INNOVASIE | INNOVATION
DIGITAL
AGRICULTURE
The key to sustainability
Digital agriculture holds the potential to unlock our next
giant leap in farming productivity and efficiency.
By Martin van Zyl
Senwes Group Executive: Innovation
and Integrated Solutions
T
he combination of advanced data
science, sensors and proper
connectivity enables us to deliver
real insights to farmers in real
time, while in the field.
That knowledge gives farmers the
power to make more informed decisions,
and to effectively manage every inch of
their fields for maximum yields.
Digital tools are already making a
20
difference for farmers across the world,
improving their efficiency in managing fer-
tility, water and crop health. Possibilities
are endless if we can bring technological
innovation and the ingenuity and perse-
verance of farmers together. We will be
able to unlock productivity that will help us
to sustainably feed a growing population.
DIGITAL AG VS PRECISION AG
Digital Ag is the use of data and
advanced computational techniques to
make more informed decisions about
managing our crops and agronomic
operations. It encompasses all the infor-
SENWES SCENARIO | SOMER • SUMMER 2018
mation in the Ag ecosystem, including
data about the crop itself, equipment
data, environmental data, operational data
and even market and logistics data.
Precision Ag is about executing our agri-
cultural plan as precisely as possible and
“farming by the seed.” It is often executed
by specialised equipment, encompassing
how we plant, manage and harvest that
seed, as well as how we manage the soil
between plantings with processes like
tillage, crop rotation, cover cropping and
variable application of fertiliser.
Digital and Precision Ag combined