Innovation Showcase

We’re not just looking at a fourth “ agricultural revolution anymore – I believe we’ve started it.”

The revolution begins

Automation and AI in the world of agriculture are progressing at a jaw-dropping rate – with all signs pointing towards such tech becoming an imperative part of farming systems in the not-too-distant future. CPM finds out more.

By Charlotte Cunningham

Technical shows and events have long been the traditional place to debut new technology and kit in agriculture,and though COVID has prevented these launches during the majority of 2020, it hasn’t stemmed the thirst for progression.

However,there are often questions over how we take the technology from the show stand to the farm, and when it gets there,just how useful is it really going to be?

For Lincs grower,Andrew Ward,integrating new technology into his business has proved to be critical from both a crop production point of view,and financially.

Over the past few years,Andrew has been making use of a number of technologies,including on-farm weather stations to capture rainfall,humidity,and soil temperature,as well as GPS to help with tasks such as soil mapping.“When we look at the rainfall data we’ve gathered,it’s obvious that there’s a huge amount of variation,meaning this data is invaluable when it comes to planning on-farm activity.

“Looking at GPS,it’s not just for straight lines and making driving easier anymore –– it does actually have real potential to improve productivity and machinery capabilities.On farm,we’ve been mapping soil to GPS for the past eight years and it’s shown that we have incredibly variable soil.This data is then used to make decisions around cropping,so it’s crucial that we have access to this information.”

In conjunction with this,Andrew has also been making use of Bayer’s Climate FieldView system. “The software highlights which areas are lower yielding so we can investigate why this might be. Having data like this at our fingertips means we can take continuously lower yielding areas out of production and put it into more profitable environmental schemes.”

Though the investment in GPS can be costly,the value has proved to be colossal,with savings on Andrew’s wheat crop alone estimated at approximately £4800.“Thisis through savings from chemicals, fertiliser and seed by the reduced overlaps from using GPS on the sprayer –– instead of the operators own eyes judging when to switch on and off.The savings are far more if you include fuel in the cultivations and establishment,again because of less overlaps.”

So that’s where we are now with making use of the available technology,but where are we headed? Andrew believes the answer is simple –– robotics and automation.“We’re not just looking at a fourth agricultural revolution anymore –– I believe we’ve started it.”

It’s Andrew’s belief that the industry as a whole will have to become a lot less reliance on plant protection products over the coming years –– regardless of whether that’s due to resistance or legislation.

And while cultural techniques will help fill the gap,he reckons that making use of robotics will be game-changing.

Andrew Ward believes the UK will become less reliant on chemistry and more so on robotics in the not too distant future.

Satellite drought insurance solution

As growers continue to battle summer droughts that seem to have become a regular feature in the arable calendar,Mantle Labs –– a remote sensing company –– has signed up to the national SPRINT (Space Research and Innovation Network for Technology) business support programme to complete a major project to measure soil moisture in crop fields.

SPRINT funding will enable Mantle Labs to collaborate with the University of Surrey on a project that will integrate Earth observation satellite data and hydrological modelling to inform on field-specific soil moisture.

The University of Surrey will provide Mantle Labs with research expertise on hydrological models to complement the company’s Earth observation measurements.This soil moisture information will be integrated into Mantle Labs’ existing insurance platform to develop a new soil moisture-based drought insurance product.

The hope is that this will enable Mantle Labs to become the first remote sensing company in the world to offer end-to-end parametric index insurance products –– covering the entire spectrum of the agriculture industry,right from pre-sowing to harvest.

As a result,Mantle Labs will be able to provide insurers with historical satellite data,complemented by near real-time in season analysis,giving greater clarity of crop conditions on the ground.

Subsequently this will enable insurance companies to offer extremely cost-effective and affordable index-based insurance to small holder farmers.

The project will be funded by a grant from the £4.8M SPRINT programme that provides access to the University of Surrey’s space expertise and facilities.

“Through SPRINT,we are collaborating with leading researchers from the University of Surrey’s space programme,”says Jon Pierre,chief business officer at Mantle Labs.“Their expertise,enabled by the SPRINT funding,will help us to facilitate a unique and innovative insurance product,a real market first.

“Previously,due to a lack of historical agriculture data,crop failures caused by different perils were not covered by insurers in a cost-effective manner.This meant that the estimated 500M smallholder farmers throughout the world couldn’t get access to insurance. We will now be able to access soil moisture readings at a very granular level,helping farmers to access more affordable insurance and credit.”

A new project by Mantle Labs looks set to provide a drought insurance solution through the use of satellite data.

Andrew has been working alongside the Small Robot Company,as part of the farmer advisory board, and has trialled the “Tom”bot on farm.“We’ve had both version one and version two out on farm, capturing data and placing that data on a map.

“What’s great about SRC is that they’re looking at things on a per-plant basis,meaning these bots could become a really important part of the system.”

Providing this “per-plant intelligence”is SRC’s Wilma bot,which was recently launched in its commercial form at Agri-TechE’s REAP (Realising Economic Agricultural Potential) conference.

Wilma works by using the information collected by Tom,the scouting robot,on the health of the plant. If she identifies the plant as a weed, then Dick –– a non-chemical robotic weeder –– is dispatched to zap it.

Ben Scott-Robinson,CEO and co-founder of SRC, says that the robots are being trialled on three farms and their success is creating excitement among farmers that have invested in the technology. ▲

New AI is now able to interpret drone imagery to help farmers analyse broadacre crops.

▲ “Wilma creates a per-plant crop map and is then AI-enabled to recognise disease and the nutrient status of the plant,enabling precision weeding by the farmbots and,in the future,application of water, nutrients or fungicide as appropriate –– cutting chemical use and emissions.

“Wilma can direct Dick on the most effective course across the field.The robot then kills the weeds using the Rootwave technology,which is electric so there’s no problem with resistance.”

Good vibrations

As arable production continues to expand ––encompassing not only growing crops,but also protecting the wider environment,including pollinators –– a unique agri-tech start up is using IoT to monitor bee health.

By tapping into vibrations in the hive,the BeeSecure software able to listen into “conversations”ensuring that the bees are happy,healthy,and performing well.

Co-founder Roberto Pasi says the company can understand 10 main topics, quickly identifying issues.

BeeSecure is based in Italy and currently supports thousands of beehives across mainland Europe. It’s part of the European Institute of Innovation and Technology Food Accelerator Programme and has just started working with beekeeper associations and farmers in the UK.

Roberto inherited his passion for bees from his grandfather,who left him 20 hives a decade ago. “It started as a hobby,but then we got thinking bees are so important so why is there no technology to support beekeepers? There’s been a massive loss of bees in recent years and no one really knows the reason for this.”

BeeSecure uses IoT devices such as sensors to monitor the temperature,humidity,and sound.“We have a little microphone that is able to translate vibrations within the bee hive; it can’t pick up the individual conversations,but just like sitting in Old Trafford watching Manchester United,if somebody scores a goal,you’re really going to hear it,” explains Roberto.

“At the moment we can understand the 10 most important topics,from ‘the Queen is dead’ to ‘there are not enough flowers nearby’ and this is sufficient to determine a problem with the hive and understand the size of the colony.

“Additionally,bees maintain a constant temperature of 350C; if that suddenly changes

In a post-glyphosate world the ability to quickly kill pernicious weeds as they appear means that farmers don’t need to wait to drill and can take the opportunity to get crops started in the better weather in early autumn,he adds.“Our lightweight farmbot Harry will also be equipped to precision drill without damaging the soil.”

And it’s not just on the ground that robotics and AI is gaining traction,with new AI now able to interpret drone imagery to help farmers analyse broadacre crops.

Skippy Scout version 2.5,the mobile phone app created by Drone Ag,has been developed with unique AI to interpret images taken by a drone.“It was always our intention to develop the software to this stage and we are thrilled to have it ready for users to take advantage of this season,”says Drone Ag

that is a real alarm that something is wrong.”

Data from the hives can be viewed in real-time by the farmer and keeper via a secure app.

