Using technology to take your farm to the next level.
Big data may sound intimidating, but farmers have been using it for years. From filing cabinets full of field maps and soil-test results to decades of pocket notepads chronicling varieties and yields, farmers are the natural historians of their fields. Thankfully, there are now more services to help farmers effectively manage the huge amounts of data they generate.
How can big data take your farm to the next level? For starters, as trends are recognized, it can help you validate decisions and improve practices immediately or over time. It also enables you to streamline your record-keeping process and maintain viable records for future generations. And perhaps most importantly, it gives you the credibility to tell your story and meet specific customer demands, such as verifying sustainable practices.
While the benefits of big data are fairly easy to understand, the process of evaluating and selecting service providers can be cumbersome. The biggest concern farmers have is potentially losing control of their intellectual property and ability to make decisions.
Matt Darr, Ph.D., associate professor of ag and biosystems engineering at Iowa State University, recommends that you focus on the “who” versus the “what.”
“There are about a half-dozen companies offering similar big data services, but you need to partner with someone you trust and who understands your practices,” says Darr. “Before data can add value to your operation, you need to have trust.”
Whether you’re looking to use data to evaluate the performance of your seed varieties, find problem spots in your fields or improve the sustainability of your farm, the choice is yours.
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