With the rise of Internet of Things (IoT) adoption,
connected devices have permeated every aspect of our lives, from health and
fitness, home automation, automotive and logistics to smart cities and IoT in
industry.
Therefore, it goes without saying that IoT, connected
devices and automation are finding their way into agriculture and as such
significantly improving almost every aspect of it. How can you continue to
trust horses and plows when self-driving cars and virtual reality are no longer
science fiction but everyday fact?
Over the past decades, agriculture has undergone a series of
technological transformations, becoming more industrialized and technology
oriented. Through the use of various intelligent agricultural devices, farmers
have gained better control over the process of raising livestock and farming,
making it more predictable and more efficient.
This, coupled with growing consumer demand for agricultural
products, has contributed to an increase in the spread of smart farming
technologies around the world. In 2020, the market share of IoT in agriculture
reached $5.6 billion.
In this article, we'll explore IoT use cases in agriculture
and explore its benefits. So if you are planning to invest in smart agriculture
or you are planning to create an IoT solution for agriculture, get started now.
What is smart agriculture? Definition and size of the
market.
There are many ways to address modern agriculture. For
example, AgriTech refers to the application of technology in agriculture in
general.
Smart agriculture, on the other hand, is mainly used to
refer to the application of IoT solutions in agriculture. So what is smart
farming using IoT? By using IoT sensors to collect machine and environmental
metrics, farmers can make informed decisions and improve virtually every aspect
of their operations, from livestock to farming.
For example, by using smart agricultural sensors to monitor
crop health, farmers can determine exactly how much pesticide and fertilizer to
use to achieve optimal efficiency. The same applies to the definition of smart
agriculture.
smart agriculture
While IoT for smart farming, as well as industrial IoT in
general, is not as popular as consumer connected devices; however, the market
is still very dynamic. The adoption of IoT solutions for agriculture is constantly
growing. Namely, COVID-19 has had a positive impact on the share of IoT in the
agricultural market. Supply chain disruptions and a shortage of skilled workers
pushed the compound annual growth rate up to 9.9%. In fact, according to the
latest data, the market share of smart frames will reach $6.2 billion by 2021.
At the same time, the global smart farm market is expected to triple to $15.3 billion by 2025 (up from just over $5 billion in 2016).
As the market is still evolving, there are still huge opportunities
for companies to get involved. Creating IoT products for agriculture in the
coming years can set you apart as a pioneer and thus help pave the way for
success.
But why should you consider building an IoT application
for agriculture in the first place?
Benefits of Smart Farming: How the Internet of Things
Affects Agriculture
Technology and the Internet of Things have the potential to
transform agriculture in many ways. Namely, there are 5 ways IoT can improve
agriculture:
Data, tons of data collected by smart agricultural sensors,
for example. weather conditions, soil quality, crop growth or livestock health.
This data can be used to track the health of your business as a whole, as well
as staff performance, team performance, and more.
Improved control over internal processes and, as a result,
reduced production risks. Being able to predict the outcome of your production
allows you to better plan product distribution. Knowing exactly how much
harvest you are going to harvest, you can be sure that your products will not
go unsold.
Benefits of smart farming
Manage costs and reduce waste through greater control over
production. By being able to see any anomalies in crop growth or livestock
health, you can reduce the risk of crop loss.
Improving business efficiency through