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The USDA has identified three pillars of sustainability for the agriculture industry: reduced environmental impact increased productivity and yield, and a better overall economic result. Today’s precision agriculture technologies are helping crop farmers make significant gains with all three pillars.

Consider the analogy of a three-legged stool where the stool cannot stand unless all three legs are sturdy.

“For the environmental benefits of precision agriculture to take shape, farmers need to generate more yield and at least break even from a financial standpoint. If a farmer is going to change a practice or invest in new technology, the economic impact of that action has to be part of the conversation. Fortunately, we now have some rather compelling research that makes it a big part of the conversation.”

said AEM Senior Vice President of Ag Services Curt Blades.

The three USDA sustainability pillars line up perfectly with AEM’s newly released research, Environmental Benefits of Precision Ag. AEM worked with the American Soybean Association, CropLife America, and National Corn Growers Association to develop the research.

The study examined five key areas of the crop farming industry where precision agriculture can make both an environmental and economic impact:

• Productivity and crop yield
• Fertilizer use
• Herbicide use
• Fossil fuel use
• Water use

The study then examined five key areas of P.A. that can make an impact in those areas:

• Auto Guidance
• Machine Section Control
• Variable Rate
• Fleet Analytics (Telematics)
• Precision Irrigation

“Farmers are the original stewards of the land and have been doing good things for a long time. Technology now affords farmers the ability to do even more — things that could never have happened before. A lot of GPS-driven technology is in place, giving farmers a whole new set of tools to help dial in the exact placement of seed, fertilizer, and crop protection. This technology also helps farmers close the loop with insightful data that helps them monitor what they are doing to determine if there is room for improvement going forward.”

said Blades.

Key Areas of Precision Agriculture Technology

The five primary areas of precision agriculture give farmers numerous opportunities to increase efficiency, reduce operating costs and lessen environmental impact. Precision agriculture can be leveraged across a variety of crop farming applications throughout the year.

Auto Guidance – Also known as auto-steer, this technology utilizes GPS signals to automatically control a tractor to help reduce overlap during tilling, planting, spraying, and harvesting. This has a positive impact on both productivity and fuel consumption.

Machine Section Control – Turns planter, fertilizer, or sprayer sections on/off in rows that have been previously treated, or at headland turns, point rows, and waterways. This helps optimize the placement of seed, fertilizer, and crop protection. This technology also helps optimize down pressure and depth control to gain machine and fuel efficiencies.

Variable Rate – Uses sensors or preprogrammed maps to determine application rates for seed, fertilizer, and crop protection. Supporting technologies include variable-rate controllers, GPS, yield monitors, crop sensors, and soil sensors.

Fleet Analytics (Telematics) – Real-time monitoring of equipment including GPS location, route suggestions, and idling. Any piece of telematics-equipped equipment can be monitored all year long whenever it is in operation. This technology affords an opportunity to increase asset utilization and reduce fuel usage.

Precision Irrigation – Provides the ability to apply different amounts of water to different areas of the field in order to reduce waste and optimize efficiency.

How Precision Agriculture is Making an Impact

The study also examines how the above-mentioned precision agriculture technologies can impact the five key areas of environmental impact.

Productivity – The farmer can achieve better crop yields from accurate spacing and population rate. Indirect benefits include not having to place unproductive or preserved land into production, as well as reduced soil compaction and improved soil health, which help reduce inputs over time.

Fertilizer – Reduced overlap and better placement optimizes application and reduces waste. Indirect benefits include improved water quality due to reduced runoff, improved soil health, and a reduction in net greenhouse gas emissions.

Herbicide – As in the case of fertilizer, more efficient herbicide application reduces waste. Indirect benefits are improved soil health, reduced erosion, less weed resistance, and reduced greenhouse gas emissions.

Fossil Fuel – When the number of field passes and time spent idling are reduced, so is the amount of fuel consumed. Greenhouse gas emissions are also inherently reduced.

Water – More precise irrigation can save water from evaporation and excessive runoff. An indirect benefit is an improvement in water quality due to the reduced runoff.

Positive Results and Available Opportunities

In examining various crop types around the country, the research data can be summed up in one sentence: Crop farmers are doing more with less.

