Adoption Of Precision Agriculture Technologies Research Articles

Adoption of Precision Agriculture Technologies among Farmers: A Comprehensive Review

Precision agriculture (PA) technologies have spearheaded a revolution in contemporary farming practices, ushering in an era of sustainability, efficiency, and data-driven agricultural production. This comprehensive examination aims to delve deeply into the intricate dynamics surrounding the adoption of precision agriculture technologies among farmers, synthesizing existing literature, identifying key determinants, barriers, and implications. The adoption of precision agriculture technologies is influenced by a myriad of factors spanning socio-economic, institutional, technological, psychological, and attitudinal dimensions. Socio-economic factors such as farm size, income level, access to credit, and demographic characteristics are pivotal in shaping farmers' decisions to adopt PA technologies. Institutional factors, including government policies, extension services, market structures, and support networks, also wield significant influence over adoption patterns. Technological considerations, such as the complexity, compatibility, and perceived benefits of precision agriculture technologies, impact farmers' adoption decisions. Moreover, psychological factors such as risk perception, innovativeness, and attitudes towards change contribute to shaping farmers' willingness to embrace new technologies. The adoption of precision agriculture technologies holds immense promise for enhancing farm productivity, sustainability, and profitability. By enabling precise management of inputs such as water, fertilizers, pesticides, and seeds, PA technologies help optimize resource use, minimize environmental impact, and maximize yield potential. Furthermore, the integration of advanced data analytics, remote sensing, and IoT (Internet of Things) devices facilitates real-time monitoring, decision-making, and predictive analytics, empowering farmers with actionable insights for improved farm management. However, despite the compelling benefits, the adoption of precision agriculture technologies faces several barriers and challenges. High initial investment costs, limited access to capital, inadequate infrastructure, and technical knowledge gaps pose significant hurdles for farmers, particularly those operating in resource-constrained settings. Concerns regarding data privacy, security, and ownership also contribute to farmers' apprehensions about adopting PA technologies, raising questions about data governance and regulatory frameworks. To overcome these barriers and promote the widespread adoption of precision agriculture technologies, concerted efforts are needed from various stakeholders. Farmer education and training programs play a crucial role in enhancing digital literacy, technical skills, and awareness about the potential benefits of PA technologies. Government policies and incentives, including subsidies, grants, and tax incentives, can help alleviate financial barriers and incentivize adoption. Moreover, collaboration between researchers, industry stakeholders, and policymakers is essential to drive technological innovation, develop user-friendly solutions, and address emerging challenges. Investments in infrastructure, such as rural broadband connectivity and sensor networks, are also imperative to ensure the seamless integration and scalability of precision agriculture technologies across diverse farming landscapes.

Underground Ink: Printed Electronics Enabling Electrochemical Sensing in Soil.

Improving agricultural production relies on the decisions and actions of farmers and land managers, highlighting the importance of efficient soil monitoring techniques for better resource management and reduced environmental impacts. Despite considerable advancements in soil sensors, their traditional bulky counterparts cause difficulty in widespread adoption and large-scale deployment. Printed electronics emerge as a promising technology, offering flexibility in device design, cost-effectiveness for mass production, and a compact footprint suitable for versatile deployment platforms. This review overviews how printed sensors are used in monitoring soil parameters through electrochemical sensing mechanisms, enabling direct measurement of nutrients, moisture content, pH value, and others. Notably, printed sensors address scalability and cost concerns in fabrication, making them suitable for deployment across large crop fields. Additionally, seamlessly integrating printed sensors with printed antenna units or traditional integrated circuits can facilitate comprehensive functionality for real-time data collection and communication. This real-time information empowers informed decision-making, optimizes resource management, and enhances crop yield. This review aims to provide a comprehensive overview of recent work related to printed electrochemical soil sensors, ultimately providing insight into future research directions that can enable widespread adoption of precision agriculture technologies.

