PRECISION FARMING: ADOPTION,
PROFITABILITY, AND MAKING BETTER
USE OF DATA
T.W. Griffin, J. Lowenberg-DeBoer, D.M. Lambert, and J. Peone
Site Specific Management Center - Purdue University
T. Payne and S.G. Daberkow
USDA-ERS
3 part presentation
1) Adoption trends in the US and Worldwide
2) Review of PA profitability literature
3) Making better use of yield monitor data
Adoption Trends
• Worldwide network of collaborators
• USDA ARMS study
• PA Services Dealership Survey
– Whipker and Akridge, 2004
Combine Yield Monitors
Yield Monitor Grain Flow Sensor
Yield Map
Lower yields
Higher yields
Actual Adoption Rates of U.S. Yield Monitors
% of planted acres
Approximately 30,000 in 2000
45,000 in 2003
40
corn
soybean
whean
cotton
30
20
10
0
04
20
02
20
00
20
98
19
96
19
94
19
92
19
Source: before 1995 Mangold
After 1995 USDA ARMS
Actual Adoption Rates of U.S. Yield Mapping
% of planted acres
Yield Monitor plus a GPS
20
15
corn
soybean
cotton
10
5
0
04
20
03
20
02
20
01
20
00
20
99
19
98
19
97
19
96
19
Source: USDA ARMS
European Yield Monitor Use
• Germany
• United Kingdom
• Denmark
• Sweden
• France
• Holland
• Belgium
• Spain
• Portugal
Total Per million acres
Year
4250
400
400
150
50
6
6
5
4
2003
2000
2000
2000
2000
2000
2000
2003
2003
212
43
100
48
2
11
7
0
3
Latin American Yield Monitor Use
•
•
•
•
Argentina
Brazil
Chile
Uruguay
Total
1000
100
12
4
Per million acres
17
1
8
3
Year
2003
2002
2000
2000
200
150
100
yield monitors
Yield monitors by country
per million acres
250
50
0
'0 0
'0 3
y
an
'03
' 00
nd
lla
' 03
Ho
na
nti
ge
Ar
'0 0
UK
'00
en
ed
'0 0
Sw
ark
nm
De
US
US
rm
Ge
% of planted acres
Soil Mapping Adoption
25
20
15
10
5
0
02
20
Wheat
01
20
Soybean
00
20
99
19
98
19
Corn
Cotton
Source: USDA ARMS
Remote Sensing Adoption
% of planted acres
15
Redefined
question
in 2002
10
5
0
02
20
Soybean
01
20
00
20
99
19
Corn
Wheat
Source: USDA ARMS
Adoption of VRT-Fertilizer
% of planted acres
20
15
10
5
0
1998
Corn
1999
Soybean
2000
Wheat
2001
2002
Cotton
Source: USDA ARMS
% of planted acres
Adoption of VRT in Corn
20
15
10
5
0
1998
Fertilizer
1999
Seed
2000
2001
Pesticide
Source: USDA ARMS
% of planted acres
Adoption of VRT in Soybean
20
15
10
5
0
1998 1999 2000 2001 2002
Fertilizer
Seed
Pesticide
Source: USDA ARMS
% of planted acres
Adoption of VRT in Cotton
20
15
10
5
0
1998
Fertilizer
1999
Seed
2000
Pesticide
Source: USDA ARMS
VRT Offered by Ag Retailers
• 67% of service providers offer VRT
• 40% offer single-nutrient VRT
– Still less than 50% by 2006
• 23% offer multi-nutrient VRT in 2004
– 28% of providers expect to offer by 2006
• <10% offer VRT - seeding
Source: Whipker and Akridge, 2004
Service Providers Offering VRT
fertilizer, lime, and pesticides
% of dealers
100
75
50
25
0
04
20
03
20
Single
02
20
01
20
00
20
99
19
98
19
97
19
Multi
Total
Source: Whipker and Akridge
VRT-Fertilizer by Region
% of dealers
50
40
30
20
10
0
Midwest
Manual VR
Single-nutrient
Other states
Multi-nutrient
Source: Whipker and Akridge, 2004
GPS Lightbars
Purdue Davis Farm
GPS Lightbar Guidance
used by Service Providers
applications with
GPS guidance
– 72% in Midwest
– 39% in other states
% of dealers
• 61% offer
100
80
60
40
20
0
20
20
20
20
20
19
04
03
02
01
00
99
Source: Whipker and Akridge, 2004
GPS Auto-Guidance
• 5.3% of dealers use GPS auto-guidance
– 4.2% in Midwest and 7.4% in other states
– Regional difference?
