Farming lies at the base of our society, of nearly every modern society and has for millennia. As such, it has had to adapt to a variety of unusual circumstances and major shifts in other industries. Techniques have had to be altered or invented to deal with different climates, threats from insects or just more people that need to be fed. Then there are the technological changes that have led to inventions like combines, sprinkler systems and improvements in food storage. The data revolution is the latest development that the farming world is trying to adapt to. How has that been going?
In some ways, very well. As the market went from the local village to the whole globe, farmers adapted to be more efficient and profitable, allowing them to sell various grains for every low prices that have helped to feed the world. Yet, many of these techniques are damaging to the environment and may be reaching their limits anyway. We’re going to be crossing the 9 billion people threshold in fairly short order and if trends continue, it will be difficult to produce enough food for all those people.
Unfortunately, farming is both hard work and not nearly as profitable as one might think. Farmers tend to operate on razor thin profit margins, relying on sheer volume in order to make a living. Most of them don’t have the spare time or energy to devote to data analysis in order to find more efficient means of production. Instead, they either rely on their own understanding of nature or the tried and surprisingly often true Farmers’ Almanac. Yet, as the population grows, farmers large and small are going to need to make better use of data not just so they can adapt but also for the good of everyone else.
Fortunately, that is getting easier with the rise of Bluetooth technology being embedded in everything, even tractors. Farmers will better be able to track the efficiency of their operations and learn where they can make improvements. A largely data driven operation can also be an aid in identifying trends before they really take off. How so? By going directly to the people who make use of their products.
After all, while most farmers sell to grocery stores, it is still individuals that are buying things from them. As tastes and preferences change, people will buy more or less of a given item from the produce section. Any data the farmer gets from the store is going to be a lagging indicator. If you wait until the stores stop ordering so many avocados, that trend is already over and you might find yourself with a big crop of the mushy green fruit to get rid of. That’s why even farmers should sign up for TARTLE. They can log in and interact with people across the country and even the world. In doing so, the farmers would be getting direct input from the men and women who ultimately buy and consume their products. That way, they could see the move away from avocados even before it became apparent in the stores. Armed with that knowledge different crops could be planted and harvested before avocado is no longer in demand, allowing them to get ahead of the curve and minimize any losses.
Environmental impact can also be minimized. By studying the data, farmers can help find better ways to replenish the soil than using fertilizers. Better planting cycles can be utilized. Alternative ways of making use of or disposing of inevitable waste can be identified and instituted. It’s by making extensive use of data that farmers can learn how to take principles of small farming and apply them on a larger scale.
This information can also be gained by interacting with people willing to share their data at TARTLE. New techniques can be shared. The effect of different soils on growing different crops can be researched without any sort of third party filters being applied to skew the results or the conclusions reached. If that sounds good to you as a farmer, whether small or large, sign up at TARTLE.co and take advantage of the opportunities we offer for different people to learn from each other and build a better and sustainable world.
What’s your data worth? Sign up and join the TARTLE Marketplace with this link here.