Willingness to adopt precision agriculture: An analysis of Gombe and Bauchi States of Nigeria

Adoption of Precision Agriculture (PA) technologies has apparent benefits for agricultural production management, cost savings, and environmental sustainability. However, these technologies are also extremely complicated and influenced by various social and economic forces, which impact their adoption rate, particularly in developing nations. Demographic and agricultural characteristics also play an important role in determining willingness to adopt PA. This study is a survey aimed at establishing the willingness indices of farmers and other relevant personnel to embrace precision farming technologies in Gombe and Bauchi states of Nigeria. The survey included individuals of varied ages; but an average age of 28.5 years for Gombe and 36.5 years for Bauchi, educational levels, and employment statuses, as well as agricultural and operational features. The willingness to adopt PA is high in both states, with 92% in Gombe and 96% in Bauchi. The findings suggest that, while high costs and a lack of technical know-how had a negative impact on readiness to adopt PA in both states, the level of complexity was rated higher by the older generation in Bauchi state, which had a comparatively high mean farmer age. The size of the farm and the number of employees had no direct influence on the adoption of PA technology. Other criteria, such as age and number of years of operation, indicate overlap between the various stages of internet and digital technology adoption, mechanization, and PA. The high willingness rating indicates that farmers are willing to adopt PA technologies if made accessible. It is therefore advised that legislative tools, training programs, and necessary access to financing facilities be employed to make these technologies available and cheap for farmers.

DETERMINING FACTORS IN THE ADOPTION OF PRECISION AGRICULTURE TECHNOLOGIES BY GRAIN PRODUCERS

The adoption of precision agriculture technologies (PAT) has contributed significantly to the development of a more sustainable agriculture with a greater use of inputs, cost reduction, and increased productivity. Also, information arising from reports generated using these technologies allows farmers to manage their property more efficiently. Despite the benefits to the management of production and use of inputs, many farmers still do not use precision agriculture technologies on their property or use them only partially. The objective of this study is to investigate the farmers' perception about the use of PAT and determine which factors influence adoption of PAT. To this end, 133 soy producers from different states of Brazil were interviewed. Multiple logistic regression was used to build the estimated model (MA2). Education level, producer experience, planted area with maize, and government agencies as a source of information have a statistically significant influence on the adoption of PAT.

Advances in Precision Agriculture Technologies for Sustainable Crop Production

Precision agriculture (PA) encompasses a set of technologies that allow farmers to collect data on variations within fields and manage crops at a more granular level. PA technologies include sensors, satellite imagery, information management tools and variable rate application systems. Together, these enable data-driven, site-specific decision making to optimize productivity while minimizing environmental impacts. This review examines recent advances in PA technologies and their role in supporting sustainable crop production. Key developments reviewed include remote sensing platforms and techniques, proximal soil sensors, variable rate systems, robotics and automation, and decision support tools powered by artificial intelligence and machine learning. Challenges and future directions are also discussed. Widespread adoption of PA technologies has the potential to increase yields and profitability for farmers while reducing use of inputs such as water, nutrients, and pesticides. However, barriers to adoption exist, including costs, technical complexity, and integration challenges. Continued innovation and knowledge transfer will be critical to unlocking the full promise of PA for sustainable agriculture.

Factors Influencing Adoption of Precision Farming Technologies in Watermelon Cultivation

Watermelon (Citrullus lanatus) is one of the important fruit crops cultivating in India. Adoption improved production technologies in watermelon cultivation is not followed by majority of the farmers. Tamil Nadu Irrigated Agriculture Modernization and Water Bodies Restoration and Management (TN IAMWARM) is a unique World Bank funded project implemented with the prime motive of increasing the productivity of irrigated agriculture in the state of Tamil Nadu. Accordingly the TNIAMWARM project was implemented in Villupuram district through Krishi Vigyan Kendra, Tindivanam with one of the interventions that dissemination of precision farming technologies in watermelon cultivation to improve its productivity. The present study analysed the factors influencing adoption of Precision farming technologies in Watermelon cultivation. Most of the respondents gave first preference to the higher yield (Mean score - 72.2) as their reason of adoption of precision farming technologies in tomato cultivation followed by yield increase, provision of subsidy. Under external factors, the respondents gave first rank to TNAU scientists (Mean score - 79.42) as the influencer to adopt the precision farming technologies in watermelon cultivation. Further, the respondents expressed that the influence of executing TNIAMWARM project (79.25) exerted some compulsion on them which was deemed as a social factor in the adoption of Precision Farming technologies.