As the software begins to make its way to the UK,Roberto is keen to talk to UK farmers about the rental of beehives and the BeeSecure system and to find partners with specialist knowledge of bumblebees.

By tapping into vibrations in the hive, BeeSecure is a unique software able to listen into “conversations” ensuring that the bees are happy, healthy, and performing well.

founder,Jack Wrangham.

Automated analysis of drone imagery can detect the percentage of weeds compared to healthy crop, and count the number of plants/m2 . By analysing the images,the app can also detect disease and is capable of interpreting holes in leaves to highlight insect damage.“This is the most advanced crop scouting tool we have produced and is the culmination of years of development work,” says Jack.

The new version of the software will automatically fly a drone to scout fields five times faster than conventional methods.Using AI and satellite data it can then analyse the images to offer data and advice to the user.“Skippy can now count plants,measure healthy crop cover compared to weed cover,report on damaged crops and highlight insect damage,” he explains.

Satellite data is being fed to the app up to three times a week and appears on the user’s phone as a layer of information.“Users can import their own maps too,giving each a name so that year on year data can be compiled and compared,”says Jack. “The AI in Skippy is able to take all of this information to offer analysis and advice based on the data collected from the drone images,”he adds.

The data is subsequently presented in PDF reports that are automatically created by the app.“The reports are easy to understand and can be saved for future benchmarking and comparison,” he concludes.

Also honing in on the benefits of drone imagery is Hummingbird Technologies,who discussed the role tech can play in verifying sustainability activities –– for the purpose of carbon trading,regulatory reporting,and even premium pricing –– in a recent online webinar.

“As growers look to lower their inputs,we’ve become increasingly interested in measuring sustainability itself,”explains Will Wells,founder. “We can’t measure carbon from space yet, but there are all sorts of things we can do in the meantime.”

Hummingbird’s expertise is in imagery analysis, meaning it’s unable to measure factors such as diesel quantities used,so by connecting to other software platforms,users can extract that data.“We’re very much of the view that growers won’t have to log in individually to all of these platforms in the very near future,maybe in under a year.API integration between software will be able to do that for you. Backend integration unlocks value.”

On the sustainability front,Hummingbird are focusing on its “sustainability triad”which looks at: ● Facilitating optimised inputs:Microanalytic products to provide actionable insights to reduce agrochemical applications,mitigating run-off and leaching without affecting yields. ● Verifying sustainable practices:Detecting sustainable practices such as tillage and cover cropping can provide scalable and affordable verification –– subsequently unlocking carbon or supply chain credits. ● Automating sustainability reporting:Harmonising and digitalising a sustainability framework in order to improve transparency and disclosure as well as enhancing the ▲ Small Robot Company’s Wilma bot creates a per-plant crop map and is then AI-enabled to recognise disease and the nutrient status of the plant.

▲ understanding of how sustainability should be quantified and monitored

“On average,we facilitate about a 20% reduction in chemical applications and we’re working closely with the Sustainable Food Trust and LEAF on a project to automate modelling and sustainability reporting,using AI to benchmark outcomes.”

Through remote sensing and data analytics, Hummingbird’s goal is to facilitate,measure and monitor sustainability in food production,and has tools such as tillage and crop residue detection –– as well as benchmarking biomass and performance analytics –– in its armoury already.“Within the tillage and crop residue detection algorithm,we’re able to measure the centimetres of crop residue left on the surface after a tillage event,meaning we’re able to distinguish between conservational tillage,min-till or no-till and we’re able to pinpoint the event.

“We’re doing this in the US and Australia at the moment where they have mature carbon credits available to anyone who can prove they’ve switched tillage intensity,retrospectively.

“The environment is changing a lot –– we’ve got one eye on Defra and ELMs and another on what’s happening in the US and Australia,knowing that markets follow each other.

Hummingbird Technologies are working closely with the Sustainable Food Trust and LEAF on a project to automate modelling and sustainability reporting,using AI to benchmark outcomes.

“We’re learning every season,and it doesn’t matter as much where the initial analysis work is done, but it’s about creating a better understanding and looking at what can be done objectively,cost-effectively and remotely.”

Collaboration to accelerate smart farming solutions

Some time since the initial collaboration was announced,last month Bosch and BASF signed a joint venture agreement to market and sell smart farming solutions from a single source –– helping farmers to benefit from automated,agronomic solutions.

The first two products to be launched will be a version of the Intelligent Planting Solution (IPS) system,with enhanced digital intelligence for seeding and fertiliser rates, and Smart Spraying.

The Smart Spraying solution combines Bosch’s camera sensor technology and software with xarvio’ s crop optimisation platform.Both products have been tested extensively in real growing conditions.

Depending on the local conditions this may lead to a reduced need for crop protection products in specific applications, with Smart Spraying showing up herbicide reductions of up to 70% herbicide in the experimental stage.

The solution is expected to be launched with a limited number of machines in 2021.

Autonomous hydroponics

Though hydroponics divide opinions,the benefits of such systems have been raised time and time again as part of the solution to feeding a growing population.

And the technological advances in this area of the market are truly remarkable,including the recent launch of a new project to develop an autonomous, hydroponic system centered around a novel hydrogel growing media.

The GelPonics project is a collaboration between start-up AEH Innovative Hydrogel,robotics experts Labman Automation and Crop Health and Protection (CHAP),supported by the Graphene Engineering and Innovation Centre of Manchester University,Grobotic Systems,and Stockbridge Technology Centre.

The project is funded by Innovate UK’s Transforming Food Production challenge:‘Science and Technology into Practice’ and is planned to run for 26 months –– commencing on 1 Sept this year.

In place of soil,hydroponic systems generally use a substrate,such as rock wool,coir,or peat,to support plant roots and facilitate water and nutrient uptake. However,as all these substrate options are unsustainable,they tend to be the largest contributor to the carbon footprint of vertical farming or glasshouse production.

With global controlled environment production expanding significantly,it’s essential that alternatives are sought that can decarbonise agriculture –– while meeting grower specifications –– and,crucially, competing on price,says CHAP.

GelPonics technology is claimed to improve the sustainability of production and,by optimising inputs and crop resilience,cut operational expenditure.

As well as being recyclable,the hydrogel product can be reused locally as a soil amendment to help sequester carbon.It also has substantial export potential in dry form to countries with water scarcity.

According to CHAP,the project will be delivered in three principal phases:

Phase 1 will optimise the hydrogel formulation and shift-changer nutrient delivery system, encompassing a “state-of-the-art”graphene membrane, alongside industry analysis.

Phase 2 will focus on prototyping trials in CHAP’s Vertical Farming Development Centre,and STC’s LED Tomato Glasshouse,to optimise plant growth within the GelPonics system.System development will combine sensors with automation to create a fully automated rig for the hydrogel substrate,integrated with renewable energy.

Phase 3 will deliver a full,semi-commercial trial of the GelPonics system for both leafy green and tomato production,as well as demonstrating the technology and its potential for low-carbon horticulture.

“There’s a significant market demand for more sustainable hydroponic substrates,”says CHAP innovation network lead,Dr Harry Langford.“This project is an exciting opportunity to optimise and scale-up a novel hydrogel product and demonstrate this product directly to the end-user,within an automated production system”.

As we move towards the “ era of greater good, digital technology going to be fundamental in future-proofing farms.”

Future-proofing with precision

Precision farming technology has revolutionised agriculture, giving growers access to everything from GPS to variable rate mapping. CPM delves into the detail behind some of the most game-changing innovations on the market.

By Charlotte Cunningham

Though much is unknown about how exactly the future of farming in the UK will look and work,everything we do know is pointing to the fact that greater resilience and sustainability are going to be core principles of viable businesses.

Of course, resilience and sustainability can mean many things, and future-proofing systems can’t be done by simply changing one aspect, however, precision farming technology and making better use of the data it generates present a good place to start.

Such is the view of Nicholas Saphir, the new chair of AHDB, who emphasised the importance of UK agribusiness being competitive –– and how the productivity gap between the best and worst farmers can be narrowed by making better use of benchmarking and data –– at the Agribusiness conference last month.

