor water consumption within a field and do a better job of planning future irrigation timing and quantities. The system also allows canal and reservoir operators to monitor total water use in the areas served and better anticipate future irrigation demands for the entire system.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/82844/original/image-20150525-32578-1gn69s3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/82844/original/image-20150525-32578-1gn69s3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/82844/original/image-20150525-32578-1gn69s3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=337&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/82844/original/image-20150525-32578-1gn69s3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=337&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/82844/original/image-20150525-32578-1gn69s3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=337&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/82844/original/image-20150525-32578-1gn69s3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=424&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/82844/original/image-20150525-32578-1gn69s3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=424&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/82844/original/image-20150525-32578-1gn69s3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=424&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">AggieAir UAS aircraft and launcher. Drones can be used for remote sensing of crop water use, soil moisture, and crop chlorophyll and nitrogen status.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Mac McKee</span>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/">CC BY-NC-ND</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>An exciting technology that’s in its infancy is the use of small unmanned autonomous systems (UAS) – or, more commonly, “drones” – to monitor agricultural systems, acquire scientific imagery and provide information for the operation of irrigation systems. Drones can also support more efficient fertilizer applications, weed and pest management, and harvesting. An example is the <a href="http://aggieair.usu.edu">AggieAir</a> UAS we’ve developed; we’re researching <a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/rs70302627">new methods to measure</a> agricultural water use at <a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jag.2015.03.017">very high spatial resolution</a>: 15 centimeters (6 inches), as opposed to the coarse, 30-meter resolution of Landsat satellite-based monitoring.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/82845/original/image-20150525-32586-1lix92w.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/82845/original/image-20150525-32586-1lix92w.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/82845/original/image-20150525-32586-1lix92w.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=584&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/82845/original/image-20150525-32586-1lix92w.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=584&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/82845/original/image-20150525-32586-1lix92w.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=584&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/82845/original/image-20150525-32586-1lix92w.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=734&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/82845/original/image-20150525-32586-1lix92w.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=734&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/82845/original/image-20150525-32586-1lix92w.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=734&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">AggieAir imagery can be used to derive estimates of daily water use of a crop – here grape plants in a vineyard – at very high spatial resolution.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Mac McKee</span>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/">CC BY-NC-ND</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>If drone technologies can be made affordable, they could potentially provide very valuable information about when and where to apply precise quantities of water to the crop. Farmers with the right irrigation technology could use this information to accurately apply irrigation water at varying rates throughout the field rather than the same rate everywhere, which can lead to waste.</p>
<h2>Managing in the future</h2>
<p>As water demand increases, the competition for a fixed water supply will become more difficult to manage, especially in arid and semi-arid parts of the world and places where populations will grow rapidly. Since water use in irrigated agriculture is generally very inefficient, and since the economic value of water for agriculture is typically much lower that it is for cities and industry, there will be a natural trend to reduce water allocation to agriculture in favor of other uses. It’s important for water managers and policymakers to understand these trade-offs and how alternative schemes for water allocation will have economic, environmental and social impacts.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/82849/original/image-20150525-32586-fl4dxh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/82849/original/image-20150525-32586-fl4dxh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/82849/original/image-20150525-32586-fl4dxh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/82849/original/image-20150525-32586-fl4dxh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/82849/original/image-20150525-32586-fl4dxh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/82849/original/image-20150525-32586-fl4dxh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=501&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/82849/original/image-20150525-32586-fl4dxh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=501&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/82849/original/image-20150525-32586-fl4dxh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=501&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Will a drier future mean farming – and irrigating – in conditions like those currently in Saudi Arabia?</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/nasamarshall/6964519965">NASA</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/">CC BY-NC</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>As climate change increases the uncertainty in future water supplies, water management institutions will need to operate with greater flexibility in order to respond effectively to shifts in both water demands and supplies. Remote sensing and information technologies will be two tools they can use to help fit agricultural uses into the larger, more complex total water puzzle.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/40601/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Mac McKee receives funding from various Federal sources that support academic research institutions. These include USDA, NASA, and water and natural resources management agencies in the State of Utah.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Alfonso Torres-Rua receives funding from from various Federal sources that support academic research institutions. These include USDA, NASA, and water and natural resources management agencies in the State of Utah.</span></em></p>The majority of water that people use goes to agriculture. In a drier, hungrier future, we’ll need to use what water we have with less waste. Technologies being developed now will help.Mac McKee, Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering and Director of Utah Water Research Laboratory, Utah State UniversityAlfonso Torres-Rua, Research Engineer at Utah Water Research Laboratory, Utah State UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/377392015-03-18T10:17:18Z2015-03-18T10:17:18ZFarmers of the future will utilize drones, robots and GPS<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/75105/original/image-20150317-22300-647w2i.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">A conceptual variable-rate fertilization system that would use sensors to determine how much fertilizer to apply in real-time.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">R Sui and J A Thomasson</span>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/">CC BY-NC-ND</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Today’s agriculture has transformed into a high-tech enterprise that most 20th-century farmers might barely recognize. </p>
