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HIGHER INSTITUTE OF DISTANCE LEARNING

Department of Agricultural Sciences

Degree Course in Agribusiness and Agrarian Development

Topic: Smart Agriculture

Chimoio, May 2022

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 HIGHER INSTITUTE OF DISTANCE LEARNING

Department of Agricultural Sciences

Degree Course in Agribusiness and Agrarian Development

Topic: Smart Agriculture

English Module field work to be submitted to

the coordination of ISCED's degree course in
Agribusiness and Agrarian Development.

TUTOUR: Eng. Solomone Rumhungwe

Elsa José Chale Renço

Code:

Chimoio, May 2022

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Index

Introduction ..................................................................................................................................... 4

Goals ............................................................................................................................................... 5

Smart Farming ................................................................................................................................ 6

Goals of smart farming ................................................................................................................... 7

Impacts of Smart Farming .............................................................................................................. 7

Examples of tools used in smart farming ........................................................................................ 8

Factors restricting technology adoption .......................................................................................... 8

Conclusion ...................................................................................................................................... 8

Bibliographical references ............................................................................................................ 10

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Introduction

The present work, aims to explain about smart agriculture, in this fact it is noted that the
agribusiness sector plays a key role in the economy, both in the creation of wealth and employment,
since over the past few years, for a farm to be profitable and sustainable, it was necessary a change
of the models in force, which ended up driving the modernization, supported by the new
technological resources available. The cost and scarcity of labor, the mechanization of tasks, the
improvement of high productivity techniques, and the technical expertise, were fundamental pillars
for this change. Smart agriculture is the system that allows transforming investment into increased
production, profitability, and reduced farm costs through the efficient management of resources,
supported by technology. However, its high cost of maintenance and equipment were still an
obstacle to its dissemination, a context that is rapidly changing, thanks to the advances of various
technologies, but mainly to IoT techniques. This work was carried out using the bibliographical
methodology.

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Goals

General:

• Explain about smart farming

Specifics:

• Identify the goals of smart farming.

• Mention some factors that restrict the adoption of agricultural technologies.

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Smart Agriculture

Humanity's daily life has been changing very quickly as a result of the technological evolution that
has incorporated itself into routine activities and provided new models for study and knowledge,
offering a large volume of information, quickly and with easy access, thanks to the resources that
allow connection to the world wide web, which are more and more popular every day, making it
easier to search for information with just a few clicks and making language and communication
more and more universal.

The agile availability and volume of new information means, however, that it is necessary to make
an effort to incorporate and understand the new concepts and expressions that are needed to define
these technologies; as well as to learn how best to elaborate the questions in order to interpret the
knowledge acquired.

Numerous technological tools are available, and their application in certain sectors of society can
provide elements, references, that if properly examined should help to trace the best paths for its
development and to generate results consistent with the requirements of this current society, both
in terms of the demands of the economic aspect, and the perspective of sustainability, a topic on
the agenda in all kinds of current discussions about the evolution of mankind versus what this
growth and prosperity entail for the future of the planet.

Among the many applications of technology and its interaction in the contemporary world, the
possibilities it offers to the development of the practices performed by agribusiness, an important
sector for the Brazilian economy, stand out.

Precision farming (or digital agriculture or smart agriculture) is the agricultural management
system that aims to develop good practices in the sector, taking into account that crops present
variable scenarios, and through the adoption of tools and techniques made available by technology,
align these scenarios, helping to define the best options for using available resources and leverage
productivity.

One of the techniques that have most contributed to the advancement of precision agriculture is
the so-called IoT, which allows with its resources, expand the limits of traditional agriculture,
providing producers with mechanisms and information that support decision making, and can
generate more efficiency, for example, through the use of sensor equipment to collect data on
moisture, soil, temperature and meteorological data, and tools for analyzing this data, it is possible

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for the producer to obtain reliable information that predicts situations such as pest attacks or
problems that could be caused by rainfall, or inadequate irrigation, thus being able to repair failures
and take the necessary measures to correct processes, minimize waste and avoid losses (ROSA,
2016).

Goals of smart farming

The main objective of smart agriculture is to improve production efficiency and agricultural
management. By identifying the characteristics of each region in the field, the system enables a
better distribution of inputs.