“These are exciting times, but it’s also going to be a period where uncertainty is going to rule and we’re going to have to find ways of being nimble and dealing with it.

“Farm success requires good agronomy and business acumen. The best farmers make more [money] and the worst do not. We must drive unnecessary costs out of the system.”

While potentially a controversial statement, it does open the discussion to just how best we can drive these “unnecessary costs” out of the system and what tools are on hand to help growers do so.

At the heart of precision farming is complex data-collection software, and while these platforms regularly face criticism for their lack of smooth two-way data transfer, progress is being made with the commercial launch of DataConnect –– the cloud-based system that enables the exchange of machinery data between Claas, 365FarmNet and John Deere.

DataConnect enables the exchange of essential machinery data between different platforms, to allow users to view all of their mixed-brand fleet information within the single data platform of their choice. Previously, viewing such information required duplicating effort by using each manufacturer’s corresponding but separate platforms or web portals.

According to Deere, the structure of this new direct cloud-to-cloud solution enables a seamless and automated data flow without any effort required by the customer. The real-time data exchange allows a live overview of the whole machinery fleet. Furthermore, DataConnect works without any additional hardware and software components and ensures secure data handling.

With this new approach, customers can view five different machinery data sets for their fleet: ● Current machine location ● Historical machine location ● Fuel tank level ● Status of the machine in the field ● Machine speed

Customers can decide which company’s digital platform they prefer to use, to display all the data. As soon as they are connected, other manufacturers’ machines appear automatically. Machines are either displayed with icons in the respective brand’s colour combination or are visible in the icon’s information panel.

As well as this, Deere recently announced updates to its Operation Centre –– designed to make the system “even smarter” and more compatible.

“Thanks to a new function, with just a few clicks all processes can be adjusted in the Operations Centre –– even after fieldwork is finished,” explains Chris Wiltshire, marketing

Inspiration from Africa

In a record-breaking announcement last month, Africa has become the first continent to chart soil fertility in every single field –– the benefits of which are thought to have the potential to boost livelihood and human health across 54 nations.

The map has been produced by iSDA,a social enterprise founded by three research institutes –– Rothamsted Research,World Agroforestry and the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture.

Their hope is to tackle the major human health challenges caused by food grown in poor quality soil,including the estimated 1.1M child deaths caused each year by malnutrition.

“For the first time,farm level soil data is now available for the entire African continent,”says Dr Jonathan Crouch,CEO of iSDA.“With an ever-growing demand for food,it’s critical that we find ways to increase productivity in sustainable ways that also allow millions of smallholders to improve their livelihoods.

“If we know the current status of essential soil nutrients,we can maximise productivity, profitability and environmental benefits.”

From the Tunisian coast,all the way to the Cape –– some 5000 miles away –– the iSDA soil map charts the continent’s 3.4M square miles of potential agricultural land in unrivalled detail at roughly 24bn locations.

It means that for every single field on the continent,vital information such as the acidity, organic content,and nutrient levels of the soil is now available.This can help advise farmers in a number of different areas,such as yield forecasting,crop suitability and fertiliser application.

It also marks the first time an entire continent’s soil has been studied to this level of detail and raises real hopes for much improved harvests –– and subsequently,the health, livelihoods,and food security of more than a billion people.

“Soils are fundamental to life on earth, but knowledge about African soil has been incomplete and out-dated,” adds Dr Matt Miller, lead data scientist at iSDA.“In order to continue to feed the fast-growing population sustainably, there is an urgent need to generate accurate, up-to-date soil health information to support agricultural development,environmental sustainability and fight climate change.”

Africa has become the first continent to chart soil fertility in every single field.

manager at John Deere UK and Ireland. “This allows farmers to manage operations just as flexibly as with a field book.

“If the tractor driver has accidentally documented the wrong crop variety during drilling, for example, this can easily be corrected later on.”

Further adjustments are also possible for worked area, plant protection products, tank mixtures, harvest year and crop calibration on the combine, among others. In the free MyOperations app, operators can also ▲

▲ add data if they have forgotten to start the documentation or if the machine is not able to record data.

For customers with mixed fleets, the Operations Centre offers several options to import external data, says Chris. “For example, most common third-party displays can be connected using the respective ‘in-house’ format.

“Alternatively, data from machines with displays documenting the fieldwork in ISOXML format can be imported into the Operations Centre via a USB stick. This also works with historic machine data if it is still available somewhere else, for example saved on a computer hard drive.”

Even machines without a telematics system can be included in fleet management by using the optional location-sharing function within the MyOperations app. This function can be activated by the driver and uses the smartphone’s position to determine the machine’s location.

One of the UK’s biggest digital specialists, Farmplan, also recently announced a major update, which the firm claim will help growers unlock a decade’s worth of data.

The Business Manage update will allow users to view and analyse up to ten years’ worth of their data in just a click, giving farmers the chance to unlock extra value without requiring any additional input.

Business Manager users are now able to compare figures over a 10-year span both as profit and loss, and cashflow. Before, it was only possible to create comparisons between the current and previous year.

According to Farmplan, with this greater access comes greater insight –– meaning farm businesses can measure their performance in the long-term and make more informed decisions as a result.

Behind the scenes, small tweaks have also made importing and exporting of data simpler.

Invoices and journals can be For customers with mixed fleets, John Deere’s Operations Centre offers several options to import external data.

imported directly via CSV file ––with members of North Herts Farmers now able to import their information directly, along with AF Group and Fram Farmers members –– eliminating the need to enter data manually, saving time and resources.

And from one of the UK’s largest providers, to an interesting start-up firm that enables collaborative working to establish best use of land assets.

Showcased at Agri-TechE’s recent REAP conference, the Land App is a digital mapping platform that enables land managers to benefit from new agri-environmental schemes, connect with Natural Capital investors and design integrated estate plans that support best practice.

The company was founded by Tim Hopkin in 2015 out of personal frustration when he struggled to save the family farm. “I was trying to work out how best to use the land assets to stop us having to sell the farm and found the available information so fragmented. So, we started to develop software that would help pull all the data together.”

Not only did this enable Tim to keep the farm but now he has created a thriving business. “Our main objective with The Land App is to support the development of the natural capital market and the transition to agri-environmental schemes by improving decision-making. The platform facilitates the land management sector to work collaboratively and transfer land

data more effectively.”

Looking at the technical side of things, the platform allows growers to pull in data such as boundaries, registry titles, Ordnance Survey data and Defra designations, and to build projects and schemes that support diversification by including farming and environmental activities, energy generation and alternative land uses.

And the real selling point? The platform is collaborative, allowing consultants and land managers to work together in real time to deduce the most effective use of the land assets.

“If an organisation is looking to fund new interventions in the landscape, such as a water company improving river quality or the Woodland Trust encouraging tree planting, we have so many land managers using the platform that we are able to inform them quickly of these opportunities,” explains Tim. “The software acts as a bridge between these multiple stakeholders in the land management sector to keep everyone on the same page and moving in the same direction.”

On the machinery front, while cost is undeniably a huge hurdle to overcome, particularly for smaller farms, the investment can bring a significant reward, according to Alessio Quatraro –– connected services manager with Case IH’s parent company, CNH Industrial.

Alessio believes that with costs of inputs such as fuel, fertiliser and crop protection products continuing to rise, and wastage having cost and environmental impacts, both cropping and grassland farms –– regardless of their size –– can quickly recoup the cost of specifying or adding precision technology when ordering or upgrading tractors.

“Reduction in overlapping from the use of guided steering offers potentially significant savings in fuel and inputs such as seeds and fertiliser.

“But there are further benefits to be gained. For example, automated steering systems controlled by GPS improve accuracy and safety at night or in poor visibility. For grassland work such as fertiliser spreading where previous passes are hard to detect and measure against, they also ▲

One to watch for...

Telus –– the firm that recently acquired Muddy Boots –– has recently launched Telus Agriculture,a new business unit with high aims to digitally transform global food systems.

According to the firm, Telus Agriculture optimises the food value chain by leveraging data in new ways to increase efficiency,production,and yields,delivering better food outcomes for businesses and the end consumers.As well as Muddy Boots’ involvement,Hummingbird Technologies has also partnered with the new division,increasing access for UK growers to this global platform.

