Bayer tractor field crops

How do you produce more food with fewer resources? The answer to that (multi) million-dollar question, according to crop science multinational Bayer, lies in precision agriculture.

With global population projected to rise 30 per cent by 2050, increased urbanisation reducing arable land for farming, and enormous pressure on water resources (by 2030 there won’t be enough to meet global needs, according to Bayer), the horticulture sector must harness so-called ‘smart’ technology and, ultimately, work in partnership with everyone in the supply chain to produce more in a sustainable way, Bayer told journalists at Fruit Logistica last week.

To that end, Bayer continues to roll out its ‘supply chain partnership’ initiatives in grower regions, where it helps connect all manner of technical experts with producers around the world, Bayer representatives said.

Jacqueline Applegate, global head of Bayer’s vegetable seed business, said: “It's essential to be sustainable in producing food. In the next 30 years we need to produce more food than we have ever produced over the last 1,000 years. How can we achieve this? By using pioneering technology… and partnerships.

“Digital transformation in the agriculture business will improve traceability as well as productivity,” she added. “But it's all about partnerships. It's very important to connect with everyone in the supply chain to realise sustainable production.”

Gal Yarden, senior vice president marketing, products and agronomy of Israeli irrigation specialist Netafim – a Bayer supply chain partner, said his firm’s digital platform for drip irrigation, nutrition and crop protection helps farmers around the world maximises productivity.

“We work with farmers and with ag-tech companies,” Yarden explained. “Our drip-by-drip system involves sensors connected to plants, which in turn are hooked up to The Cloud, which then tells farmers when and how much water, nutrition, crop protection to supply to their crops. Everything can be automated. This technology helps farmers apply the right amount of product in the right time. We have 500 initiatives globally, including in China and India.”

He told Fruitnet: “In India we are working with the government to subsidise drip irrigation for farmers. We have a community irrigation project involving 50,000 farmers where everything is digitised.”

Yarden noted that, thanks to the advent of digital technology, start-up companies are increasingly interested and dealing with agriculture.

“In terms of digital development, what took 100 years to take place in Europe, happened in ten years in Asia,” he said.