<p>After all, it was only around 100 years ago that farming in the US transitioned <a href="https://books.google.com/books?id=3isuAAAAYAAJ&dq=Progress+of+farm+mechanization&lr=&source=gbs_navlinks_s">from animal power to combustion engines</a>. Over the past 20 years the global positioning system (GPS), electronic sensors and other new tools have moved farming even further into a technological wonderland.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/74989/original/image-20150316-9201-1vd9w34.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/74989/original/image-20150316-9201-1vd9w34.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/74989/original/image-20150316-9201-1vd9w34.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/74989/original/image-20150316-9201-1vd9w34.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/74989/original/image-20150316-9201-1vd9w34.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/74989/original/image-20150316-9201-1vd9w34.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/74989/original/image-20150316-9201-1vd9w34.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/74989/original/image-20150316-9201-1vd9w34.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">The cab of a contemporary tractor is a lot more complicated than it would have been even 20 years ago.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/unitedsoybean/9629677219">United Soybean Board</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/">CC BY</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Beyond the now de rigeur air conditioning and stereo system, a modern large tractor’s enclosed cabin includes computer displays indicating machine performance, field position and operating characteristics of attached machinery like seed planters. </p>
<p>And as amazing as today’s technologies are, they’re just the beginning. Self-driving machinery and flying robots able to automatically survey and treat crops will become commonplace on farms that practice what’s come to be called precision agriculture. </p>
<p>The ultimate purpose of all this high-tech gadgetry is optimization, from both an economic and an environmental standpoint. We only want to apply the optimal amount of any input (water, fertilizer, pesticide, fuel, labor) when and where it’s needed to efficiently produce high crop yields.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/75103/original/image-20150317-22305-lur64.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/75103/original/image-20150317-22305-lur64.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/75103/original/image-20150317-22305-lur64.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=423&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/75103/original/image-20150317-22305-lur64.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=423&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/75103/original/image-20150317-22305-lur64.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=423&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/75103/original/image-20150317-22305-lur64.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=531&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/75103/original/image-20150317-22305-lur64.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=531&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/75103/original/image-20150317-22305-lur64.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=531&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Field positions predefined on remotely sensed image that can be located in the field via GPS for sampling.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">source</span>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/">CC BY-NC-ND</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Global positioning gives hyperlocal info</h2>
<p>GPS provides accurate location information at any point on or near the earth’s surface by calculating your distance from at least three orbiting satellites at once. So farming machines with GPS receivers are able to recognize their position within a farm field and adjust operation to maximize productivity or efficiency at that location.</p>
<p>Take the example of soil fertility. The farmer uses a GPS receiver to locate preselected field positions to collect soil samples. Then a lab analyzes the samples, and creates a fertility map in a geographic information system. That’s essentially a computer database program adept at dealing with geographic data and mapping. Using the map, a farmer can then prescribe the amount of fertilizer for each field location that was sampled. Variable-rate technology (VRT) fertilizer applicators dispense just exactly the amount required across the field. This process is an example of what’s come to be known as precision agriculture.</p>
<h2>Info, analysis, tools</h2>
<p>Precision agriculture requires three things to be successful. It needs site-specific information, which the soil-fertility map satisfies. It requires the ability to understand and make decisions based on that site-specific information. Decision-making is often aided by computer models that mathematically and statistically analyze relationships between variables like soil fertility and the yield of the crop.</p>
<p>Finally, the farmer must have the physical tools to apply the management decisions. In the example, the GPS-enabled VRT fertilizer applicator serves this purpose by automatically adjusting its rate as appropriate for each field position. Other examples of precision agriculture involve varying the rate of planting seeds in the field according to soil type and using sensors to identify the presence of weeds, diseases, or insects so that pesticides can be applied only where needed.</p>
<figure class="align-right zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/75013/original/image-20150317-9176-396vmo.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/75013/original/image-20150317-9176-396vmo.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/75013/original/image-20150317-9176-396vmo.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=981&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/75013/original/image-20150317-9176-396vmo.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=981&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/75013/original/image-20150317-9176-396vmo.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=981&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/75013/original/image-20150317-9176-396vmo.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=1233&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/75013/original/image-20150317-9176-396vmo.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=1233&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/75013/original/image-20150317-9176-396vmo.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=1233&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Examples of remote sensing in agriculture, top to bottom: vegetation density, water deficit and crop stress.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Daedelus_comparison,_remote_sensing_in_precision_farming.jpg">Susan Moran/NASA</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Site-specific information goes far beyond maps of soil conditions and yield to include even satellite pictures that can indicate crop health across the field. Such remotely sensed images are also commonly <a href="http://www.ars.usda.gov/is/ar/archive/mar05/remote0305.htm">collected from aircraft</a>. Now unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs, or drones) can collect highly detailed images of crop and field characteristics. These images, whether analyzed visually or by computer, show differences in the amount of reflected light that can then be related to plant health or soil type, for example. Clear crop-health differences in images – diseased areas appear much darker in this case – have been used to delineate the presence of cotton root rot, a devastating and persistent soilborne fungal disease. Once disease extent is identified in a field, future treatments can be applied only where the disease exists. Advantages of UAVs include relatively low cost per flight and high image detail, but the legal framework for their use in agriculture remains under development. </p>