By leveraging precision agriculture technologies, farmers have accomplished the following:

• 4% increase in crop production
• 7% reduction in fertilizer use
• 9% reduction in herbicide use
• 6% reduction in fossil fuel use
• 4% reduction in water use

A direct parallel can also be drawn between the environmental benefit of those reductions and the economic benefit. Take fossil fuel consumption, for instance.

“That’s 6% less fuel on a tractor that is likely running 20 hours a day for a couple of weeks straight. That isn’t just real money, helping the farmer save thousands of dollars in fuel expenses but has the carbon reduction benefits of taking nearly 200,000 cars off the road.”

said Blades.

The same can be said about the use of fertilizer, herbicide, water use, and crop protection.

“If you’re just spraying the places that need to be sprayed, that’s good for the environment and the farmer’s net income. Fewer pounds on the ground is a good thing all the way around.”

said AEM Senior Director of Regulatory Affairs Nick Tindall.

As impressive as the data presented in the AEM study is, the potential gains resulting from the more widespread adoption of precision agriculture technologies is even more impressive.

Adoption rates vary widely depending on the technology, anywhere from below 10% to 60%. Adoption rate om the 90% range is expected to result in:

• 6% increase in crop production
• 14% reduction in fertilizer use
• 15% reduction in herbicide use
• 16% reduction in fossil fuel use
• 21% reduction in water use

To further illustrate the potential impact of more widespread precision agriculture adoption, consider the following: Current adoption has resulted in roughly 30 million fewer pounds of herbicide being applied. With broader adoption, another 48 million pounds could be spared.

In an attempt to understand where precision agriculture adoption could be headed — and how quickly — it’s important to understand how far it has come already.

“Precision agriculture has been talked about for many years. Any kind of technology adoption must have a compelling reason for the person adopting it. Precision agriculture began making serious inroads when machine guidance and auto-steer came along. Those were technologies that made it easier for farmers to see the benefits.”

said Blades.

As more farmers adopted machine guidance, they began to see how technology in general could help drive results in other areas.

“The adoption rate has been on a steady increase over the past 20 years. Precision agriculture has become almost ubiquitous for anyone trying to drive income from their land. Most equipment today has some sort of this technology. That in and of itself leads to broader adoption.”

Blades pointed out.

“Seeing the gains that are inherent with more widespread adoption isn’t just a matter of convincing more farmers to adopt P.A. technology. It is also about the continued refinement of these technologies. For instance, auto steer has been around since the 1990s, but is far better today than it was back then.”

Tindall added.

One obstacle to increased adoption could tie back to the broader agriculture economy and the farmer’s financial fortune. Depressed commodity prices strain net income, which strains investments and the adoption of new technologies.

 “The biggest factor going forward is whether or not farmers have money to invest,”

Tindall said.

To leverage GPS-driven precision agriculture technologies, farmers also need an adequate level of infrastructure available in rural America. The expansion of broadband internet capability must have a strong wireless component that is accessible by machinery in the field.

Precision Agriculture is the Foundation for a Stronger Future

It’s important to note that precision agriculture technology adoption is not solely about the immediate benefits of reduced fuel, fertilizer, herbicide, or water use. It is also about evolving the U.S. agriculture industry to a more productive, competitive, and sustainable state.

“Every farmer knows in their heart of hearts that they are trying to do the right things, like protect the soil. Farmers are not just doing these things for the next season; they are doing them for the next generation. Thanks to technology, there are additional tools available today that can help farmers achieve a goal they have always had: provide good food, energy, and fiber to the public around the world. The beautiful thing about this new technology is that it doesn’t force a choice between environment over economics, or vice versa. With today’s precision agriculture technology, farmers can choose both.”

said Blades.

“It is a global market now. If today’s American farmer wants to continue thriving, it’s important to become more efficient. Technology plays directly into that. Precision agriculture technology that delivers both an environmental and economic benefit helps a farmer become more competitive in the international market. Plus, with a strong sustainability message, it actually helps a farmer maintain access to certain markets.

Tindall said.

“Take the European Union, for example. Sustainability is very important to that market. Additionally, becoming more efficient and productive can help keep food prices down. There is no greater threat to the environment than hunger. Being able to leverage these technologies to sustainably and affordably provide people with quality food is a win for everybody.”

Tindall continued.

Source: AEM

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The consensus among member company C-suite executives is the global economy and U.S. economy will take longer to recover than equipment manufacturers and – perhaps more specifically – their own companies, according to AEM’s latest Industry Qualitative Insights.

