Lack of knowledge makes it difficult to analyze the information that precision agriculture makes possible

Created to identify differences in soil productivity and areas most affected by pests in order to apply the correct amount of fertilizers and inputs, among other functions, so-called precision agriculture is present on large properties. But it still faces obstacles to being adopted on a large scale in the country.

Although the first machines for variable input application and harvest monitoring began to be introduced in Brazil in the early 90s, most rural producers still lack information about the range of technologies available on the market and do not know how to extract the most the potential of technological innovation.

Research carried out by the company Kleffmann Group and presented by the Escola Superior de Agricultura Luiz de Queiroz (Esalq) shows that, out of a universe of 992 producers interviewed, 45% responded that they use some precision agriculture technique on the property, such as applying seeds to the population variable, spraying and fertilization at variable doses, and soil fertility mapping.

The survey carried out among soybean, wheat and corn producers reveals that, of this universe, just over 15% of producers actually use soil sampling techniques to obtain maps with diagnoses of the spatial variability of land fertility. The result is equivalent to 9 million of the 59 million hectares surveyed.

The research was carried out in 2013 in the South, Cerrado and Matopiba regions (comprising the states of Maranhão, Tocantins, Piauí and Bahia). The study also identified that the technology most adopted by producers is the use of autopilot and that 58% of farmers intended to continue investing in new technologies.

Professor José Paulo Molin, coordinator of the Usp-Esalq Precision Agriculture Laboratory, justifies that adherence is still low, as the subject is very new on the market, with around 16 years of existence, a factor that leads to a certain limitation of the understanding of the activity.

He summarizes that the main challenge in this scenario is access to knowledge and investments. “You have to know it to understand it and do it. And, if you want to do it, you have to have some financial commitment. So, what is needed is the massification of information, dissemination at all levels through opinion leaders so that it acquires value in the communities”, recommends Molin.

Researcher Ricardo Inamasu, from Embrapa Instrumentação, in São Carlos (SP), highlights that the system is still complex and requires a lot of information, which makes adoption complicated by farmers.

“We have developed a lot of knowledge, but it is a little difficult to be absorbed by the production sector. We have a significant percentage of producers who already adopt precision agriculture, but to increase it, we believe it is necessary to develop more appropriate procedures that favor application”.

In Partnership with

Researchers from Embrapa, private institutions and producers of different crops form partnerships to expand the adoption of precision agriculture on properties and optimize the use of technologies. One of Embrapa's works is being carried out with the Mato-Grossense do Algodão Institute (IMA).

According to IMA's executive director, Álvaro Salles, through the partnership the institute is developing methodologies and procedures to facilitate the use of technologies. IMA provides resources and field work and Embrapa provides technical support from leading researchers in the field.

“We launched a challenge together with Embrapa to develop a system that serves the producer to make decisions in time to correct any production distortion, from the crop for this harvest”, he comments.

Salles highlights that the biggest difficulty among producers in the region is interpreting the information collected in the field by technology and using it in a timely manner. He advocates that this gap be overcome with investment in research and training.

“The challenge is really research and correlating the data, because technology is running much faster than the knowledge available.”

The producer reports that the project made it possible to identify that few soybean and cotton producers in Mato Grosso use the full potential of the technology available on the market.

“Some producers use practically nothing, largely due to lack of knowledge and lack of connectivity. They buy a new machine that has all the equipment and technology on board, but together with old machines that do not have this technology”, comments Salles.

Mobilization

With the support of Mapa and the precision agriculture commission, two national associations were created to organize the application of these mechanisms. The entities have more than 100 associated companies and send representatives to international events to learn about new technologies and ways of doing agriculture that can be adapted to Brazil.

In addition to technical assistance partnerships, Mapa also works to improve the legislation surrounding the topic, including the general data protection law. Approved last year by the National Congress, the law establishes rules for the control and privacy of personal information. However, members of the agricultural sector believe that greater rigor is still needed to prevent data collected in the field from being used inappropriately.
“Today, the field is collecting a lot of information. Who really owns the data that these service providers are collecting for the producer? The producer is paying, but the company is receiving, manipulating, filtering, polishing the data”, asks Juntolli.

The sector also wants a legal framework to encourage the application of innovative production techniques in Brazil. Two bills are being processed in the National Congress to create a National Policy to Incentive Precision Agriculture and Livestock. One is authored by minister Tereza Cristina.

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