Agri-tech is rapidly changing with new developments all the time. Below are original stories generated by Agri-TechE.
Alternative crops, controlled environments, weather-tech and carbon capture are among the issues to be discussed at Agri-Tech East events in 2020
Emerging agri-tech offers solutions to global challenges, and new thinking on good agricultural practice is not limited by age or geography – these are some of the uplifting messages to come out of Agri-Tech East’s REAP conference ‘Innovating towards One Agriculture’.
Baby leaf has increased in value as a salad crop over recent years, from £260m of bagged salad sold in 2005 to a staggering £1.1bn in 2017. NIAB hosted a Agri-Tech Week event to discuss what would be needed to grow the crop 24/7 with minimal waste in order to maximise the potential of this crop.
Technology that reduces cost, improves efficiency and promotes the health of plants and animals was showcased at ‘Agri-Tech in Action’ . This Agri-Tech Week event was co-hosted by the Royal Norfolk Agricultural Association (RNAA) and Easton and Otley College.
Th!nk Food is looking at how gamification can encourage consumer engagement in low carbon food production. It is one of the business concepts supported by the Shake Climate Change programme.
This Agri-Tech Week event, hosted by AHDB, looked at the effective use of irrigation and evaporation and best practice for soil and water management for farmers and growers in East Anglia.
To implement AI in the field needs more than connectivity; it also requires a common framework for relating one type of data, eg crop data, with another such as soil data. Matthew Smith explained how work by Agrimetrics on digitising field boundaries is helping to provide this framework and this will be helpful for ensuring data is meaningful.
Collaborative research to combat pathogens was the theme of the first event of Agri-Tech Week 2019, which was held at the Norwich Research Park (NRP). Disease resistance, understanding pathogen life-cycles and alternatives to antibiotics were some of the themes.
Instead of buying cheap imported animal products with a big carbon footprint, we’re encouraging the purchase of UK produced, farm quality assured produce, Simon Doherty of BVA explains the One Health approach
Although more than 90 per cent of the greenhouse cultivation of fruit and vegetables has shifted to hydroponics, there is currently no systems available for densely grown baby leaf salads. Such as system would improve the efficiency of crop cultivation while providing improved control of pests and diseases. NIAB are hosting a workshop during Agri-Tech Week to look at the potential for growing baby leaf in this way.
We will be getting experiences direct from the farm for this Agri-Tech Week event which is looking at best practice and use of new technology for irrigation in the potato sector, explains Teresa Meadows, Knowledge Exchange Manager at AHDB.
Dr Brian Rigney, scientist at the 2Blades Group and son of dairy farmer, sees great potential for gene enhancement