Digital mobile agriculture and the future of food security

By Ros Harvey, The Yield

Global food production needs to increase 60% by the year 2050 to feed the earth’s projected population of nine billion, according to the Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations. It is expected that 85% of this production increase will be driven by increased yields and cropping intensity.

Agtech, or agricultural technology, has grown out of the need to meet our future demands for food security and will increasingly become the key enabler of sustainable intensification of agriculture.

It is an exciting time as so many new technologies are being developed to meet the challenges we will face in the future, not just on farm but along the entire food supply chain.

Digital mobile technology

Growers have an ever-growing list of mobile apps they can download to make their lives easier. There are apps for recording activities, monitoring weather, and tracking commodities prices. There are converters and calculators, farm management apps, agricultural news apps, forums, pest guides and countless other tools for growers to download.

In a world in which growers are increasingly expected to do more with less, this influx of affordable, easily accessible tools can make a significant impact. The democratisation of technology, particularly mobile technology, means emerging agricultural technologies are accessible to a wider range of growers, from a wider range of backgrounds.

Given the need to improve food production significantly in the coming decades, that access is crucial for agtech to make a tangible impact on food supply globally.

Unlike other agriculture technologies, digital mobile agriculture technology has few barriers to entry, with the savviest players in the market championing affordability, accessibility and simplicity. With smartphone handsets getting cheaper and cheaper, and 4G (and soon 5G) connectivity rolling out across more areas, the potential for digital mobile agriculture technology to revolutionise global food production is immense.

Over the past few years, hundreds of agtech solutions have entered the market with companies eager to help growers simplify and streamline their growing operations.

While the sheer number of available solutions means that, generally, there is a solution for every grower, it can make the task of seeking out the leaders in the field rather difficult.

Below are ten of the leading digital mobile agtech solutions currently on the market:

For more information, check out The Yield’s comprehensive guide to understanding mobile agriculture as it fits into the global big picture and some of the solutions available.

The guide takes a deep dive into ten of the leading agtech solutions currently on the market – from features to ratings, availability to target market: go.theyield.com/Digital-and-Mobile-AgTech.html.

The Yield is on a mission to transform food and farming practices with scalable digital technology.