At present,Telus Agriculture supports more than 40M ha of agricultural land, backed by a team of more than 1200 experts across Canada,the USA,Mexico, Brazil,the UK,Slovakia,Armenia,Germany, China, and Australia. “From farm to fork, by digitising the entire value chain and linking these technologies together for the first time, we will facilitate a secure exchange of information to allow farmers, agri-business organisations,the agri-food industry and the consumer to make smarter decisions”says Darren Entwistle, president and CEO of Telus.“Importantly, we are striving to provide innovative solutions to advance the agriculture sector on a worldwide basis.” The Land App was founded by Tim Hopkin in 2015 out of personal frustration when he struggled to save the family farm [photo:The Land App]

▲ make pass-to-pass accuracy of application simple.

And the more accurate the GPS signal used, the greater are the potential benefits to be gained, he adds. “While a basic GPS signal with 10-15cm repeatability will allow auto-steering systems to make parallel passes sufficiently accurate for tasks such as manure spreading, an RTK correction signal and the 2.5cm repeatability it provides offers the possibility of adopting controlled traffic, with the same tractor field paths used year-on-year, minimising soil compaction and maximising crop growth potential.”

Not only does the pass-to-pass accuracy of GPS guided auto-steering reduce fuel consumption and improve work rates, but the reduction in tiredness and increase in focus means more productive and also safer operation, particularly important for those working alone, he says.

Looking at this on a practical scale, Alessio explains that mid-range tractors such as a Case IH Maxxum or Puma –– most frequently seen on medium-sized arable farms –– are typically less likely to have been ordered with auto-steering. “These tractors –– and the implements they work with –– could be significantly more productive for their owners if specified with such systems.

“For example, by specifying

How big is your footprint

Not only does precision farming technology have the potential to improve productivity,but it can also help to curb the environmental impact of agriculture on the wider environment.

And in terms of carbon counting,AHDB has launched its first wave on-farm carbon footprinting,to help growers get a better understanding of just how much impact they’re having.

Chosen to represent a range of regions, systems and sectors,a total of 40 strategic and monitor farms will be the first to be assessed to determine their carbon footprint.

The assessments started last month, carried out by SAC Consulting and ADAS and will run until Mar 2021, with results leading to bespoke mitigation measures in detailed carbon action plans.

“The assessments are essentially the gathering of information –– to identify and quantify all activities or inputs on farm that come with a carbon footprint,”says Dr Jonathon Foot,AHDB’s head of environment.“This can be anything from diesel,electricity,feed,and fertiliser and so on.

“Once this is established,we can then calculate the carbon to output ratio,i.e.how much carbon is being emitted per unit of output. This will then be assessed or benchmarked to determine where savings lie,and a bespoke plan created.

“Mitigation activities for arable could be as simple as changing cultivation routes to save on fuel or manure application times to optimise nutrient absorption.”

Tim Isaac director of knowledge exchange at AHDB,adds that farmer input and actions are where the success lies.

“Implementing changes on farm can sometimes be a challenge and concerns are often raised about cost implications and wider impacts on productivity.However,evidence generally points towards ‘better for the environment equals better for businesses, so there are potentially benefits to be had all around.

“The key part of these assessments will be the identification of the specific measures the individual farms can take –– while some will be unique to each one, we also expect some common themes to emerge.This will allow us to develop case studies and share practical tips and learnings widely through our knowledge exchange activity”.

The first cohort of farms will consist of 13 cereal and oilseed growers and the initial wave offers a springboard for more activity to be launched under the new five-year AHDB strategy being published later this year, says AHDB.

DataConnect enables the exchange of essential machinery data between different platforms,to allow users to view all of their mixed-brand fleet information within the single data platform of their choice.

‘AccuGuide-ready’ when ordering such a tractor it will come with the necessary electrical and hydraulic components.

“It’s then possible to either specify the AccuGuide components, minimising installation time –– the AFS terminal, navigation controller and AFS 372 receiver –– to be delivered installed on the tractor, or to add them at a later date.

“Alternatively, the AccuGuide-complete option means a new Case IH tractor comes fully equipped with AccuGuide from the factory, allowing the user to take full advantage of auto-guidance from the day of delivery, using the armrest-mounted AFS 700 terminal.”

Recent Case IH developments have combined the functions of the independent HMC II headland management and AccuTurn automatic headland turn systems to create AccuTurn Pro headland turn management –– fully automating operations at both ends and enhancing comfort and efficiency, says Alessio.

“With HMC II, once the driver has performed the simple process of programming a sequence of headland operations via time or distance –– such as disengaging 4wd, raising the implement and switching off the PTO –– a simple button press at the headland means all the programmed operations then occur automatically in sequence, with the reverse also possible when re-entering work. And it’s now possible to upgrade to AccuTurn Pro, which combines this with automated headland turning.”

Case IH AccuGuide-equipped tractors can receive a range of guidance correction, from the free EGNOS signal with its 20-25cm pass-to-pass repeatability, through Range Point RTX (15cm accuracy) to RTK + (2.5cm).

The repeatability provided by enhanced levels of accuracy also means that, for example, the same wheel tracks can be used when spreading fertiliser or liquid manure onto grassland, minimising trafficking of the land. Other possibilities include use of the same A-B lines when inter-row weeding a row crop that were originally set when it was established, he adds.

“Ultimately, there is a range of guidance technology that can bring benefits for small to medium-sized farms, particularly those with tractors run by owner-operators. These are systems that can return significant potential rewards for their investment.”

For anyone still on the fence about whether or not precision technology is worth the investment, Bayer launched a free trial of its FieldView in April this year –– with growers still able to sign up until 31 Dec.

Bayer’s Max Dafforn says having access to these free trials are important as it helps for the trialists to see the full potential of digital technology. “We know from talking to farmers that many have lots of data but applying that to improve decision making doesn’t always follow. We want to make sure that those trialling Climate FieldView realise the capability of the platform to bring all their data together and then allow them to translate that into farm management decisions.

“Obviously, some growers are reticent of digital technology. But as we move towards the era of greater good it is going to be fundamental in future proofing farms.”

Precision forage from New Holland

Available on all foragers for the 2021 season, New Holland has introduced a factory fit of a near-infrared spectroscopy (NIR) sensor,which will be fully integrated within the base unit.

The sensor is DLG certified for the measurement of moisture in maize,and will be able to measure key parameters such as crop nutrition,moisture content,starch, ADF,NDF and ash,explains Ian Bourke, product specialist at New Holland. “The sensors mean on-the-go analysis is possible.For anaerobic sites in particular, having access to this information is key for profiling their clamp and ensuring forage consistency.” Case IH developments have combined the functions of the independent HMC II headland management and AccuTurn automatic headland turn systems to create AccuTurn Pro headland turn management.

Incurring downtime making “ repairs is not an option.”

Custom-built success

Machinery On Farm Opinion

Purchasing new kit is a big decision on-farm,with many different factors to consider. CPM finds out how one farmer ticks all of his boxes with a custom approach. By Charlotte Cunningham

When you’re in the market for a new bit of kit, whatever it may be, drilling down into the spec can be an overwhelming task.

Not only is there a tantalising feast of features on offer, but there’s also the challenge of matching a machines ability and functionality to your business objectives, to ensure every penny spent will work to bring a tangible return on investment.

So how do you strike the right balance?

For Leicestershire farmer, Leigh Donger, investing in a custom-built sprayer has been key to ensuring all of the right boxes are ticked.

If you were to visit Leigh at Peacock Farm –– deep in the Vale of Belvior ––you’re likely to see more than just crops and kit.

As well as producing over 607ha of arable crops, the fifth-generation farm is a hub for diversification, growing and producing “local produce with low food miles” including honey, from the on-site hives of bees, and cold-pressed rapeseed oil, as well as hampers for Christmas gifting and a busy livery yard.

Incredibly busy

And so with an incredibly busy schedule, having robust, high performing kit for the crop production side of things has always been a priority says Leigh. “With so much going on at the farm, having kit that works when we need it to is crucial. For us, incurring downtime making repairs is not an option.”

