The Farmers Mart Aug-Sep 2018 - Issue 58 | Page 64

64 TECHNOLOGY
AUG/SEP 2018 • farmers-mart.co.uk
FARMING IN SMALL SCALE
SPACES: WHAT’S THE STORY?
MANY industries spanning from
car manufacturers to textiles, to
electronics to agriculture, adopt
robotic technologies to reduce
labour costs, increase yield and
lower their carbon footprint. As
Hadlow College is celebrating its
50th anniversary with the Vision50
‘looking into the future of farming’
campaign, it is a poignant time to
showcase the benefits robotics
has to offer, including the trans-
formative impact it is having on
farming.
With the world population
estimated to grow from 7.3 billion
to 9.7 billion by 2050, food pro-
duction has never been so vital.
Smaller farms are becoming more
and more common, as larger
commercial farming companies
turn to compact areas to maxim-
ise food production. However, in
these bijou spaces, the operation
of large machinery is a practical
impossibility, causing energy and
fuel wastage which negatively
impact environmental health.
Whilst heavy machinery is
completely justifiable in large-
scale contexts, their suitability to
small-scale farms is debatable.
But what is the solution to this
concern? What farming methods
can be best utilised in smaller
spaces to meet food production
demands in our current and future
eco-climate? Could innovative
robotic technology offer a more
sustainable alternative for small-
scale farming?
So, what is meant by the term
‘robotics?’ It is important to
highlight that robots are heteroge-
neous, available in various shapes
and sizes suitable for arable and
livestock farming. These robots
can take the appearance of more
conventional machine-like shapes
or can look human-like, depend-
ing on the type of farming.
Firstly, attention must be paid
to robotics’ benefits, namely its
sustainability. Robots will help
farms save labour costs and any
shortages, particularly in light
of Brexit. According to statistics,
British farms employed up to
22,517 EU-born workers in 2015,
accounting for a fifth of those
working in the sector. With many
EU citizens choosing to depart the
UK in the wake of Brexit, robots
could potentially fill a huge labour
gap, offering a positive solution to
a very uncertain future.
Whilst the prices of small robots
might seem high (they range from
£20,000-£25,000), they are a sure
investment. Robots perform in all
weather conditions, meaning yield
is not compromised by adverse
climates. Unlike humans, robots
require fewer breaks and can
weed and hoe for longer periods
of time. Moreover, different types
of crops from beetroot to onions
can be grown in the same spaces.
Robots can run for up to 10 hours
without a battery charge; and cur-
rent studies are developing ways
to charge robots through wireless
and photovoltaic (PV) charging
systems. Longer working time =
higher yield = more crops = better
profits.
If robotics plans on taking off in
the farming world then it would
be sensible to outline certain
regulations beforehand. For
instance, agricultural industry
standards might be implement-
ed to assure safe, transparent
practice across the board. Proper
training schemes will also need to
be developed so farmers under-
stand how to operate equipment
to minimise risk to health and
finances.
Romantic, pastoral images of
farmers operating at daybreak
belong to a bygone era in agri-
culture. Whilst the transition from
manual to tech farmer is complex,
it will nonetheless ensure robotics
is a rigorous, well-thought out
farming method that could turn
out to be farming’s saving grace.
https://www.hadlow.ac.uk/