Source: Whipker and Akridge, 2004
On-the-go Sensors
• Soil Dr – been around the longest
• Greenseeker
• Norsk Hydro N-sensor
– ~320 total units
– ~300 in Europe
Sensors for Mapping
• Soil pH sensor available
– Veris Mobile Sensor Platform >5 sold
– K sensor being developed
– 7.8% of dealers offer soil EC mapping*
*Source: Whipker and Akridge, 2004
Fundamental Constraints of Adoption
• Lack of research support
• Human capital costs
• Lack of education and training
Fundamental Constraints of Adoption
• Lack of support and consulting
• High opportunity cost of management time
• Information-intensive / embodied knowledge
“Information-intensive” vs.
“Embodied knowledge”
Information-intensive
Embodied knowledge
• Field level data to
make decisions
• Information purchased
in the form of an input
• Requires additional
data and skill
• Requires minimal
additional data/skill
• VRT and precision
agriculture
• Hybrid corn
• IPM
• Round-up Ready or Bt
Fundamental Incentives of Adoption
• Technology costs are declining
• Incorporation of technology in society
– GPS in cars and boats
• Increased comfort level with technology
– USDA FSA and NRCS using GIS with farmers
Fundamental Incentives of Adoption
Automating Record Keeping
• Identity tracking of commodities
• Pesticide record keeping
• Environmental regulations – monitor input use
– May lead into cost sharing for adoption
Fundamental Incentives of Adoption
Auto-guidance systems
• Increase farm size with same equipment set
– Reduce overlap, expand work day, increase speed
• Match equipment operations (6, 8, 12 row)
• Controlled trafficking
• Strip till
Economies of Scale in Data Analysis
• Skill to analyze 2000 ac works for 20,000 ac
• Potential for PA consulting - outsourcing
• Complementary goods and services
Part 2: PA Profitability Review
• Standalone VRT fertilizer often does not
cover costs
– Swinton and Lowenberg-DeBoer (1998)
• In 2000, 63% of studies showed profits, but
budget methods not standardized
– Lambert and Lowenberg-DeBoer (2000)
• Economics of precision agriculture are site-specific
Profitability Studies to Date
• Reviewed 234 articles
• 210 reported some kind of benefit or loss
• Of those, 68% reported positive benefits
• 52% of studies involved an economist
20
15
10
% of articles
Articles by Technology
30
25
5
0
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% of total
% reporting positive benefits
40
35
30
25
20
15
10
5
0
% of articles
Articles by Crop
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Part 3: Better Use of Data
• Many farmers collecting data
– 10 + years and several megabytes
• Question remains: what to do with the data?
• No one has all the answers
• Is data valuable enough to justify processing?
Better Use of Data
• Better farm-level experimental designs
• Spatial statistical methods
• More reliable local information
Better Experimental Designs
• Small plot designs developed 70 years ago
– Blocking and replications neutralize variability
• Precision agriculture measures variability
• Spatial statistics can model variability
Better Experimental Designs
• Opportunity for fewer replication large blocks
• Types of comparisons farmer tend to conduct
• Experimental designs being tested in 4 states
• Farmer feedback crucial to evaluation
64 acre field
Satellite image
taken in July
Red outline is
field boundary
Planned
comparison
design
3 varieties
Single-block
non-replicated
Note: soil types
are outlined in
blue
Each variety is
represented on
each major soil
type/zone
Once designs are
decided upon in
off-season,
implementation
is simple at
planting time
Treatments can
be changed at
normal planter
refilling times
Soybean harvest
can be conducted
at any angle to
planter pass
Yield Monitor Data Analysis
• Yield monitor data analysis service pilot project
• 37th Annual Top Farmer Crop Workshop
– July 18-21, 2004
• More reliable results gained
http://www.agecon.purdue.edu/topfarmer
Summary
• Adoption has been slow and uneven
• Economics well documented – many studies
• Information-intensive vs. embodied knowledge ag
• Need for analysis services to overcome constraints
Role of Extension Farm Management
• Third party evaluation desperately needed
– Firm understanding of precision technologies
• Help farmers develop own recommendations
instead of supplying answer
– On-farm comparisons
Role of Extension Farm Management
• Assist farmers and ag businesses in
understanding economics of information
Barriers to adoption are an opportunity for
extension to be more relevant
Terry Griffin
twgriffi@purdue.edu
765.494.4257
Site-Specific Management Center
Purdue University
http://www.purdue.edu/ssmc