Factors That Influence the Intention of Smallholder Rice Farmers to Adopt Cleaner Production Practices: An Empirical Study of Precision Agriculture Adoption.

Sustainable agriculture is crucial for achieving SDG2 and building a resilient climate-food system. This study provides a nuanced understanding of factors that influence the adoption of precision agriculture technology by Vietnamese smallholder rice farmers as a sustainable agricultural solution. The study's objectives are: (1) to provide a nuanced understanding of factors that influence adoption of precision agriculture technology by Vietnamese smallholder rice farmers; and (2) to identify factors associated with agricultural practice in Vietnam that may impact the adoption of precision agriculture technology. The study conducted 35 semi-structured interviews with smallholder rice farmers and agriculture experts. Data were analyzed using iterative thematic analysis. The Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology (UTAUT) model was used for empirical analysis. The UTAUT constructs of Performance expectancy, Effort expectancy, Government support, and Social influence were found to be determinants of adoption. Trialability and Observability impact Effort expectancy and Performance expectancy. We also discovered that the performance of agricultural cooperatives and support of lead firms play a crucial role in facilitating agricultural technology adoption by Vietnamese smallholder rice farmers. The results confirm the applicability of UTAUT in defining smallholders' behavioural intention and predicting agricultural technology adoption. The study also provides constructive feedback on the UTAUT model by highlighting the effect of agricultural cooperatives' performance as innovation intermediaries and of the support of lead firms.

Precision farming technologies on crop protection: A stakeholders survey

Although precision farming technologies (PFTs) have the ability to reduce the use of pesticides, delivering on this potential relies on the adoption of PFTs by the farming community. With small and medium-sized farmers representing more than 95% of the total number of farmers while cultivating less than 30% of the total cultivated area globally, and presenting a low adoption rate of PFTs, their adoption of PFTs becomes key to understand the global potential of these technologies. In this paper we report an expert knowledge elicitation of the main aspects of PFTs adoption by small and medium-sized farmers covering the perceived usefulness for their farms, the main barriers for adoption and the role of agricultural institutions and policies in overcoming these. Data were obtained via an online survey which was answered by 175 agricultural experts from around the globe. From the analysis of the responses, we can conclude that the usefulness of PFTs are crop and technology specific. Nearly all respondents considered the lack of technical support to be the most important limiting factor for the adoption of PFTs and identified farmers who are already adopters of PFTs and farmer cooperatives as the most promising agents for disseminating this support and increasing adoption by other farmers. Provision of incentives to lower investment costs together with advisory services were the most important policy interventions identified by respondents to foster the adoption of PFTs by small and medium-sized farmers. With regards to the way PFTs would be implemented in practice, most respondents believed that the PFTs will be purchased as a service from private companies by small and medium-sized farmers. Finally, future research is needed to study the impact of policies on the adoption of PFTs for crop protection in order to identify optimized policy pathways to enhance their adoption by small and medium-sized farmers.

A Correlational Study of Two U.S. State Extension Professionals' Behavioral Intentions to Improve Sustainable Food Chains through Precision Farming Practices.