In addition, it also serves to minimize soil contamination in productive areas, optimize the
production potential, and improve environmental quality. This occurs because it takes into
consideration the main aspects of farming, which are:

• Soil: need for fertilizer, pH correction, productive area, etc.

• Fertilizers: types of fertilizers needed and the amount to be used
• Productivity: production per hectare
• Weeds: Types of foliage intruding on crops
• Diseases: which ones can affect the area and the type of crop in the region
• Pests: control of insects that harm the crop.

Impacts of smart farming

The intelligent planting provides several benefits to the producer, it counts with lower risks of
losses, better planning, possibility to obtain information in real time and access to tools that bring
several positive impacts such as:

• Mapping and monitoring crop development more efficiently and cheaply;

• Use of sensors to increase the quality of the collected data;
• Automated machines;
• Reduction of production losses.
• It improves and optimizes production and the use of inputs;
• Reduces negative impacts on the environment;
• It increases crop productivity;

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 • Facilitates communication between producer, operators, administrators, agronomists, etc.
with the use of cell phones and internet tools;
• It lowers costs of access to services - insurance and credit, for example - and information -
such as market or technological information.
• Reduces risks of losses from climatic events, pests, and natural disasters, through
accessible monitoring and information systems.

Examples of tools used in smart farming

1) Sensors: They are present in tractors to better align the planting of seeds, in the stock control
of silos, and in seed storage.

2) Drones: These greatly assist in the surveillance of land, allowing faster control and location of
pests. The images are also used to calculate the administration of fertilizers and pesticides.

3) Tractors and harvesters: The evolution of these vehicles does not stop and the investment is
worth every penny. A generation of self-guided carts is growing fast, maximizing production,
ensuring uniformity, reducing costs and errors.

4) Agricultural machinery and equipment: Fine-tuning details in planting results in a better

harvest, and this is what the advancement of agricultural machinery and equipment keeps its focus
on. The precision of the machines makes a big difference in the results.

5) Cell phones, tablets, and notebooks: Communicating, recording, and sharing information
through mobile devices is a path of no return. With various forms and costs, this technology is
accessible to any type of property, speeding up decisions. Easy-to-understand and even free
applications help producers in their daily routine.

Factors restricting the adoption of technologies

The limiting factors for adoption of agricultural technologies are:

• Very expensive equipment.

• Very expensive equipment maintenance.
• The lack of knowledge to handle the equipment.

Conclusion

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Having reached the final stage of the work, it is concluded that smart agriculture is a system that
monitors and unites meteorological data to assist the farmer in the process of evaluating the main
conditions of production. This work is done by monitoring the weather conditions during the
various stages of the crop, obtaining and analyzing accurate data, collected through weather
stations and sensors that capture information such as air temperature, leaf wetting time,
precipitation, soil moisture, among other parameters. With the use of smart agriculture, it is
possible to control the behavior of the soil, the availability of water in the region where the
plantation is located, and the recurrent development of vegetation. In view of real notions of crop
development for the minimization of production losses. One of the tools that contribute to the
development of smart agriculture is the IoT (Internet of Things). Increasing productivity is one of
the main goals of the producer. Technology in agriculture is one of the main factors contributing
to the increase in crop productivity. Moreover, the use of smart agriculture brings additional
benefits to the producer, which is the reduction of costs. However, applying IoT in agriculture is
more than a trend: it is a necessity.

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Bibliographic references

1. EMBRAPA INSTRUMENTATION. Smart Agriculture. Irrigation Sensor. Dihedral

Sensor. (2015). Available at:
<https://ainfo.cnptia.embrapa.br/digital/bitstream/item/138163/1/Sensor- diedrico.pdf>.
Accessed on: 07 May 2022.

2. BIROLO, F. Precision farming improves water consumption (2015). Available at:

<https://www.embrapa.br/busca-de-noticias/-/noticia/2514747/agricultura-de-precisao-
melhora-o-consumo-de-agua>. Accessed on: 07 May 2022.

3. BURANELLO, R. A modern concept of agribusiness.(2016). Available at:

<http://politica.estadao.com.br/blogs/fausto-macedo/um-moderno-conceito-de-
agronegocio/>. Accessed on 07 May 2022.

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