Strathclyde Uni chosen for high-tech farming initiative
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Two experts from the University of Strathclyde are taking part in the four-year, €30 million (£26m) Internet of Food & Farm (IoF2020) venture. It aims to boost productivity and sustainability in the farming sector, using the “internet of things” (IoT), which sees everyday objects fitted with internet connectivity and able to send and receive data without human interaction.
The project involves collaboration with leading research universities around the world, is co-funded by the EU through Horizon 2020, and is to focus on the arable farming, dairy, meat, vegetables and fruits sectors via 19 trials across Europe.
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Hide AdStrathclyde is the only UK partner in the 71-member consortium, which has representatives from 16 countries, and Craig Michie and Ivan Andonovic of the university’s department of electronic and electrical engineering will advise on how dairy producers can introduce IoT technology to boost productivity and profitability.
This entails trialling technology with farms and assessing the results, then sharing their recommendations to help define how they should be introduced in the wider sector.
It comes as the dairy industry buckles under low prices, with data published last year by AHDB Dairy, part of the Agriculture & Horticulture Development Board, revealing that in Scotland the number of dairy farms fell over ten years by 48.4 per cent to 786 in June 2015.
Michie said: “From monitoring cattle movement, remotely assessing milk quality or detecting breeding and welfare problems, IoT products for the farming industry have the potential to significantly improve productivity and sustainability, while saving farmers time and money.
“Once IoT technologies are in place, producers can spend less time directly observing the herd and focus on other essential operational tasks. As farms increase in size to meet the demands of 21st century farming, this is of particular importance. Implemented correctly, the right technology will add value to the business operation and improve the wellbeing of the cattle.”
George Beers, project manager at Wageningen University & Research in the Netherlands and IoF2020 project co-ordinator, added: “IoF2020 does not only bring IoT in the food and farm sector, it stands also with the tremendous objective of delivering technologies that fit the needs of the entire value chain and the end-users, more particularly, and strengthen them for the challenges ahead.
“Together with our 70 partners we believe IoF2020 has the potential to bring a paradigm shift in the way food is produced in Europe, from the fields to the plates, and will contribute to reinforce European competitiveness and excellence in this area.”