July 9, 2019
Following the success of our precision farming services around the world, we are pleased to announce that they are now available to farms in Argentina and Turkey.
Precision farming supports farm management by using information technology to ensure that crops and soils receive the inputs (water, nutrients, protection products) they need for optimum health and productivity. Our service significantly supports the profitability and sustainability of farming by maximizing yields, at the same time as protecting the environment by not over-treating fields.
With significant agricultural economies, Argentina and Turkey, are ideally placed to benefit from precision farming services. To extend our services to as many farmers as possible, we have established internet of things (IoT) platforms that support farm managers, linking all relevant information at the field and farm level, to support management decision making.
Local support
To support the introduction of precision farming to Argentina and Turkey we are running training seminars for farmers. These will introduce the application of this monitoring technology to different cropping systems, such as arable, irrigation lands, orchards, green house production, nurseries and seed production.
On its own, simply having more data is unhelpful at leveraging sustainability. However, applying this data to our precision farming platform will improve decision making by geo referenced overlaying data. With a clear overview of all relevant data, farm-level decision making can be timelier and more tailored.
With precision farming data management, you can choose the optimum time to carry out a variety of tasks, including:
- Variable rate seeding or fertilization
- Correction of soil fertility by variables before planting using lime and fertilizers
- Irrigation scheduling
- In season crop treatments using fertilizer and/or targeted foliar application
- Pesticide treatments
- Plant protection products
How it works
Our Precision Gateway platform is used to map fields, linking data and analytical results on soil composition and nutrient status to farm management information. We can compare historical data with actual and forecast data. Additionally, weather data is combined with in-field probes and sensors for irrigation scheduling.
NVDI imagery, or drone flights, monitor crop development during the vegetation cycle concurrent with crop development stages. These images are further processed by SGS to identify differences in the field whereby crop scouting is supported by tagging specific locations in the field for ground verification. Differences may be due to abiotic factors (soil compaction, soil moisture, nutrient values) or biotic factors (diseases or pest pressure – arthropods or nematodes).
SGS agronomists study the data from all sources and provide recommendations during the cropping season. Our complementary virtual crop consultant service also allows the fast and efficient exchange of information between farmers and our agronomists. In addition, we have data and experience with many standard row crops (cereals, corn, soy bean), vegetables, and perennial crops like berries, citrus, pome fruits, grape, avocado etc.
Local service, global expertise
Precision farming services are supported by our local and international laboratory network, delivering analyses on a wide range of samples – soil, leaves, roots, fruit, water, soil solution, fertilizers and others that help us to model and understand crop requirements.
With extensive experience in precision farming, developed over many years and across 34 countries, we apply and integrate only the most appropriate and robust technologies to meet the needs of the crop and farmer. We support benchmark assessments on biomass development and yield per crop and field.
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