By Riddhi Bhattacharya
With drone operation prices dropping significantly in the past few years, agricultural drone technology is becoming more attainable to small-scale farmers in developing countries. While farmers can use satellites to monitor crops, this technology is more suitable for large-scale farms and expansive areas of land. Satellites also come with disadvantages. For instance, these systems cannot operate optimally under unfavorable weather conditions. However, the upsides to drone usage have many industry experts expressing optimism. In particular, there are several ways drones could lift farmers out of poverty.