When it comes to reliable sprayer options, Chafer has been the farm’s brand of choice for the past 15 years, says Leigh. “In 2005 a self-propelled Rogator 618, with a 30m Chafer spray pack and a 6000-litre tank, was charged with keeping on top of the spraying,” he explains. “But having a dedicated sprayer meant that too much pressure was being put on the existing tractor fleet at busy periods.

“The Rogator was an excellent machine, but we felt we didn’t have enough land to justify a dedicated sprayer and we needed to be able to use the tractor unit for other jobs if needed.”

As a result, the decision was made to trade in the self-propelled sprayer and replace it with a trailed machine so the tractor could be utilised elsewhere when workload pressure was at its peak.

In 2011 a second-hand trailed 40m Sentry with a 6000-litre tank on RTK arrived on the farm, and three years later, this was converted to 30m as the farm shifted its priorities to move towards a controlled traffic farming system, explains Leigh.

In light of changing needs and further adjustments to the business’ management strategy last year, Leigh decided to replace the existing 30m Chafer Sentry with a brand new 30m Sentry with 6000-litre capacity.

“We had no issues with the Sentry when it was 40m, but it was too big for many of our fields, plus we wanted to work towards a CTF system,” he explains. “In fact, we’d had so few problems with it that I was reluctant to change, but as a business, we

had a focus on ensuring optimum nozzle to boom height, so the new 30m model with triple-folding boom and RTK fits our system much better.”

As well as continued performance from Chafer machines, Leigh says the ability to build custom kit with the firm has been a huge decider in staying loyal to the brand. “We’ve never really looked at other sprayer brands because Chafer has always made a bespoke machine for us.

“When it came to our latest purchase, I basically just gave them a shopping list of features I wanted to have on the machine and they were able to do it for me –– something I’ve never found with competitors.”

Steering axle

One of the main things Leigh wanted was an alternative steering axle. “The standard axle that came with the Sentry had a silent bush system, but I wanted something different and Chafer were able to do this for me. When I spoke to other manufacturers, this wasn’t something they were prepared to discuss.”

An air purge system was also a must-have custom feature. Aimed at reducing wash-out times and chemical dead volumes, Chafer’s AirPurge system uses compressed air to expel the maximum amount of liquid from the plumbing and spray lines at the end of a tank load. An icon automatically appears on the screen at low tank levels, and once selected, the additional air tanks are used to propel liquid from the nozzles.

“An automatic purge system feature at the beginning of the spraying procedure also means that the pipes are full so there’s no time lag when you start spraying,” adds Leigh.

On the technical side of things, Leigh was also keen to include a digital touch screen system for operating the sprayer. “Chafer fitted an iPad type touchscreen to the side of the sprayer and I was then able to choose what buttons I needed and where I wanted to put them, meaning I’m able to operate the sprayer exactly how I want to.”

Turning to the nuts and bolts, just how does this latest Sentry sprayer compare to its predecessor?

A new sprayer-mounted gyroscope operates the steering axle, with no physical connection to the sensor now required, helping to reduce the time taken mounting the sprayer.

The most noticeable advantage is the new boom-levelling system, something that’s particularly impressed Leigh. “ We really like the new Norac UC7 boom

ePlumbing,the manufacturer’s own fully automated filling,rinsing and dilution system, has been designed to maximise efficiency by reducing downtime and removing the chance of error. Having a bespoke sprayer has proved crucial to Leics farmer,Leigh Donger.

Tailored to you

Leigh’s custom-built approach isn’t unique to Chafer,and the firm’s ethos is centred around creating bespoke sprayers to ensure every business priority is satisfied,explains the firm’s Joe Allen.“The sprayer market is particularly competitive,so by offering this bespoke approach,we can promise to deliver in every sale.”

So,how do you decide on a specification?

Size and capacity are understandably the main priorities when looking at a new machine on any farm,with a wide variety of factors effecting the choices made,explains Joe.“The total cropped area, sizing of given blocks of land, and the ability for varying soil types to carry the machine are all discussed when choosing a tank size.Where customers are running a bowser,obviously sprayer capacities can be reduced, lowering the overall weight and compaction in the field.”

Along with capacity,boom width is also one of the key considerations, with field sizing and the ability to spread solid fertilisers among the factors that ought to be considered.“At Chafer we continue to see the trend of customers moving to wider booms to improve work rates,timeliness and often to fit in with a CTF system.”

However,this isn’t always the case,and sometimes widths can be pushed too far at the detriment of work rates. “In initial conversations with customers we can provide tools to show expected work rates at certain forward speeds, the effects of cropped area changes, and estimate the effects these amendments have on returns,”explains Joe.“But there is a huge availability of different booms within the Chafer range which balance overall weight with durability.”

One of the main drivers behind increasing work rates –– while optimising application accuracy –– has been advancements in boom-levelling systems, he adds.“Chafer can supply various options with the Norac UC7 ‘Active Roll’ system offering what we believe is the most advance levelling system available. It ensures boom height is maintained regardless of topography to minimise drift and maximise product efficacy.

“Available in three or five sensor versions, UC7 uses ultrasonics and accelerometers to control the boom,adjusted through the independent incline cylinders and the centre frame. It’s that additional reaction in the centre carriage that has really advanced the contour following and the system’s ability to deal with larger tramline undulations.”

When it comes to sprayer specification,it’s precision farming technology and GPS that are high on customers wish lists,with many farms having settled on their brand of choice,believes Joe. “Both trailed and self-propelled machines can be specified with any manufacturers GPS equipment, so customers are able to choose from Topcon,Raven,Greenstar,TeeJet etc.

“We can provide advice on what’s most suitable, but often a farm has aligned itself with one particular brand and this helps with machine familiarity when it arrives on farm ––fully fitted in the factory with their control system of choice.”

Another point worth noting is that Chafer choose not to align themselves with any one particular supplier of plumbing and nozzle body components.This allows customers to choose from single, twin and quad spray-line options, offering automatic line switching to vary application rates and nozzle type on the move, says Joe. “Pulse width modulation has allowed us to improve application accuracy further still, with operators being able to make use of specific exact droplet sizing and maintain that, regardless of forward speed. Built-in turn compensation and individual nozzle control are part of this system and these are popular with customers looking to improve applications and reduce inputs on even the most difficult of field shapes.”

Like many manufacturers,the options list is a long one,with lighting,mud guarding,electronic plumbing systems and stainless-steel belly sheets to mention just a few.“We try to understand each customer’s requirements, whether that’s the layout of their filling area, crop rotation or comparisons with an existing machine.It’s at this point that we can come across one-off issues that require some modification to the standard list of components, but with our own in-house design and engineering departments,these can be solved and a custom solution provided.”

This flexibility has led to some interesting custom machines over the years such as 6000-litre twin tank trailed machines, pineapple sprayers for Costa Rica,and the company’s range of de-icing equipment,but more often than not changes are applicable to other customers too.“Often a customer’s one-off request is picked up by other growers so becomes a standard option for the future,” concludes Joe.

According to Leigh,the most noticeable advantage on the latest Sentry sprayer is the new boom-levelling system.

▲ levelling system,” he says. “Our old sprayer had Chafer’s own levelling system which worked really well, but it was limiting in its performance in that it was slow to react to topographical changes. The new Chafer ‘F’ type boom and hydraulic system coupled with Norac is so much quicker to react.”

Chafer has also realigned the stainless-steel tank on the new Sentry, which means it sits about 40cm lower on the frame and it’s wider than the previous

Chafer customers can choose from a shopping list of features,including FieldVision boom lighting.

Chafer’s ethos is centred around creating bespoke sprayers to ensure every business priority is satisfied,says Joe Allen.

With an incredibly busy schedule,having robust,high performing kit for the crop production side of things has always been a priority at Peacock Farm.

version. “This improves sprayer stability –– especially with the bigger tanks –– when travelling at speed or on slopes, and in turn this makes it feel safer and easier to operate.”