<h2>Let’s automate</h2>
<p>Automatic guidance, whereby a GPS-based system steers the tractor in a <a href="http://www.croplife.com/equipment/precision-ag/autosteer-systems-continue-to-evolve/">much more precise pattern</a> than the driver is capable of is a tremendous success story. Safety concerns currently limit completely driverless capability to smaller machines. Fully autonomous or robotic field machines have begun to be employed in small-scale high profit-margin agriculture such as wine grapes, nursery plants and some fruits and vegetables.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/75111/original/image-20150317-22264-1res18.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/75111/original/image-20150317-22264-1res18.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/75111/original/image-20150317-22264-1res18.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=396&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/75111/original/image-20150317-22264-1res18.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=396&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/75111/original/image-20150317-22264-1res18.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=396&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/75111/original/image-20150317-22264-1res18.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=497&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/75111/original/image-20150317-22264-1res18.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=497&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/75111/original/image-20150317-22264-1res18.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=497&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Ultrasonic and other sensors can detect individual-plant conditions at close range.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">R Sui and J A Thomasson</span>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/">CC BY-NC-ND</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p><a href="http://www.economist.com/node/15048711">Autonomous machines</a> can replace people performing tedious tasks, such as hand-harvesting vegetables. They use sensor technologies, including machine vision that can detect things like location and size of stalks and leaves to inform their mechanical processes. Japan is a trend leader in this area. Typically, agriculture is performed on smaller fields and plots there, and the country is an innovator in robotics. But autonomous machines are becoming more evident in the US, particularly in California where much of the country’s specialty crops are grown.</p>
<p>The development of flying robots gives rise to the possibility that most field-crop scouting currently done by humans could be replaced by UAVs with machine vision and hand-like grippers. Many scouting tasks, such as for insect pests, require someone to walk to distant locations in a field, grasp plant leaves on representative plants and turn them over to see the presence or absence of insects. Researchers are developing technologies to <a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s10846-011-9591-3">enable such flying robots</a> to do this without human involvement.</p>
<h2>Breeding + sensors + robots</h2>
<p><a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.pbi.2015.02.006">High-throughput plant phenotyping</a> (HTPP) is an up-and-coming precision agriculture technology at the intersection of genetics, sensors and robotics. It is used to develop new varieties or “lines” of a crop to improve characteristics such as nutritive content and drought and pest tolerance. HTPP employs multiple sensors to measure important physical characteristics of plants, such as height; leaf number, size, shape, angle, color, wilting; stalk thickness; number of fruiting positions. These are examples of phenotypic traits, the physical expression of what a plant’s genes code for. Scientists can compare these measurements to already-known genetic markers for a particular plant variety. </p>
<p>The sensor combinations can very quickly measure phenotypic traits on thousands of plants on a regular basis, enabling breeders and geneticists to decide which varieties to include or exclude in further testing, tremendously speeding up further research to improve crops.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/75015/original/image-20150317-9184-co460n.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/75015/original/image-20150317-9184-co460n.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/75015/original/image-20150317-9184-co460n.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=369&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/75015/original/image-20150317-9184-co460n.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=369&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/75015/original/image-20150317-9184-co460n.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=369&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/75015/original/image-20150317-9184-co460n.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=463&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/75015/original/image-20150317-9184-co460n.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=463&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/75015/original/image-20150317-9184-co460n.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=463&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Just another day on the future farm?</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/minhocos/13950908853">Mauricio Lima</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/">CC BY</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Agricultural production has come so far in even the past couple decades that it’s hard to imagine what it will look like in a few more. But the pace of high-tech innovations in agriculture is only increasing. Don’t be surprised if, 10 years from now, you drive down a rural highway and see a very small helicopter flying over a field, stopping to descend into the crop, use robotic grippers to manipulate leaves, cameras and machine vision to look for insects, and then rise back above the crop canopy and head toward its next scouting location. All with nary a human being in sight.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/37739/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Alex Thomasson has previously received funding related to this work from USDA, NASA, and USDOE.</span></em></p>Precision agriculture harnesses technology to help farmers grow more food using less water, fertilizer, pesticide, fuel and labor.Alex Thomasson, Professor of Biological and Agricultural Engineering, Texas A&M UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.