“We’ve asked this question of our members a couple of times over the course of the past year and, in the last six months, we’ve started to see improvements in our members’ perceptions. While this could certainly be tied to the increased level of control they have over their own companies as of late, we’ve found it is more likely due to the better position our industry is in compared to other, more affected, aspects of our economy.”

said AEM Director of Market Intelligence Benjamin Duyck.

2020 VS. 2021

2020 began on a solid note for AEM members and their customers. Low-interest rates set up the construction industry to outperform the larger economy, and the impacts of ongoing trade wars were mitigated by a variety of other positive factors. The U.S. signed a phase-one trade agreement with China, leading to further optimism.

Now, a year later, AEM members serving the construction industry feel their output will bounce back within a year. On the ag side, AEM members feel a full recovery is very imminent. Though, representatives from both sectors readily admit a full recovery of the manufacturing supply chain will take a little bit longer.

Demand should remain stable or see low growth – roughly in the range of 6% in almost all categories – over the next 12 months.

“Ultimately, we see the majority of responders feel the market was growing year over year. More important to me, however, is a big improvement in terms of quarter-to-quarter growth.”

explained Duyck.

Construction Equipment Sector Outlook

It’s clear AEM members serving the construction industry adjusted to “the new normal” brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, as evidenced by their Qualitative Insights feedback:

• 50% of members feel the market is up when compared to the same period a year ago
• About 27% felt it is stable from early 2020
• Quarter over quarter, about 71% of members felt the market was improving

“Construction markets in the U.S. went strong into 2020 with low-interest rates. However, a stronger construction industry does not necessarily translate to more machinery purchases. And, throughout 2020, it appears many contractors were delaying their purchases as much as they possibly could, which explains the improvements quarter over quarter.”

said Duyck.

Optimism levels are roughly the same as they were in early 2018, and they are not expected to drop in the near term, according to Duyck.

“Optimism for the next 12 months is also high. Earlier in the year, we had more than 10% of members expect a recession, and we entered one, albeit briefly. Now the number is back down to 2.2%. Half of the members expect normal growth to resume and about a quarter feels above-normal growth is within reach. Only 3.3% expected further declines.”

he continued.

Ag Equipment Sector Outlook

As is the case with their counterparts on the construction site, AEM members serving the ag industry are very optimistic about their prospects for the future.

While demand remained strong, production dropped, leading to inventories being reduced to the lowest levels in roughly 10 years. Combined with the fact that 2020 started with a phase-one trade agreement, low-interest rates, and substantial support for farm income, and the recipe is there for a strong immediate outlook.

“Our perception data is showing net rising indexes that became positive last quarter and continue to improve,”

said Duyck.

Inventories and Employment

According to Duyck, the Net Rising Index for Inventories – from a quarter-over-quarter standpoint – continues to drop with time. AEM members surveyed – roughly 50% – indicate inventory levels are too low. Meanwhile, employment and wages are ticking back up.

“Employment wise, though, the situation in ag equipment seems to be running ahead of construction equipment, as the past year was better for the former,”

Duyck added.

Production Categories

Over the last 12 months, members have indicated overall growth in the market with more members experiencing growth than they have declined. In many of the product categories, growth is in the 6-10% range.

“It should be noted that we are just looking at individual companies, not considering their size, and the demand equation takes into consideration new orders,”

said Duyck.

“Overall, there is overwhelming consensus and optimism. For the next 12 months, the market looks green.”

he continued.

Source: AEM

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The pandemic of Coronavirus (COVID-19) has affected every aspect of life globally. This has brought along several changes in market conditions. The rapidly changing market scenario and initial and future assessment of the impact are covered in the report.

The report discusses all major market aspects with an expert opinion on current market status along with historic data. This market report is a detailed study on the growth, investment opportunities, market statistics, growing competition analysis, major key players, industry facts, important figures, sales, prices, revenues, gross margins, market shares, business strategies, top regions, demand, and developments.

The Autonomous Tractors for Cereals & grains Market report provides a detailed analysis of the global market size, regional and country-level market size, segment growth, market share, competitive landscape, sales analysis, impact of domestic and global market players, value chain optimization, trade regulations, recent developments, opportunity analysis, strategic market growth analysis, product launches, and technological innovations.

Source: Daintelo

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