Chafer has made some subtle changes to the triple boom folding height, which now sits much lower to the side of the tank. According to Leigh, this has been particularly useful when going under low hanging trees or backing into sheds.

“Chafer has even thought about the position and functionality of the induction hopper,” he says. “On our old machine it was on a fixed height so would often hit the crop. The new induction hopper works off a hydraulic cylinder which comes out and up when required for filling, and then neatly tucks back underneath out of the way when not in use.”

Chafer’s Sentry is also fitted with ePlumbing, the manufacturer’s own fully automated filling, rinsing and dilution system and has been designed to maximise efficiency by reducing downtime and removing the chance of error.

“The ePlumbing feature has made washout a simple procedure now. It’s fully automatic and runs to a set programme,” explains Leigh. “Our operator decides how long to clean for; the exact water quantities needed, and which part of the sprayer to clean.”

Another important priority for the farm is operator comfort and safety and Chafer doesn’t disappoint in this area either, he concludes. “Whereas in the past, commands were mostly mechanically driven, they are now electric. Two monitors (one in the cab and one on the outside) control every sprayer function, with the Topcon GPS system providing extremely accurate rate and section control over 16 boom sections.” ■

Farm facts

Peacock Farm,Muston,Leics ● Arable area: 607ha ● Cropping: Winter wheat; winter beans; spring wheat; spring OSR, spring oats and spring beans. ● Soil type: Medium to heavy clay. ● Mainline tractors: Massey

Ferguson 8690; 7726; 7626,

John Deere 6920; 6410 with a loader. ● Combine: Claas Lexion. ● Cultivation equipment:

Farmet Softer 6, Vaderstad

Rapid, Horsch Sprinter,

Kverneland tine seeder,

Horsch Terrano FG.

We want Helix to be seen “ as the proofing ground for new technology.”

Innovation Digital Direction It’s in its DNA

As technology continues to break down the barriers of modern-day farming, CPM finds out how Hutchinsons’ Helix initiative is facilitating the next stage of progress. By Charlotte Cunningham

Over the past decade,the industry has trodden carefully into the world of digital agriculture,but now it seems we’re finally standing on solid ground,with some remarkable progress being made right across the sector.

And as growers continue their journey into this revolutionary way of farming, Hutchinsons is ensuring the next stage of progress can be made within its Helix farming initiative, which has a hard focus on adding value to growers’ bottom line through technology.

If you’re not familiar with the initiative, Helix has positioned itself as a one-stop shop when it comes to offering guidance and advice on using reliable, worthwhile technology on farm, explains Stuart Hill, head of technology and innovation, who has been a driving force in the project. “Fundamentally, Helix is all about adding value to the bottom line. It’s about taking technologies, developing them, gaining an understanding of the information they can generate and then delivering actions that can add value, pounds, and pence to that bottom line.

Technology with potential

“Essentially it’s about answering the “so what” about technology and I spend about 60% of my time looking at, and evaluating, technology with potential that we can bring into the business.”

So, what is the “so what?” and why is tech becoming so important?

“Investment in tech and funding has tripled in the past five years, and that’s pretty significant in its own right. But what’s important to note is that that’s upstream investment, at farmgate level, meaning an outlay in things like sensors, software platforms and autonomy.”

And with a surge in uptake, Hutchinsons believe that such technology can work to answer some of the key challenges on farm, which include: ● How do we use data to improve farm profitability? ● How do we improve soils and soil health? ● How can genetics have an impact, in terms of resilience? ● How does integrated crop management really tie all of this together?

“From a Helix perspective, we have to look at where we can have an impact, as well as how and where we can bring in technologies to help achieve some further value for growers,” explains Stuart.

“If we take the challenge of improving soil health, for example, the first step is setting out goals –– basically, what we’re trying to improve in this area.

“This could be organic matter levels, carbon status or improving nutrition, and then we have to match this challenge with what potential technologies are available and could help meet this target.”

Based on this, Terramap is a good example of a project launched from Helix about 14 months ago using technology that was first developed in the mining industry, now adopted, and adapted for agricultural use, he adds. “This technology

Helix has positioned itself as a one stop shop when it comes to offering guidance and advice on using reliable,worthwhile technology on farm, explains Stuart Hill.

According to Hutchinsons,Helix is all about helping add value to the bottom line,through technology.Pictured:Andrew Pitts,host farmer.

allows more remote analysis of soils, as well as the monitoring of 21 different parameters.

“Compared to traditional methods, this provides a more remote, efficient analysis and means a lot less movement of soils.”

The approach that the firm has taken is not just about introducing new technologies but also to look at how established technologies can be adapted to help deliver the best on-farm solutions. “We want Helix to be seen as the proofing ground for new technology and advice and we want outside industries, more start-ups, other businesses and growers, to come to us and give us ideas and talk about innovation. We can then look at it and decide whether we can take that forward.”

According to Stuart, inspiration and direction comes from a number of sources, including outside industries such as Microsoft or Google, and research bodies and institutes like Rothamsted Research and leading universities. “Global external forums and conferences are also key to the process, with our attending agronomists bringing those ideas together with the challenges they see on farm,” says Stuart. “There’s a whole range of different options and sources of inspiration, but it’s that collaboration that we really need. We’re not software developers and while we can take the technology and work with it, we’re not here to reinvent the wheel.”

However, sourcing the technology is just the start of the process, and where Helix really comes into its own is through its on-farm analysis work. “Technology generally doesn’t deliver an answer straight away –– it delivers data or information, which has to be interpreted,” says Stuart.

Practical actions

“That’s the next stage of the process and involves the agronomist coming in to work with the grower to understand this data and decide what practical actions can be taken to make best use of the information, and really that’s the ethos behind the project.”

Everything within the Helix project is tried and tested at the Helix national farm in Northants –– owned by Andrew and William Pitts –– before being demonstrated at the recently-launched regional sites.

“The initiative focuses on farm-scale technology, rather than small plot, meaning that we’re able to take a really strategic, workable approach,” continues Stuart.

“As we build up our regional Helix farms and growers, there will also be a group that comes together to drive what the challenges are and what technology and innovation we can bring in to help.”

The next step for the project is to take more of this nationally proven tech to the regional ▲

▲ sites, adds Stuart. “Over the past four months, we have initiated two regional demonstration farms –– in the North and the East with more planned for the spring and summer of next year. This allows us to test in different scenarios and situations and really demonstrate the relevance of a certain technology to particular regions.”

Innovation in practice

The tangible benefits of introducing any kind of technology has to be to reduce risk and increase profit, says Andrew Pitts. Technology enhances the work of agronomists, says Michael Shemilt.

Heading up the Helix national farm is Andrew and William Pitts who farm 2500ha in Whiston, Northants.

Known for their forward-thinking approach, the Pitts brothers have made some huge changes to the farm in recent years, with a sharp focus on minimising their cost of production. “Five years ago,the farm was based around a continuous wheat-wheat-rape rotation,”explains Andrew.“But since then, things have changed dramatically,and we now have a very varied cropping system that includes crops such as rye and peas.

“Farming is all about change, but we want to keep it as simple as possible,which is why we’ve been focusing on making better use of the most unproductive areas of the farm within the Helix initiative.”

One particular part of the farm that’s come under scrutiny is a 13ha field known as Bush Close field,and by using technology they’ve been able to make vast improvements,explains Andrew. “We looked at the five-year average of the field and quickly realised how truly unproductive the headlands were.They weren’t worth farming, and from a cost of production point of view,needed to be taken out of production.”

Following the washout of last autumn, the decision was made not to combine these areas. “Rather than putting metal through wet soil,we decided to do some headland management and try something different.”

Instead,the farm planted a cover crop mix, designed to relieve compaction.“We opted for Hutchinsons’ MaxiRooter,which contains a large mix of plant species,the most important being the tillage radish,”explains Andrew.

The result was hugely improved ground root structure.“We planted it in May 2019 having sprayed off the damaged headland,and the crop was huge by the time it came to planting spring beans.”

