ProAgri Zambia 51

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AGCO offers smart solutions for sustainable agriculture

by Staff Writer

The AGCO Future Farm

With an expected global population of 8,5 billion by 2030 and a rapidly growing middle class, the demand for high quality food and animal protein is insatiable. It is projected that in the next 40 years, farmers around the world will have to grow more food than humanity has grown in the last 8 000 years. Our future depends on food security.

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n 2015, AGCO, a global leader in the design, manufacturing and distribution of smart farming solutions, embarked on a project towards the advancement of African farmers. The vision was clear – Africa, home to more than half of the world’s unused arable land, required a catalyst in developing a sustainable agricultural sector. By harnessing AGCO’s smart solutions at every touch-point of the agriculture value chain, African farmers can rise to be the custodians of a sustainable and prosperous agricultural industry. With a seed investment of US$10 million, AGCO turned a derelict farm of 150 hectares outside Lusaka, Zambia, into a state-of-the-art knowledge hub and technical training centre: the Future Farm Training & Learning Centre.

Educating and training farmers The Future Farm Training and Learning Centre has grown to be the epicentre of rural food production systems; educating people on modern farming techniques and mechanisation solutions for smallholders and emerging farmers to accelerate food security in the region. Our mechanisation and agronomy training has to date, benefitted over 700 agropreneurs, small and emerging farmers. Our team of agronomists and technical trainers are dedicated to helping farmers understand how to use their agricultural resources more efficiently. In addition, the facility has become a great academic research site, benefiting learning towards various agriculture studies for students. The

Mechanical training at the AGCO Future Farm

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ProAgri Zambia 51


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