How Does Precision Agriculture Differ From Smart Farming?

What’s general between the two is that they are both methods of digital farming, each with a slightly diverse emphasis.

Fremont, CA: Agriculture is labor-intensive work. The modernization of farm operations energized by the rising technology acceptance rate makes farm management a bit less laborious and much more rewarding. Still, the development of digital technology has followed several new ideas, some of which are utilized interchangeably.

Precision Agriculture

As the name suggests, precision farming involves highly controlled, accurate, and optimized agricultural production. It eases more efficient resource utilization, better yield, and lowered environmental impact, all at the same time. An ideal instance of the precision farming practice is a concentrated agrochemical application with AI-supported analysis, targeting only areas that require attention instead of the blanket application.

This farming practice includes implementing modern information and communication technologies (ICT). Producers also include a combination of devices and machinery that aid capture vital field data, comprising:

• Remote sensors
• Automated hardware and software
• Telematics
• Drones
• Autonomous vehicles
• GPS soil sampling
• Robotics

Smart Farming

Smart farming concentrates on executing data and information technologies to effectively use human labor and improve crop quality and quantity. This method drives Cropin’s mission to encourage agribusinesses to grow more with less.

Today, most farmers, mainly in rural areas, trust on learnings passed down via generations and approximate estimations to perform seeding, applying fertilizers and crop protection products, and harvesting. 

Smart farming enhances these processes and boosts their efficiency with the support of agritech tools and software solutions. It helps producers make more educated, data-driven decisions and attain economic efficiency by reducing workforce requirements.

What distinguishes smart farming from precision agriculture is that it does not concentrate on precise measurements. Rather, smart farming concentrates on capturing and interpreting data utilizing computing technologies to make farm operations more predictable and efficient.

Smart farming technologies are utilized to transmit data from agriculture through ICT-based platforms. Some of the components that ICT-based platforms utilize for smart farming are:

• Mobile devices, like smartphones and tablets
• Internet of Things (IoT)
• Artificial Intelligence (AI)
• Robotics
• Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS)
• Sensors and Actuators
• Drones