AI is transforming agriculture and helps tackle the labor challenge. A recent Forbes article from July 2019 highlighted how agriculture today is a $5tn dollar industry worldwide and that it is increasingly testing Artificial Intelligence tools to:

• Help produce healthier crops
• Monitor soil conditions
• Control crop pests
• Organize data for farmers
• Improve productivity in a wide range of agricultural tasks

Let’s look at the 2 major insights: improving the use of data and labor productivity.

Farm Data Improvements with AI:

Perhaps surprisingly to most, farms today produce enormous amounts of data as well as crops. With AI, this data can now be used in a more effective and timely manner. Key metrics around air temperature, soil humidity and climate predictions can be processed in real time and modelled with AI in order to optimize future crop production.

Labor Productivity Improvements with AI:

In terms of labor, the reality is that farming has been machine-intensive and not labor-intensive for some time now. This makes it even more essential to optimize the use of the limited labor available. FACTIC has been working with one of its clients to help them match and plan for labor usage according to predictions of optimal harvesting times. The dual benefit here is that labor is only used when needed since the client can more accurately predict when it needs to pick crops and also that crop yields are maximized according to predictions for optimal yield.

Ask FACTIC how we can help manage your labor costs and optimize your key processes in agriculture and farm management with AI.

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Photo credit: Adrian Krupczynski

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