Agtech Alley helping farmers make better data-driven management decisions
Visitors were able to get hands on with the latest agricultural technology and connectivity solutions with 20 leading suppliers at the new initiative, AgTech Alley, at the Henty Machinery Field Days in September.
Manned by the NSW Government’s Farms of the Future team, AgTech Alley was a collaboration between Henty Machinery Field Days, and the NSW Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development and was supported by funding from the Australian Government Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry as part of its Support Regional Trade Events Program.
Held from September 17-19, the indoor and outdoor displays ranged from cutting edge IoT devices and advanced sensors to farm connectivity solutions for water levels, maintaining the well-being of livestock, tracking fuel levels, bolstering site security, and optimising plant health.
NSW Government Farms of the Future Program Development Officer Sarah Groat said the three days of Agtech Alley aimed to showcase technology demonstrations, insightful presentations, and engaging panel discussions.
“Farmers were able to explore connectivity solutions, water monitoring, livestock tracking and much more all in the one place,” Ms Groat said.
“The guest speakers outlined the areas farmers look for around a return on investment for adopting new products and practices.
“So often technologies, products and practices are presented to farm business, but the validation, depth of data, or return on investment has not been included.
“Understanding how farm businesses make decisions, prioritise problems, and think about optimising their farm margins is critical to know before making your pitch to farmers.”
The topics included Agtech adoption, farm safety powered by next generation IoT, connectivity in rural and remote areas, geo spatial analysis mapping solutions, Agtech for farm water management, the Cool Soil Initiative, agri-renewables, and automation in the supply chain.
Celebrity guest speaker was meteorologist Jane Bunn outlining how weather apps use artificial intelligence and machine learning to forecast hyper local weather conditions.
Guest speakers included Jackie Price, Yield Lot 7 Founder; Sarah Groat, Farms of the Future Agtech Specialist; Izzy Hardwick, AgriWebb Customer Success Manager; Jim Castles, Metos ANZ Sales Consultant; Edward Scott, CropScan N-Gauge Product Manager and Soil Scientist; Hamish Dickson, Farms of the Future Project Manager; Justin Matthews, Farms of the Future Agtech Specialist; Adrian Roles, JMAJ Precision Manager; Kiowa Fenner, Sheep and Goat Traceability Director; Lucy Campbell, Datamars Territory Manager – Southern NSW; Max Laurie, Optiweigh Support Manager; Darren Price, Agscent Chief Operating Officer; Jon Medway, Charles Sturt University Head of Digital and Sustainable Agriculture; Pip Grant, Riverine Plains Chief Executive Officer; James Diamond, AirAgri Chief Executive Officer; Detective Acting Sergeant Ned Doubleday and Detective Senior Constable Scott Barton, Rural Crime – NSW Police; Luke Broderick, Zetifi Business Development Manager; Mark Pervan, Axistech Chief Executive Officer; Clare Belfield, Farms of the Future Agtech Specialist; Ric Otton, EnviroNode IoT Managing Director; Nick Seymour, Farmo Founder; Fiona McCredie, Cool Soil Initiative Director; Stephen Summerhayes, Agri-Renewables in Agriculture Centre of Excellence Director; Jock Lawrence, Mobble Chief Executive Officer; and Caile Ditterich, Agrichain Chief Executive Officer.
Luke Broderick, Zetifi business development manager, said farmers left with the knowledge and confidence needed to embrace appropriate on-farm technology options in their daily operations.
Live Agtech demonstrations held on the Tuesday and Wednesday focused on in-paddock livestock weighing, water level monitoring devices, farm connectivity solutions, sheep and goat electronic identification devices and farm security solutions.
NSW Government Farms of the Future Program Agtech Specialist Clare Betfield advised farmers to take their time and do plenty of research around Agtech rather than have a knee-jerk solution to a problem.
“It is important for businesses to understand the specific barriers to getting started if there are competing priorities and having that digital literacy around the terminology is where we can help with the fundamentals of education,” Ms Betfield said.
“Confidence and going gently on yourself are key – it takes time to build that knowledge around Agtech.
“Planning around business cashflows is important as there is a big cost involved at times with Agtech adoption. There is also understanding required around connectivity options and challenges on-farm, which will dictate the solutions you then look for.”
Ms Betfield said it was important to talk to contractors for their input about what Agtech may be of benefit to your farm.
“Who is going to run the project? It takes times to do research, talk to suppliers, shortlist, work out, compare and at the end of the day who will be using the tech and interpreting the data?
“Starting out small is a good way to do it as collecting data for data’s sake won’t necessarily allow you to make good data-led decisions to run your farm business more efficiently.”
She advised farmers to either attend Agtech Fundamentals training or complete the self-paced version online and browse the Agtech Toolbox to gain the knowledge and understanding.
“Talk to other farmers, peers, your network, bring the farm team together to brainstorm ideas and use the online resources such as the Farms of the Future Agtech Toolbox, Agtech Finder and Agtech Community of Practice.”
Guest speakers’ presentations were recorded by Letterpress TV and are available for viewing at www.agtech.dpi.nsw.gov.au