Precision farming provides one of the most important solutions for managing agricultural production to advance global food security. Extending professionals' competencies to promote precision farming practices can increase the adoption rate, ultimately impacting food security. Many studies have addressed barriers to the adoption of precision farming technologies from the farmers' perspective. However, few are available data on the perspectives of extension professionals. Agricultural extension professionals play an important role in innovative agricultural technology adoption. Thus, this study applied four constructs from the unified theory of acceptance and use of technology (UTAUT) model to investigate behavioral intentions to promote precision farming among extension professionals from two extension systems. In total, 102 (N = 102) agricultural extension professionals were surveyed. The results indicated that performance expectancy and social influence were individually significant predictors of extension professional behavioral intentions to promote precision farming technologies. There were no significant differences between the professionals of two extension systems. Gender, age, and years of service did not affect extension professionals' intention to promote precision agriculture technologies. The data suggested the need for training programs to develop advanced competencies to promote agricultural innovation. This study contributes to the future professional development programs for extension professionals on communicating innovations to address food security and sustainability issues.

Adoption of precision agriculture technologies by sugarcane farmers in the state of São Paulo, Brazil

Adoption of precision agriculture technologies by sugarcane farmers in the state of São Paulo, Brazil

Tendencies of Precision Agriculture in Ukraine: Disruptive Smart Farming Tools as Cooperation Drivers

Precision farming innovations are designed to improve the efficiency of agricultural activities via minimal initial input of material and human resources and avoiding harmful effects on the environment on one hand and automatizing the production on another hand, thus providing environmental, social and economic benefits. In the article, the tendencies in the adoption of precision agriculture technologies (PAT) in Ukraine were observed, with a specific focus on cooperatives as a valuable tool of social and solidarity economy helping to achieve progress in local rural development. On the example of cooperatives, applying a technology acceptance model (TAM) has identified how the adoption of new smart farming tools influence their behavior in implementing technological innovations. The results of the study will be of particular interest to representatives of other cooperatives and to agribusiness players engaged in agriculture or software development. In addition, the outputs will be useful for researchers in the field of the socio-economic development of territories and the impact of new technologies on it, as well as for local governments and higher-level government officials, which can contribute to the implementation of better rural development strategies.

Developing precision agriculture through creating information processing capability in rural China

Previous research has suggested giving more attention to the quality of precision agricultural technology adoption. By taking the information processing view as the theoretical lens, this study investigates precision agriculture adoption cases from two Chinese agricultural organizations to examine how they achieve high-quality adoption. Interviews, secondary data collection and coding strategies were utilized to collect and analyze the data to identify the development of information processing capabilities. The research findings reveal two pathways for developing information processing capabilities through different information processing controls and networks appropriate for cooperatives (co-ops) and agricultural firms. This study contributes to the agricultural technology adoption literature by extending precision agriculture technology adoption from the adoption rate to adoption quality.

Precision Agricultural Technologies for enhancing crop productivity: A way forward to Sri Lankan Agriculture

Precision agriculture (PA) is an information-based production technology that manages spatial and temporal variability within a farming system to optimize its productivity and profitability while ensuring the sustainability of land resources. Today, several sophisticated technologies such as robotics, wireless sensor networks (WSN), aerial images, a global positioning system (GPS), global navigation satellite system (GNSS), smart mobile devices, internet of things (IoT), variable rate application (VRA), weather modelling, radio-frequency identification (RFI) are greeted with PA at a global scale. An exponentially increasing trend in adoption can be seen in developed countries such as the USA, Canada, Australia, and European countries, but to a limited extent in some developing countries. The degree of adoption of PA varies on economic, social, and geographic factors such as the scale of production, input cost, and features of the technology. Developing economies like Sri Lanka, where small-scale food crop agriculture is dominating, have the potential to benefit from precision agricultural technologies (PATs) to a greater extent. Relatively low-cost but effective PATs that would fit well with small-farm production units are emerging globally. Providing small farming units with the correct tools and greater control of the production process would support such farming communities, unlocking their potential and meeting the ever-increasing national and global food demand. Land laser levelling, real-time variable-rate fertilizer and pesticide application, mechanical harvesting and low-cost IoT-based crop management systems for protected agriculture are the most promising PATs that have great potential in Sri Lanka. This review presents a global overview of PA technologies for enhancing food crop production and their benefits, the adoption of PA technologies by different countries and the constraints, and the role of PA in Sri Lankan Agriculture, past and present. Finally, the synthesis and way forward.

