The incorporation of communication technologies and new edge irrigation technics in farming procedures has given rise to a term ‘smart agriculture solution’ otherwise known as the Third Green Revolution. After relentless research in plant genetics and biotechnology, the agricultural world has shifted its focus on applications of digital technology that include geo-positioning systems, Internet of Things (IoT), precision equipment, Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs, drones), sensors, Big Data, ICT solutions, robotics, geo-positioning systems and actuators.
Smart agriculture has immense potentials to increase productivity with long-term sustainability owing to its resource-efficient and accurate approach. The application of smart agriculture features is considerably high in North America and Europe, however, other regions are soon expected to catch up. From the farmer’s point of view, such new age solutions are of no use if they fail to deliver added value by. Which is why such smart applications are being specifically designed to offer assistance in decision making and irrigation management. According to a report published by Future Market Insights (FMI), the US$ 10 Billion global market for smart agriculture solution is set to grow nearly US$ 40 Billion by the end of 2026, reflecting a compound annual growth of 11.2% during the time span.
FMI has rationalised this market development with certain factors such as up-scaling investments and increasing number of collaborations and partnership amongst players. Several small and medium- sized smart agricultural solution providers are emphasising on development and launch of solutions for precision farming with the help of drones and advanced imaging devices. Moreover, these companies focus on offering data services that will support farmers to optimise productivity and improve resource utilisation. The aforementioned factors are anticipated to influence the global market for smart agriculture solution over the next couple of years. For instance, last year, an aerial imagery service provider ‘TerrAvion’ based in U.S. started providing aerial data services to assist farmer by using thermal imagery technology and drones. The introduction of such services is enhancing data imagery analytics and making a positive impact on agricultural productivity. Growing investments in precision agriculture business are identified as a key in the market and are likely to play a major role in shaping its future prospects. Leading sensor manufacturers are increasingly combining with medium and small-sized agricultural solution providers in order to further improve product portfolio. For example, the joint investment made by Flex technology accelerator, Lab IX and Robert Bosch Venture Capital GmbH (RBVC) in CropX Inc. in April 2016 for developing more efficient and advance solution. Likewise, increasing collaborations with various enterprises in the values chain is further expected to positively influence the availability of smart agriculture solutions across the globe in the near future. In November last year, Trimble Navigation Ltd. teamed up with KOREC, Avidor High Tech France, Agrinetix and Géo-Pro in order to expand their market presence in Europe and North America. Meanwhile in Asia, the market for smart agricultural solutions is relatively smaller, however, demand for precision agro solutions is most likely to gain traction as demand for food continues to grow substantially in the region.
