Ron Moore is an Illinois corn and soybean grower. As a third-generation farmer, he has seen farm equipment change throughout the decades.
As part of that evolution, farmers have started to use data analysis programs that help better utilize resources and adapt to climate change, which researchers warn will bring more extreme weather and more prevalent pests.
Instead of taking the time to check nutrient levels in the soil, farmers can now access updates at the click of a mouse or the touch of a smartphone screen.
Widely known as a company that produces genetically engineered seeds, Monsanto’s purchase of the data company Climate Corporation nearly two years ago is beginning to pay off.
The difficulties of data
Moore said increased efficiency means farmers can produce more with the same amount of resources, an important ability with future climate consequences lingering.
For example, most farmers apply nitrogen to parts of their field if the nutrient is lacking. Instead of relying on memory, history, field tests or intuition, corn farmers can now evaluate nitrogen information electronically.
In many ways, he said, the data analysis in farming is similar to popular data trends in baseball.
“They’ve got those analytics that some of the baseball teams are using now, and they’re being more efficient in use of team players,” Moore said. “That’s kind of what we’re going in agriculture, trying to be as efficient as we can and not be wasteful.”
The GLP aggregated and excerpted this blog/article to reflect the diversity of news, opinion and analysis. Read full, original post: Monsanto’s Climate Corporation using big data to inform farmers
