AGCO sees the next decade as a major opportunity for farmers to benefit from AI, automation and precision crop management solutions.
In a recent interview with Farms.com, AGCO Corporation President and CEO Eric P. Hansotia said agriculture is positioned for a period of significant innovation as global food demand, biofuels and new technologies reshape the industry.
Hansotia told Farms.com that the long-term outlook for agriculture remains strong because the world’s population continues to grow, and consumers in many markets are adding more meat to their diets. Increasing demand for meat also creates additional demand for crops used to feed livestock.
At the same time, interest in biofuels is changing the market for some agricultural products as countries look for more sustainable and locally sourced energy options.
According to Hansotia, meeting these growing demands will require farmers to produce more efficiently without relying on additional land, water or fertilizer. He sees precision agriculture as THE important part of that equation.
Company Innovations
In addition to precision agriculture equipment from Fendt and other AGCO brands, AGCO has invested heavily in precision agriculture through its PTx business, which develops technologies covering many stages of crop production for use with any brand of existing equipment. These include automated soil sampling, planting, spraying, targeted application systems, autonomy, data management, and water-related solutions.
Hansotia said the company is focused on identifying farmers’ challenges and developing technology that can address those needs throughout the production cycle.
AGCO and Artificial Intelligence
He also expects artificial intelligence to become increasingly important in agricultural equipment. One example is Precision Planting’s SymphonyVision targeted spraying technology that uses cameras and AI to distinguish weeds from crops.
The system can identify individual weeds and activate the appropriate spray nozzle, allowing farmers to treat weeds more precisely and potentially reduce herbicide use and costs.
Hansotia said AI will also be incorporated into future machinery to help equipment learn from field conditions and provide farmers with more useful operating recommendations. Because farms and farming practices vary, technology that can adapt to individual field conditions could help improve machine performance and decision-making.
The company is also exploring AI beyond farm equipment. AGCO is using the technology to help customer-support teams diagnose machine problems more quickly by organizing relevant information and identifying potential solutions.
AI could even assist the AGCO sales team in determining which equipment and technologies may best fit a farmer’s operation and existing machinery fleet.
Hansotia says he believes the coming decade will be one of the most exciting and important periods for agricultural innovation.
"We believe the next 10 years are going to be the most innovative decade in the history of agriculture," Hansotia asserted. "For the last tens of thousands of years, people have been farming, and over these next 10 years we're going to provide farmers with more solutions to make their job more effective than has ever been done before. We aim to lead the movement to help farmers. We are encouraged and we are bullish on farming."
Despite recent challenges facing farmers, he said long-term food and energy demand, combined with advances in precision agriculture and AI, could create new opportunities while helping farmers manage risk, improve efficiency and build more productive operations.
Watch the video of the interview with AGCO Corporation President and CEO Eric P. Hansotia below.
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