Agtech is taking root in specialty crops

According to the 2023 AgTech Trends research study, specialty crops* agribusinesses are overwhelmingly positive about adopting AgTech solutions like AI and predictive analytics to help their businesses thrive amid increasing climate, labor, inflation and supply chain challenges.

Specialty crops teams are fighting an uphill battle both on-farm and off-farm using legacy methods.

Top 3 investments

AgTech budgets are increasing

Precision agriculture solutions

Yield prediction

On-farm robotics/autonomous systems

Top 3 stressors

For specialty crops agribusinesses

Increasing costs

Excessive workloads

Not enough time/juggling competing demands

Agribusinesses struggle to derive value from their on-farm and off-farm data

Currently, on-farm data is being collected by:

65%

machinery

60%

apps in the field

55%

sensors

(Respondents were able to select all that apply.)

of specialty crops agribusinesses find it challenging to use data to improve on-farm activities

The future of agriculture

Specialty crops agribusinesses believe AgTech can help them and they are overwhelmingly positive about advanced technologies:

80%

believe AI can improve data analysis and the accuracy of yield prediction and estimation

3 out of 4

say AI will help them accomplish complicated data analysis at scale

75%

say inflation is a top factor driving AgTech adoption at their company

95.5%

believe that data transformation will drastically change their jobs as they know it from now into the next decade

agree that using real-time data and AI can improve yield outcomes at lower cost per unit

The vast majority of respondents agree (98.7%) that advanced data analytics is important to the future of agriculture. This is an important evolution because more than half of specialty crops already rely primarily on their on-farm data to guide growing.

AgTech procurement and budgets are increasing to solve pressing challenges faced by specialty crops agribusinesses

Companies have identified an initiative or have established budget for:

64%

precision crop management

60%

improving irrigation

55%

yield prediction

(Respondents were able to select all that apply.)

say their company’s budget for AgTech will increase in the next 12 months

Climate change and imprecise weather forecasts negatively impact yield outcomes

Improved yield prediction delivers value by reducing costs through better planning and helps growing teams adjust on-farm practices to improve yields and get better supply chain return on what is grown.

Better weather forecasts would help:

97%

would find it valuable to make harvest predictions more frequently with more granularity

Sustainability is a top priority for agribusinesses

Specialty crops companies are ahead of the curve on sustainability initiatives to improve the impacts of agriculture on people and the planet.

currently have one or more sustainability initiatives in place

report that sustainability is a core corporate value

say their sustainability initiatives are effective at meeting their objectives