Precision agriculture technology adoption: a qualitative study of small-scale commercial \u201cfamily farms\u201d located in the North China Plain

Precision agriculture (PA) technologies offer a potential solution to food security and environmental challenges but, will only be successful if adopted by farmers. Adoption in China lags behind that in some developed agricultural economies despite scientifically proven benefits of PA technologies for Chinese agriculture. Adoption is dependent on farmer attitudes and perceptions towards PA technologies. An exploratory qualitative study using in-depth interviews was conducted with Chinese arable farmers (n = 27) to explore their perceptions towards and adoption intentions of PA technologies in two Chinese provinces (Hebei and Shandong). A thematic analysis revealed five central themes to have emerged from the data, these were: “socio-political landscape”, “farming culture”, “agricultural challenges”, “adoption intentions (barriers/facilitators” and “practical support mechanisms”. All were likely to influence the level and rate of adoption of PA technologies amongst family farmers in China. The research revealed an openness to the potential of PA technologies amongst family farmers, although there was heterogeneity in the perceptions of PA technology and willingness to adopt. Improved rates of adoption will be achieved by reducing the barriers to adoption, including the need for low-cost PA applications that can be applied at small scale, improved information provision, financial support mechanisms including more accessible subsidies and credit, and reliable, regulated and affordable service provision.

Precision agriculture technology adoption and technical efficiency

AbstractWe explore the relationship between precision agriculture (PA) technology adoption and technical efficiency using the 2016 USDA Agricultural Resource Management Survey (ARMS). Efficiency gains from PA are likely cumulative, that is, the true impact of precision farming depends on the integration of complementary tools. To examine the efficiency benefits of different PA bundles, we perform a two‐step analysis. First, we use cluster analysis to identify distinct producer groups based on patterns in PA technology adoption. These producer groups map naturally onto the classic technology adoption curve (laggards, late majority, early majority, innovators). Second, we use stochastic frontier analysis (SFA) and stochastic meta‐frontier analysis (SMFA) to estimate differences in technical efficiency between PA adoption groups. We find that farms with advanced PA technology bundles are significantly more technically efficient than non‐adopters. Differences in technical efficiency are not found to be driven by heterogeneous production technologies, but rather inefficiencies in input usage at the farm level. Our results have strong implications for farm consolidation in US agriculture.

Precision Agriculture: Where do We Stand? A Review of the Adoption of Precision Agriculture Technologies on Field Crops Farms in Developed Countries

Precision agriculture is a management concept, which relies on intensive data collection and data processing for guiding targeted actions that improve the efficiency, productivity, and sustainability of agricultural operations. Several studies have assessed the adoption rate of precision agriculture technologies at regional or national scale, but the literature lacks global evaluations of the development of precision agriculture. For this paper, a review of 17 papers was conducted to provide an evaluation of the adoption rate of precision agriculture technologies on field crops farms in developed countries. This review shows a fast development of Global Navigation Satellite System-based technologies (such as guidance system and automatic section control), and yield monitor on combine harvesters, with a rate of adoption ranging from 60 to 80% in 2016. The adoption rate of these technologies is higher for North American farms than for European farms, with an average rate of adoption 17% higher in North America than in Europe. The three technologies closely correlated with variable rate application (soil mapping, variate rate fertilizing, and variable rate seeding) have seen a slower pace of growth, with only a third of the field crops farms of developed countries using automated methods of managing the spatial crop variability and spatial soil variability within a field. Three hypotheses to explain this difference are discussed: successive adoption of technologies, reject of complex technologies and preference for technologies improving working conditions.

