In addition to the further development of our existing service portfolio and the organization of specific innovation challenges, our focus in 2021 will be on the development of products and services related to our core topics of the Internet of Things (IoT), sustainability & climate protection, and automation. The aim is to ensure that new developments and trends are useful to farmers.
IoT & digitalization: In agriculture, the use of sensor technology and the digitalization of processes offer huge potential for increasing efficiency and supporting informed decision-making – for both smaller and larger farms as well as contractors. To this end, AIL is on the lookout for practical solutions, both for location-specific tasks, such as the storage of agricultural products, and for farmers, for whom each step in a process can be automatically documented. The transmission of machine data can ensure the timely delivery of spare parts.
Sustainability: Agriculture makes an important contribution to climate protection, which should be both increasingly highlighted and developed further in order to counteract climate change. The European Union’s Farm-to-Fork Strategy, which was presented in 2020, clearly shows that sustainable management in agriculture is a key topic for the future. Agriculture and forestry are the only sectors that have the potential to actively bind CO2 by building up humus in the ground. This is why 2020 also saw the launch of our new Lagerhaus program “Future Earth”, which rewards farmers for their work in the area of sustainable humus formation. This will be followed by the further development of this program, together with the evaluation of ways of reducing methane levels and other climate protection aspects of agriculture.
Automation: The Agro Innovation Lab has been focusing on automation for some time. Last year’s Robotics Challenge clearly demonstrated the potential in this area. The task is now to put the suitable devices into practice. In recent months, some robotics developers have been able to arouse interest with new developments, which were also presented at the annual French robotics trade fair “FIRA” at the beginning of December. Our objective in the field of automation is to further expand the Agro Innovation Lab’s pioneering role as a robotics competence partner and to identify the best devices by carrying out practical assignments together with interested farmers.
We want to pick up on trends in agriculture and make innovations usable in cooperation with a range of partners, especially farmers. We are always happy to receive suggestions and ideas.
Image (c) Robert Gebauer, AIL