As well as improving the ground structure, taking the headland out of production proved favourable on the yield map.“It meant the lowest yielding area of the field was 4t/ha and the highest was almost 7t/ha –– we were really chuffed with that and it’s put us in a really good place for harvest 2021.”

“It was simple,to do,but managing this data has helped us make much better decisions.”

According to Andrew,the upshot of all of this, and the really important thing,is that it’s all about adding profit.“Technology can just cost you money.A lot of things we’ve tried in the past have all been about adding profit to the supplier –– not the farmer –– and we’re not interested in that.We’ve been bitten by that before.

“The tangible benefits of introducing any kind of technology has to be to reduce risk and increase profit.”

In the case of Bush Close field, the decision to take the headlands out of production has proven to be a financially savvy move,too.“We did the maths and a 13ha with the whole field cropped had a gross margin of £9808,which is not bad, but isn’t great either.

“But when we change this to 10ha of cropping and 3ha of stewardship, this gross margin increases to £10,860 –– including 3ha of stewardship factored in at £540/ha.

“This means that there’s a tangible benefit of over £1000 and I don’t know about you, but I need that £1000,particularly as we move towards life without the single farm payment.”

Though the ELM Scheme is likely to offer some kind of support to growers,Andrew warns of not getting too reliant on what may –– or may not –– be to come. “Don’t be fooled for one minute that ELM is going to fulfil all of what we’ve seen within BPS.So we’re going to have to become more efficient, use more technology, and manage carefully –– particularly by identifying areas not worth cropping.

“We’re really pleased with the results we’ve seen in this field, it’s a win-win all round, but it only works if you pay close attention to the detail and make use of the technology out there to measure, monitor and manage.”

Of course,without proper guidance and management, even the best technology can be rendered useless, which is where the role of the agronomist comes into play.

Andrew’s agronomist, Michael Shemilt, has been working alongside the farm to ensure what they’re doing can bring profitable benefits. “Technology enhances the work of agronomists and in the future,I think there will be a requirement to do more with it –– whether that’s due to financial,legislative or environmental pressures.

“The integrated farming approach is becoming more and more important and we’re going to rely on that more to influence the decision-making process,as well as measuring the success –– or failure –– of those decisions.

As well as the work done to improve headland profitability,Andrew and Michael have also been using the data from Terramap to create more accurate variable mapping on farm.

“An example of this is variable rate lime application. We were finding inconsistencies within some of the fields and we knew we could iron out these creases with technology that we already had.

“So we looked through the Terramap data and found that pH was the limiting factor in these areas. This could have traditionally been missed, or worse, a blanket application of lime could have been applied based on the results in that area.

“We’ve now aimed lime application on just the areas that need it and expect to see the results come harvest.”

Helix North is headed up by Nick and Liz Wilson, the East is hosted by Tom Jewers.

As with any long-term project,

challenges are expected, and in the case of Helix, this comes in the form of the sheer speed of development of farm technology. “With traditional inputs, as they come to market, the product doesn’t change too much for the following five to 10 years. There may be some small tweaks or developments with labels, but that’s usually it.

“However, with technology, as soon as you bring something to farm it can change almost immediately, and this is something we have to be very mindful of. So it’s this that will drive the pace of change in terms of how we work on farm over the coming years.”

On top of this, there’s also a shift in growers’ priorities and pressures to factor in, adds Stuart. “From a farmer perspective, the changing pressures over the past five years have been huge –– particularly with regards to the climate, soils and improving the wider environment.

“We then add in modifications to regulations and resistance, as well as societal changes and evolving end markets as buying habits alter, and there’s a lot to think about on a day-to-day basis.”

“As growers in the farming industry, we’re here to produce food, and if we’re not doing that in a profitable and sustainable way, it has massive effects.

The cherry on the challenge cake is the future of government policy, particularly with the onset of ELMs on the horizon, adds Stuart. “All of this means that from a farm perspective, we’re really having to look further at the strategic end of the farm and advice, in terms of what are the objects and grower motivations and where emerging technology can have an impact.” ■

Sourcing the technology is just the start of the process,and where Helix really comes into its own is through its on-farm analysis work.

Digital Direction

As arable farms progress towards a digital future,it can be difficult to know which forms of data generation,capture and analysis provide a really worthwhile benefit to the business,and which are costly and time-wasting distractions. CPM is working with some of the industry’s leading companies in this area to bring growers some Digital Direction.These articles track the significant steps on the journey towards the data-enabled farm, and also explain and profile the technologies involved.

CPM would like to thank Hutchinsons for sponsoring this Digital Direction article and for providing privileged access to staff and material used to help bring it together.

The beauty of the tool is that it “ refines its approach as more and more growers use it,so could completely redefine how we manage disease.”

Toolbox gets Innovation Meeting tomorrow’s challenge a tech boost

Digital agriculture is shaping arable systems across the globe,redefining the effectiveness and efficiency of what can be achieved. CPM explores what’s in store for UK growers with some major releases planned for 2021. By Tom Allen-Stevens

While most growers will be glad to see the back of 2020, one thing our experiences may have brought to light is the value of digital tools when movements are limited and interaction restricted.

Looking ahead to 2021 and beyond, these tools are also set to be increasingly significant solutions in agriculture as farmers seek innovative ways to produce food more sustainably, but at little or no additional cost to consumers, believes Greg Meyers, Syngenta’s global chief digital officer.

“Breakthroughs in biology and chemistry have delivered 150% greater food production from only 12% more land area over the past 50 years,” he notes. “But as global demand for food continues to grow, amidst climate change, we know that natural science alone cannot continue exclusively to fill the gap.”

Greg’s driven digital revolutions in industries from pharma and biomed to mobile phones, and has brought his background in computer and data science to agriculture and food production.

“Digital ag is going to be the next breakthrough in farming. This time, however, rather than looking exclusively at yield, or the amount of food a crop can produce, digital tools will focus on different traits consumers and regulators are looking for, such as lower water use, fewer inputs used by a farmer or a lower carbon footprint.”

Technology innovations

It’s a belief he shares with some of the sharpest technology innovators across the globe. Funding for agtech has more than tripled over the past five years, according to venture capital firm Agfunder, bringing new people with fresh ideas into agriculture.

“Syngenta is the world’s largest agricultural innovator and sits at the forefront in bringing digital technology to life to help meet the needs of consumers and at the same time improve growers’ profitability,” adds Greg.

And that’s no mean challenge in an increasingly volatile climate. He points to projections published in Science that suggest for each 2°C rise in global temperature, yield decreases by 31% in maize corn and 46% in wheat. “In Europe, farmers face increasing regulation of what and of how much chemical can be used. Managing this complexity with fewer options in the toolbox is hard enough, but to do so with wheat prices at the same level they were 30 years ago puts tremendous economic pressure on UK farmers.”

Syngenta is the only company to have industry-leading digital farming platforms in all the leading four agricultural markets, he claims. This puts algorithms and tools at the fingertips of tens of thousands of growers in more than 20 countries –– 63% of sugar mills in Brazil and 1 in 3 mega farms in Ukraine are already using them and Syngenta expects to increase this coverage to more than 40 million ha by the end of this year.

Here in the UK, farmers will be the first in Europe to benefit from Syngenta’s flagship tool, Protector, due to be launched next year. This is a scouting tool used by farmers and agri-businesses in Brazil, with algorithms that convert pest pressure scouting events to localised spray maps. “What Protector does is take your observations and turn them into actions,” notes Sam Grimsdell, digital agricultural manager for UK and Ireland.

Protector has come from Strider, an agtech startup that launched its new tablet-based tool to Brazilian farmers in 2014 and quickly gathered a customer base of the country’s larger arable farmers. The tool

Greg Meyers believes digital tools will focus on different traits consumers and regulators are looking for.

Problems pinpointed by Protector’s precision

Spotting a problem in time to deal with it can be tough on any farm.When you have 450,000 ha spread over 16 farm units it can be logistical nightmare.

Soybean,maize and cotton growers,SLC Agricola,monitors pests and diseases across a vast spread of Brazil using the Syngenta Protector scouting and recording system.This helped the business reduce inputs and logistics by 37% last season,primarily through precision application only onto specific targeted areas where pest activity had been pinpointed,and at the optimum timing to enhance product performance.

