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Aussie farmers slow to adopt agtech but opportunities abound
Staff writers
Continuing our series looking at the way digital technology is changing the way we farm, The Australian Farmer spoke to Scott McKinnon – General Manager Australia for precision agriculture data solutions provider Farmers Edge – about agtech adoption rates in Australia, where we can improve and the opportunities for farmers.
While the agtech market in Australia might seem crowded compared to ten or even five years ago, adoption of agtech hardware and software on farm is still relatively low according to Scott, and there’s every chance the market will only increase as Australian farmers implement more agtech solutions. It might seem overwhelming for the farmer but taking the time to properly consider your needs and a range of solutions will pay dividends.
“I think we’re just at the beginning of the wave in terms of agtech in Australia,” says Scott. “It might appear to be just the flavour of the month at the moment, but the technology is improving and more diverse products and offerings are coming into the market.
“Farmers need to look at their requirements and what they’re trying to achieve before they invest in solutions. Many farmers want to get into the agtech space and aren’t 100 per cent sure on what they want to achieve or don’t understand how the tech fits into their programs and this is where they encounter disappointing results. It’s a bit like buying a car – you need to ask a lot of questions and choose the one which suits your needs the best.”
For farmers, part of the problem is that they may not even know the right questions to ask. When it comes to companies such as Farmers Edge that provide software solutions driven by satellite imagery, something as seemingly inconsequential as the company’s satellite provider can make a massive difference to the end result.
“The newest satellite network provides 3-metre resolution and takes daily images, compared to older networks which provide 10-20-metre resolution and images taken once a week or fortnight,” says Scott. “This can cost farmers in terms of timeliness and accuracy.
“There’s a big difference between getting an image every day and an image every fortnight, especially during the growing season. If you can pick up issues, then fix them and make decisions in real time before yields are impacted, that’s a real advantage over having to wait two weeks. Depending on the issue, it could be too late to rectify after two weeks.”
Australia generally lags behind competitors in North America and Europe in agtech adoption, but that is largely due to the size of those markets and the comparatively larger levels of investment in technology research and development. Despite this, according to Scott, agtech adoption rates in Australia can differ greatly depending on the type of farming and some farmers are way ahead of their neighbours.
“In the Australian cropping market, cotton growers seem to have the highest adoption rate, which is driven by the cost of productivity and potential revenue per hectare of cotton,” says Scott. “Meanwhile, large broadacre cropping and pastures have the most room for opportunity.
“If you’re managing large areas, the more you or your advisors can manage your farm remotely and develop insights without having to get out into the field, the better. It will mean more timely decision making and more efficient use of time, whether that’s for an agronomist managing many clients or a grower managing many paddocks.”
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Trace minerals are required for optimal growth, reproduction, and immunity. Optimising trace mineral status relying solely on oral supplements across a herd may fail because of variation in individual intake and reduced absorption due to antagonism of other ration components and minerals. The use of injectable trace mineral supplements has been associated with positive reproductive outcomes including improved conception rate, increased odds of pregnancy and greater final in calf rate. A study conducted on 2,168 dairy cows, administered injectable trace minerals, four weeks prior to calving and again four weeks prior to the start of mating showed treated animals had a 3.3 per cent greater final in-calf rate, and a reduced time from start of mating to conception, compared to control animals 1 . The Importance of B12 Dr Carl Eden, Technical Services Veterinarian with Boehringer Ingelheim says “Vitamin B12 is sometimes referred to as a ‘super vitamin’ because it is only required in very small amounts but vital to many essential metabolic pathways. However, demand for B12 can vary considerably during the year and we see serum levels of B12 fall at critical times, such as the first few months after calving.” Vitamin B12 contains cobalt, so deficiency in cobalt can lead to deficiency in vitamin B12 because ruminants get most of their B12 as a byproduct of ruminal fermentation where the bacteria in their rumen assemble B12 from cobalt for use by the cow. Sub-optimal trace mineral and vitamin B12 status at calving, mating, and drying off has been shown to negatively impact growth, reproduction, and immunity. Using a trace mineral injectable containing vitamin B12 can improve trace mineral and vitamin B12 status at these critical times. Marks-Min with Vitamin B12 – The Evidence In the largest trace element study to date, Marks-Min Injectable Trace Mineral with Vitamin B12 demonstrated remarkable results when compared to a reference trace mineral injection. “Given the differences between Marks-Min and other products on the market, we wanted to generate a compelling data set to demonstrate how effective it was compared to the pioneer product. We entrusted this work to a third-party research company” says Dr Eden. “We chose farms that were at the top of their game from a reproductive perspective. We made sure that the farms had no evidence of trace element or vitamin B12 deficiencies or excess.” Across all outcomes of interest, Marks-Min demonstrated clear non-inferiority when compared to the reference product. Outcomes measured included submission, pregnancy and conception rates, and six week in-calf rate. Marks-Min demonstrated it is highly suited as an alternative treatment to the reference product. Reference: 1. Hawkins, D., and B. V. S. Franklin. New Zealand Dairy Veterinarians Newsletter 24 (2007): 12-16 Company website: livestockfirst.com.au Company email address: CustomerCare.Australia@boehringer-ingelheim.com Company video: https://vimeo.com/1138807630?fl=pl&fe=cm
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