Precision Agriculture for Resource Use Efficiency in Smallholder Farming Systems in Sub-Saharan Africa: A Systematic Review

Opportunities exist for adoption of precision agriculture technologies in all parts of the world. The form of precision agriculture may vary from region to region depending on technologies available, knowledge levels and mindsets. The current review examined research articles in the English language on precision agriculture practices for increased productivity among smallholder farmers in Sub-Saharan Africa. A total of 7715 articles were retrieved and after screening 128 were reviewed. The results indicate that a number of precision agriculture technologies have been tested under SSA conditions and show promising results. The most promising precision agriculture technologies identified were the use of soil and plant sensors for nutrient and water management, as well as use of satellite imagery, GIS and crop-soil simulation models for site-specific management. These technologies have been shown to be crucial in attainment of appropriate management strategies in terms of efficiency and effectiveness of resource use in SSA. These technologies are important in supporting sustainable agricultural development. Most of these technologies are, however, at the experimental stage, with only South Africa having applied them mainly in large-scale commercial farms. It is concluded that increased precision in input and management practices among SSA smallholder farmers can significantly improve productivity even without extra use of inputs.

Event dependence and heterogeneity in the adoption of precision farming technologies: A case of US cotton production

This study aims to examine event dependence and heterogeneity in the adoption of precision farming (PF) technologies. The study uses farm-level data and a conditional frailty model to estimate the empirical model. A novelty of this study is the introduction of a group level heterogeneity in the traditional conditional frailty model. The simulation model shows that the conditional frailty model addresses both event dependence and heterogeneity related issues in technology adoption. Results indicate that farmers with large farms, a higher share of total cultivated farmland, a higher percentage of income from farming, and farmers using computers for farm management are more likely to adopt PF technologies early on after a technology becomes available. Further, cotton producers who think that PF technology would be valuable in the future and those receiving farming information from university publications are more likely to adopt PF technologies soon after thetechnologiesbecome available.

A Precision Agriculture Technology Course for Regions with Lower Technology Adoption Levels

HighlightsPrior and post-knowledge surveys showed that students had varied knowledge levels in the course topics. Knowledge gains were higher for the course topics with lower prior knowledge scores. Knowledge surveys can be used to adapt to the needs of the students in real-time, improve instructional material, identify effective teaching methods, and modify the course. Abstract. Precision agriculture technologies offer several benefits, and most important among them are higher farm profits and improved environmental health. The quality of precision agriculture education is one of the main barriers to the adoption of these technologies. There are studies documenting the development of precision agriculture technology courses for the world regions with higher levels of adoption. However, there are limited studies for the world regions typically characterized by lower adoption of these technologies. This study attempts to develop and teach a precision agriculture technology course for such a world region Puerto Rico, a U.S. territory. This study also consisted of collecting and analyzing the pre- and post-knowledge levels of the students attending the developed course. Using the procedure for calculation of overall grade point average, the knowledge score for each course topic was calculated from all the pre- or post-survey responses for the course topic. Additionally, the knowledge gain for each course topic was calculated by subtracting the prior knowledge score from the post knowledge score of the course topic. The results indicated that knowledge gains were higher for the course topics with the lower prior knowledge scores and were lower for the course topics with the higher prior knowledge scores. The study indicates that a prior knowledge survey can be used to adapt to the needs of the students in real-time. Likewise, a post-knowledge survey can be used to improve instructional material, identify suitable teaching methods, and modify the course. World regions with limited adoption of precision agriculture technology may begin with a precision agriculture technology course without laboratory exercises, and later add laboratory exercises as equipment becomes available and adoption level increases. Keywords: Agricultural and environmental systems, Course development, Curriculum, Precision agriculture technologies, Student assessment

Factors Affecting Precision Agriculture Adoption: A Systematic Litterature Review

Abstract The aim of this paper is to present the main advances in the adoption of precision agriculture technologies. While we are witnessing the emergence of a literature dedicated to the adoption of new technologies, this theme still suffers from a lack of consensus on its conceptualization. Based on the prisma statement method (Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyzes), the objective is to carry out a review of the systemic literature in order to identify the main factors of adoption of the technologies of precision agriculture over the past ten years. The results show that individual factors are the most empirically identified as determining factors in the adoption of precision agriculture technologies. That said, the farmer is at the center of the adoption decision. Perceived utility is the factor most identified in the literature as the determinant of adoption.