With most of the reductions achieved by Protector in insecticide treatments,further savings have also been found with herbicide applications.The company is now in its fifth season of investing in digital agriculture tools, focused on optimising efficiencies across the business.Drones,satellite imagery and harvesters that can feed back real-time information to digital decision support tools are among SLC’s connected equipment.New developments are looking at matching the best varieties of different crops to the farms’ soil and growing conditions.

Climate management is set to be the next focus of attention for the company’s digital agriculture coordinator,Ronei Sana.“It’s not just about reducing costs and increasing productivity, what we implement also seeks to reduce the environmental impact,”she says.

SLC Agricola monitors pests and diseases across a vast spread of Brazil using the Syngenta Protector scouting and recording system.

gathers together information drawn from crop-monitoring in the field with satellite, weather and other data to create heat maps and infographics.

Strider was acquired by Syngenta in 2018 and the tool has gone from strength to strength since, seeing a 400% increase in use of applications between May 2019 and May 2020. “It’s currently used across five million ha of US and South American farms, and we’re bringing it to the UK next year,” says Sam.

“Protector is really quite unrivalled as a scouting tool –– if you observe a problem in the field you can not only drop a pin to geolocate it, but quantify the scale of the problem, and the tool then paints in a heat map.”

But that won’t just be a pretty picture. The maps can be exported to create a variable rate application map, and there’s already data integration with MyJohnDeere. “We’re currently piloting the tool with 150 growers across the UK and using their feedback to refine it for the UK market. The plan is to launch it in the spring and what we’ll be doing over time is to integrate all of our agronomy tools into Protector.”

It’s the sum of its parts that could make this a very interesting development for UK growers. Syngenta has a history of bringing

Spray assistance at your fingertips

Any spray operator who’s visited the Syngenta stand at an event or brought a query to the spray application team would likely have gained some valuable tips.Much of that know-how has now been distilled into a useful app.

Launched at Cereals Live this year,Spray Assist now has around 900 users,who have helped shape the user interface and functions ever since it was first released at LAMMA, reports new farming technologies lead Harry Fordham.

“The question we’re asked most often is which nozzle is best to use, and that’s the job it’s designed to do.But it does so much more besides,” he enthuses.

The app brings in detailed localised weather data and gives you a tailored spraying forecast for the next five days.This includes temperature, rainfall, wind speed and leaf wetness to help select your spraying window.“Those operators working over a wide area can save different locations,while you can set up your sprayer with your selection of nozzles –– Spray Assist will advise on the best nozzle for the job and the pressure to put through it to ensure you minimise drift.”

Harry’s favourite feature is the Pre-em Predictor.“You tell the app what day you drilled,or when it’s planned, and your soil type, and it gives you best weather,soil conditions,crop emergence and weed germination information.That’s handy in catchy years like this one, but in dry years it gives really good guidance on when’s best to go.”

Free to download,Spray Assist is available for both Android and iOS smartphones. “The information we give out is based on 25 years of thorough application trials,along with cutting-edge research carried out at Syngenta’s centre at Jealott’s Hill in Berks.That’s a massive database and ensures you can be confident in any advice you receive.The beauty of the app is that it puts all that at your fingertips,”says Harry. ● Look out for the new 3D90 nozzle, due to be launched in early 2021.A step-up on the award-winning Defy 3D,it’s angled just right for maximum spray efficacy at the T0 and T3 spray timings,says Harry.Drift reduction is built in and trials have also shown unrivalled penetration of the potato canopy,he adds.

The app brings in detailed localised weather data and gives you a tailored spraying forecast for the next five days. The strengths of the tools lie in the quality of the data pulled in,says Sam Grimsdell,presented through a clear,easy-to-use interface.

Spray Assist now does so much more than just choose which nozzle is best to use,says Harry Fordham.

Blightcast includes a forecast using the Hutton Criteria to model more aggressive strains of blight.

▲ tools to the market that help with thresholds and decision-making. “Globally, Syngenta is a market leader in digital agriculture. Although growers in the UK may not recognise this, many hundreds already use our tools.

“Our strengths lie in the quality of the data we pull in, presented through a clear, easy-to-use interface. Growers get plenty of functionality and the ability to tailor tools through apps that are simple to set up and intuitive to use.”

Blightcast, for example, is now established as a tool trusted by around 1000 potato growers and agronomists to help cope with more aggressive blight strains. It includes a forecast using the Hutton Criteria to model strains of blight capable of developing at shorter periods of 90% relative humidity. local weather forecasts are incorporated with sophisticated disease-modelling algorithms, to predict blight risk for up to five days ahead.

BYDV Assist is now in its second year with more than 700 users, who rely on the tool as part of their integrated pest management strategy against aphids following the loss of neonicotinoid seed treatments in cereals. The tool can be used to optimise spray timing to target the second generation of aphids, based on a model using the T-sum 170 day-degrees threshold. “It’s a very quick and easy solution for quite a difficult risk assessment growers and agronomists now have to make, so we’ve had some favourable feedback,” reports Sam.

Nearing its commercial UK launch, set for early 2021, is Syngenta’s new disease-scouting tool. Known as Avizio in France, where it was developed over 10 years, it’s helped over 1000 users refine their treatment decisions, he reports. “The tool has delivered very reliable forecasts for septoria and brown rust and also delivers good information on yellow rust and powdery mildew. Overall, it’s given an 85% confidence level.

Discuss models

“We’ve spent some time validating the disease models under UK conditions. The app uses weather forecast and agronomic data to predict risk of infection, giving you a prediction up to 10 days in advance of the need to spray. The main benefit is that you can now accurately tailor applications to actual risk.

“The beauty of the tool is that it refines its approach as more and more growers use it, so could completely redefine how we manage disease.”

Due for launch in the UK in mid-2021 will be Seed Selector, branded as E-Luminate in the US. “This is a tool that’s evolved from one used by seed sales advisors in the US, to help growers choose from the mesmerising array of corn hybrids and soybean varieties,” explains Sam.

“It takes publicly available data, such as weather and soil maps, and uses these to drill down through varieties and pick out those most suited to your situation.” This wouldn’t be a replacement for the AHDB Recommended Lists, however, which themselves are now available through an app. Rather it’s a tool to build on other forms of information which can be imported without the need for double entry.

And Sam recognises this is a challenge for UK growers, especially when it comes to legacy farm management software. All Syngenta tools have been designed to be open and transparent, to export and transfer data seamlessly, he says.

It’s an open-source approach Sam believes is set to become more important as growers move towards carbon-footprinting and monitoring their environmental delivery. “We’ve accrued a lot of experience and data in this area through Operation Pollinator and similar initiatives. We’re collaborating with the Cool Farm Tool and believe there’s real value in a tool that works with other partners to help growers meet environmental targets,” he says.

“Farmers know their own fields, but choices are currently largely based on granular experience and intuition. We have an absolute desire to make it easier for them to augment this with a data-driven approach, making use of the vast array of information they already possess,” notes Sam.

“But it’s not just about more targeted use of pesticides. Ultimately growers want to deliver secure food supplies in tune with public consumer demand for produce with lower impact on climate and global resources. Syngenta has a powerful global digital resource well placed to help them attain that objective.” ■

BYDV Assist can be used to optimise spray timing to target the second generation of aphids.

Meeting tomorrow’s challenge

Farming faces some major challenges. It’s not just about the products and practices applied today,but exploring what will shape the farming of tomorrow.

In this series of articles, CPM has teamed up with Syngenta to investigate latest developments in sustainable farming, agronomic innovation and digital technology,with the aim to embrace tomorrow’s opportunities.

Syngenta is uniquely placed to address the increasing challenges faced by UK farmers and the changing views of society.From the discoveries made at Jealott’s Hill in Berks, the company’s largest global site for new agrochemical R&D and product support, to its network of Innovation Centres, it has dedicated resources to bring applied science and sustainable solutions to UK growers.Through the company’s collaborations with farmers, academia and environmental groups,it’s on track to accelerate innovation in a changing world.