Blades

“We’re living in a new age of agriculture, and today’s precision technology on equipment can have an enormous positive impact on farmers and the environment,” said Curt Blades, Senior Vice President of Agriculture at the Association of Equipment Manufacturers. “One of our goals at AEM is to encourage the adoption of these technologies to more farmers, so they can all reap the benefits as we continue to focus on sustainability.”

 “Canola farmers have a long history of embracing and adopting technologies and innovations into their farm operations,” said Dave Carey, Vice President of Government & Industry Relations at Canadian Canola Growers Association. “Technology and equipment play a key role in helping farmers to be more precise in their farm operations, providing both economic and environmental benefits.”

Environmental Benefits

The study explored five key environmental benefits achieved through precision agriculture technology adoption, including:

• Yield benefit through increased efficiency
• Fertilizer utilization by more precise placement
• Pesticide usage by more accurate application
• Fuel savings due to less overlap and better monitoring
• Water savings through more accurate sensing of needs

“Sustainability is a focal point for Grain Farmers of Ontario farmer-members who strive for economic, social and environmental sustainability," said Paul Hoekstra, Vice President of Strategic Development for the Grain Farmers of Ontario. “Precision agriculture is an important element to sustainable farming, and we see farmer-members looking for new ways to implement precision agriculture practices as a benefit to operations.”

Part of Climate Answer

“This study shows that the modern agriculture industry, including Canada’s seed sector, is part of the climate solution,” said Tyler McCann, Interim Executive Director at the Canadian Seed Trade Association, “Efficiency in crop production due to precision ag tools is the yearly equivalent of taking 60,000 cars off the road, all while preventing an area equal to 2.2 Banff National Parks from being added to production because of yield increases.”

Study Highlights

Significant increases in yields and further input savings can be reached as precision agriculture technologies become more widely adopted:

• Productivity has increased an estimated 4% and has the potential to further increase 7% with broader adoption.
• Precision agriculture has improved fertilizer placement efficiency by an estimated 6% and has the potential to further improve an additional 16%.
• Herbicide use has been reduced by an estimated 9% and has the potential to further decrease 16% at full adoption.
• Fossil fuel use has decreased an estimated 6% with the potential to further decrease 11%.
• Water use has decreased an estimated 7% because of current precision agriculture adoption with the potential to further decrease 18% at full adoption.

Overcoming Barriers

"Greater adoption of precision ag technologies is a goal, and this study reinforces the benefits that so many producers are already enjoying," said Diana Laturnus, FCC's manager of special projects. "We see tremendous value in sharing this knowledge with the industry so more farming operations will be better equipped to think long term and make the best farm management choices in the interests of sustainability, productivity and profitability."

The study highlights important areas that require collaboration to further drive the potential of precision agriculture in meeting sustainability objectives, including:

• Policies and programs that reward innovation
• Improved enabling infrastructure, including wireless broadband over croplands and rangelands
• Growing farm income so producers have capital to invest in their operations
• Improve consumer communication that builds on trust in science