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Smart Farms: How Artificial Intelligence is Changing Agriculture

by Lado Sheroziia
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According to California Review Management, the artificial intelligence industry in agriculture, powered by smart farming technologies, was worth $519 million in 2019. However, it’s projected to experience a substantial increase, reaching around $2.6 billion by as soon as 2025.

Why Artificial Intelligence in agriculture is the future of smart farming and dairy farming, why farmers are hesitant to embrace smart agriculture, and the current benefits of AI in agriculture – all explained in this article.

How Artificial Intelligence Benefits Farmers

Artificial intelligence offers valuable contributions in three key areas:
Cow Health. AI tracks the well-being of cows using smart farming technologies, detects early signs of illnesses, sends alerts about potential health complications, and provides guidance on feeding, hydration, and barn temperature. For instance, if a cow’s vital signs exhibit unusual patterns, the artificial intelligence tools in agriculture can swiftly alert farmers for timely action.
Cattle Breeding. With the aid of AI in precision farming, farmers can meticulously monitor the gestation period, identify behavioral anomalies, and mitigate cattle loss. Moreover, AI plays a crucial role in pregnancy planning, offering insights for optimal insemination, managing a cow’s condition throughout pregnancy, and even recommending the appropriate amount of semen required.
Economics. Enhanced cow health through smart farming translates to boosted milk production and decreased costs. A notable example of AI’s efficiency is its ability to optimize feed consumption. By analyzing cow behavior with the assistance of big data in agriculture, AI determines the most suitable times and quantities for feeding. Furthermore, AI helps curtail the loss of pregnant cows by consistently monitoring their health.

Looking at Dairy Production as a Business

Dairy farms amass a wealth of data, including cow count, health status, feed details, milk yield, and various other metrics. Analyzing these metrics comprehensively and aligning them with business objectives can uncover areas of improvement that directly affect profitability.

Dairy farms amass a wealth of data, including cow count, health status, feed details, milk yield, and various other metrics.

However, sifting through this data can be time-consuming, especially given the size of the farm and the number of available analysts. This is where AI steps in, reducing information processing time by up to 60%. Furthermore, artificial intelligence in agriculture can take processed data and generate comprehensive summaries linked to business goals. This not only expedites decision-making but also reveals which metrics require adjustments to achieve objectives.

Liberating Farmers from Routine Tasks

Dairy farms amass a wealth of data, including cow count, health status, feed details, milk yield, and various other metrics. Analyzing these metrics comprehensively and aligning them with business objectives can uncover areas of improvement that directly affect profitability. Alert systems have become a staple in smart farms. AI operates in real-time, enhancing the efficiency of employee efforts. For instance, manually identifying the cause of reduced milk production used to take three days; with the aid of AI in agriculture, this process is now reduced to just one day. Considering that factors affecting milk production can vary daily, AI’s timely interventions prevent the build-up of problems that could compromise farm productivity.

Predictions and AI’s Dynamic Role

AI’s predictive capabilities are another highlight. For instance, Cyber Farm BI evaluates over 180 metrics to generate a dynamic 16-month forecast, allowing farmers to track their farm’s potential.
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How AI Benefits Farmers Today

When it comes to how AI can help farmers in practical ways, here are some useful things it can do:
AI can process data every hour and, if something isn’t going as planned, it can suggest what to do right away.
Data Collection and Processing. Normally, farmers report their farm activities once a week. This means if something goes wrong, it takes a whole week to fix it. This delay can directly affect how much milk you produce and whether you can meet your commitments to suppliers. AI can process data every hour and, if something isn’t going as planned, it can suggest what to do right away. If you have a big farm, you’ll especially benefit from getting quick updates.

For example, if your farm normally produces 100 liters of milk per day, but the AI notices it’s dropping to 90 liters, it can tell you to check on the cows or adjust their diet immediately.

Business Improvement. AI data can be shown to potential partners or buyers to prove the farm’s capabilities and potential. Having accurate data makes negotiations more successful and can help you make new deals.

If you want to sell your farm’s milk to a new buyer, you can use AI data to show them exactly how much milk your farm produces each day, making your offer more appealing.

Cow Behavior. AI can analyze how much food a cow eats, where it sleeps, and its overall behavior. This helps farmers spot health problems early and fix them. Keeping cows healthy in a herd reduces the chances of miscarriages or sudden drops in milk production.

AI can analyze how much food a cow eats, where it sleeps, and its overall behavior.

For instance, if AI sees that a cow is eating less than usual and spending more time lying down, it might signal that the cow is sick, allowing the farmer to give it proper care.

AI Keeps Evolving. With AI, you can create a solution tailored to your needs. For example, in India, there’s a problem with cow theft. So, they’re developing a system that can recognize cow faces to reduce fraud and provide accurate data to insurance companies.

AI’s Potential vs. Farmer Resistance

Farmers’ reluctance to adopt AI, based on research by Dr. Laura Baker, primarily stems from two reasons:

Cost Concerns. Initially, AI systems were expensive, deterring farmers, particularly with milk prices that can’t cover expenses. However, as AI technology advances and more providers enter the market, costs are plummeting. Subscription models based on farm size are emerging, making AI in agriculture more financially accessible.

Fear of Job Replacement. A common fear is that AI will replace human labor. While AI excels in analysis and processing, it lacks human capabilities to intervene medically or make strategic decisions. AI functions as a consultant, automating routine tasks and saving time for human workers.

Additionally, there’s a third fear tied to change and learning. After decades of humans performing tasks, the shift to AI in agriculture causes unease among employees and managers. AI’s complexity necessitates understanding, but its purpose is to simplify tasks. This is achieved through user-friendly interfaces, manuals, and human-staffed help desks.

In essence, smart farming powered by AI is a tool for advancing agriculture, not an obstacle. The smart agriculture system represents the future of agriculture, paving the way for future smart farming through the integration of big data in agriculture and cutting-edge smart farming technologies.

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