Research Activities of the Smart Farming 4.0 All Consortium

So much more goes into safely feeding the world than the ingredients on our plates. Whether it’s soil quality, availability of clean water, or the effects of climate change, the global farming community is constantly having to overcome challenges to grow fresh produce for a rising population while taking care of the planet. From autonomous robots to satellites and cutting-edge science, farmers around the world are deploying new technologies to help them work in smart and cost-effective ways.

This is a unique moment in the history of agriculture. In earlier times, farming was a trade passed down from one generation to another, the farmers of tomorrow are coming well equipped with digital knowledge and skills. Over the past 30 years, tech- and innovation-focused sustainable agriculture has moved to become a major trend.

Smart Farming is a concept of farming management using modern Information and communication technologies to increase the quantity and quality of products. Among the technologies available for present-day farmers there are:

Sensing technologies, including soil scanning, water, light, humidity, temperature management;

Software applications — specialized software solutions that target specific farm types;

Communication technologies, such as cellular communication;

Positioning technologies, including GPS;

Hardware and software systems that enable IoT-based solutions, robotics and automation; and

Data analytics, that underlies the decision making and prediction processes.

The research activities of the Smart Farming 4.0 All Consortium were divided in two parts:

Field research through interviews and surveys addressed to relevant representatives of the academic, VET, entrepreneurial and public sectors, in order to gather information about the current forma and non-formal education and training curricula concerning the overall smart farming methods, as well as the level of applied knowledge etc.;

Desk research and literature review in order to identify and summarize relevant good practices at this field, gaps in education and training of formal and non-formal bodies and networks, as well as other projects, initiatives and policymaking guidelines that focus on urban and overall sustainable farming techniques, not only in the participating countries but at a European and global level too. The outcomes of those two research approaches will be formulated into Regional Reports by the project partners, including identified gaps in theory and practice, points for improvement, related literature sources, etc.

The research in each participating country are focus on:

Existing smart farming applications in each country, as well as the overall smart farming establishments with focus on hydroponics and aquaponics and their development over the past years-decades;

Level of adoption and reception of such cultivation techniques from the local communities, as well as the overall level of awareness of the countries’ population;

Existence, or lack thereof, of learning, teaching and training material for development of smart farming at all levels, i.e. secondary, tertiary, adult and VET;

Institutions in place that help in this direction, i.e. Governments’, Universities’ and other organizations’ related operations, as well as the relevant legislation and overall policymaking initiatives towards the promotion of environment-friendly cultivation techniques;

Proportion of individual, small scale, larger scale and industrial scale utilization of smart urban farming methods, their market success, successful technologies, the most appropriate vegetables and fish to include for each country’s climate, etc.

Subsequently, the analysis of the research results aims the enhancing of the knowledge over the current state, popularity and room for development of smart urban farming, as well as to assess what would be the most suitable channel for expansion and what measures need to be taken, i.e. through public bodies, civil society organizations, or through industrial applications.