Sustainability Driven by Agriculture through Digital Transformation

A new one is replacing the traditional method of agricultural production as part of a global trend known as the “digitalization of the agro-industrial complex.” Efforts are being made to increase the productivity of agricultural output by collecting, synthesizing, and adapting databases, applied software products, and recommendations. Academics and national governments are devoting more and more resources to ensuring economic, environmental, and social sustainability.

Climate change, global warming, natural disasters, and other forms of environmental unpredictability are only a few of the threats that can seriously undermine the sustainability of established economic practices. Because of its central position in the financial system, agriculture must contend with these issues even as it helps to feed the world’s expanding population, is accountable for reducing waste, and safeguards the planet’s natural resources. These demands for the integration of cutting-edge technology into agricultural production, supply chains, and food systems, such as Artificial Intelligence (AI), the Internet of Things (Iota), robotics, Big data, augmented reality (AR), sensors, and drones. A new term, “digital agriculture,” has emerged due to the widespread adoption and integration of these technologies into the agricultural sector.

Technological advancements are driving the agricultural revolution. These developments enhance production systems to ensure food production and the optimal use of natural resources. However, there are significant challenges for small farmers or communities implementing these technologies due to a need for more understanding. To ensure agriculture’s long-term viability, improvements are much needed in scientific inquiry and the communication of findings to the farming community.

Given the new technological order and the dynamic digital transformation of the business landscape, the authors have looked for efficient methods to implement an agricultural firm’s growth strategy. Utilizing machine learning, Big Data technology, blockchain technologies, virtualization of contractual relations, and transactions using smart contracts, the study proves it is possible to create a digital system for managing the development of corporate entities in agricultural output. To a large extent, the mineralization of components like nitrogen, which is crucial for root growth and respiration, is influenced by soil temperature. For precision farming, it is critical to keep the soil’s temperature and humidity within the ideal range by monitoring them regularly. Soil Monitoring is a method that accomplishes this by employing buried sensor probes that transmit tracking data to routers or gateways on the farm.

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Plenty of sunlight is necessary for the development of many types of crops and plants. To maintain optimal circumstances for tree development, it is essential to regularly check the non-contact surface temperature around sprouted seeds using sensors. Light sensors can be set up to evaluate the farmland where these seeds have been planted. Farmers don’t have to manually perform tasks like plowing, fertilizing, and planting because machines can calculate the precise amount of inputs required for each crop. But before the benefits of bigger crops and greater sustainability can be realized, several preliminary hurdles must be cleared, demonstrating the importance of digitalization and its application.

The global market for “digital agriculture” is expected to exceed USD $23 billion by 2022, with an annual growth rate of about 20%. This idea uses innovative technology to improve harvest output, use of resources, and supply chain resilience. Precision farming, often known as digital agriculture, covers technologies like climate control to cultivate crops more efficiently and other methods like vertical farming and intelligent greenhouses.

We must investigate the cutting-edge prospects offered by digital technologies. The policies of world leaders also draw attention to this problem and, in turn, inspire the creation of initiatives for the expansion and improvement of sustainability. Economic, environmental, and social sustainability are the pillars upon which the notion of sustainability rests. The agriculture sector is pivotal in all three areas because the activities directly affect them. This idea sparked research into agriculture’s effect on sustainability and examined digital technologies’ contribution to the agroecosystem.

To boost the competitiveness of the business, the use of information technology can significantly aid the resolution of a wide range of activities associated with the planning, forecasting, analysis, and modeling of agricultural operations. As part of the digital transformation, many information platforms should be developed, with the vast majority freely accessible to those in the relevant fields. As a result, the digitalization of the agro-industrial complex should precede more quickly, and competition between IT and consulting firms should increase. It should strengthen the integrity of data exchange in agriculture.

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About the Writer

Business Technology Leader with 15 plus years of experience in Digital Transformation, Designing Enterprise Business applications to support Commercial and Corporate operations through driving process optimization and system enhancements that fully leverage the power of ERP applications and enable them with improved reporting capabilities.

Sreekanth’s passion is to explore and leverage FinTech and Digital Technologies – Artificial Intelligence, Blockchain, Data Analytics, IoT, etc. in Agriculture to build robust and large-scale Agri-Technology products to de-risking agriculture for Farmers. He currently lives in the United States for the last 10+ years working for a large FinTech/Payments company in the World, and he is an IEEE Senior Member.