Silicon Investor - Farming

[DinoNavarre] More Cool Stuff...... [X] i'm obsessed with what's happening in AI reforestati...

DinoNavarre — 7/8/2026 10:42:49 AM

More Cool Stuff......

[X]

i'm obsessed with what's happening in AI reforestation right now

this Franco-Brazilian startup called MORFO took a patch of land in Brazil that was rock-hard and compacted from years of cattle farming. they replanted it using a single drone. months later the ground was covered… pic.twitter.com/ZaJM2qvqFf
— Alex Veremeyenko (@alex_verem) June 30, 2026

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[robert b furman] Good Morning Dino. .I plant marigolds around all of my raised beds outer edges....

robert b furman — 5/22/2026 10:19:36 AM

Good Morning Dino.

.I plant marigolds around all of my raised beds outer edges.

Basil loves to grow next to tomatoes as well.

Bob

[robert b furman] Rotating to soy beans puts nitrogen back into the grund (which corn requires). ...

robert b furman — 5/22/2026 10:16:56 AM

Rotating to soy beans puts nitrogen back into the grund (which corn requires).

Some farmers who may have winter wheat or rye growing now from last fall's planting can also plant a leafy crop that gets plowed into the ground in the fall ,as a set up for corn next spring.

Bob

[DinoNavarre] [X] Farmers have figured out that the cheapest pesticide is a strip of flowers....

DinoNavarre — 5/21/2026 1:45:18 PM

[X]

Farmers have figured out that the cheapest pesticide is a strip of flowers.

When you plant wildflowers through a crop field, not just around the edge but in strips running through the middle, you get ladybugs, lacewings, hoverflies, and parasitic wasps living in the field… pic.twitter.com/7V0tqMeM4M
— Give A Shit About Nature (@giveashitnature) May 19, 2026

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[Ron] The high cost of fertilizer has more farmers planting soybeans this spring, inst...

Ron — 4/30/2026 5:37:54 PM

The high cost of fertilizer has more farmers planting soybeans this spring, instead of corn
wsj.com

[DinoNavarre] [X] A cattle ranch called ‘Santa Carota Beef’ created a new method of raising b...

DinoNavarre — 4/30/2026 8:10:00 AM

[X]

A cattle ranch called ‘Santa Carota Beef’ created a new method of raising beef

They finish the cows by feeding them carrots, a sustainable alternative to conventional feed lots

They’re going through 1 million pounds of carrots per day. A large beef processor caught wind of that… pic.twitter.com/GBe7OQSdiR
— Wall Street Apes (@WallStreetApes) April 30, 2026

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[DinoNavarre] [X] There is a region in southeastern Spain called Almería. If you pull it up o...

DinoNavarre — 4/28/2026 9:37:46 AM

[X]

There is a region in southeastern Spain called Almería. If you pull it up on satellite imagery, you will assume the screen has glitched. A vast, blinding white scab where a landscape used to be.

It's not a glitch. It's 64,000 acres of plastic greenhouses. So much plastic… pic.twitter.com/XJuhhD2TYa
— Sama Hoole (@SamaHoole) April 28, 2026

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[DinoNavarre] [X] Let's check in on Eduardo, who is failing to be petroleum. Eduardo is a Hu...

DinoNavarre — 4/15/2026 8:18:44 AM

[X]

Let's check in on Eduardo, who is failing to be petroleum.

Eduardo is a Huacaya alpaca in the Brecon Beacons. His fleece this year measured 22 microns. For reference, cashmere is typically 14 to 19 microns and is priced accordingly. Eduardo's fleece is finer than most commercial… pic.twitter.com/IEAsRxiHkD
— Sama Hoole (@SamaHoole) April 15, 2026

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[Ron] John Deere has agreed to a $99 million settlement to resolve a series of lawsuit...

Ron — 4/11/2026 8:11:31 AM

John Deere has agreed to a $99 million settlement to resolve a series of lawsuits filed by farmers who alleged the company restricted access to equipment repairs. centralmoinfo.com

[Snowshoe] Police Rush Into Burning Barn to Save Cows [youtube video]

Snowshoe — 2/19/2026 7:05:32 PM

[kidl] The 10 Largest Landowners in the U.S. of 2026

kidl — 2/10/2026 4:38:13 PM

[johnlw] David Spence: Weather Tech on the Farm | Rural Roots Canada

johnlw — 1/25/2026 9:23:05 AM

[Selectric II] "Greening disease" is a double entendre, not just a citrus tree disease: R.E. D...

Selectric II — 1/23/2026 12:22:26 PM

"Greening disease" is a double entendre, not just a citrus tree disease:

R.E. Developers > $$ > Orange grove owners

Florida’s Orange Groves Give Way to Housing Boom
cordiercommodityreport.com

[Snowshoe] Meet Veronika, the tool-using cow arstechnica.com [youtube video]

Snowshoe — 1/20/2026 10:45:32 PM

[DinoNavarre] [X] Florida Heads for Smallest Orange Crop in Nearly a Century Florida’s orang...

DinoNavarre — 1/12/2026 3:10:51 PM

[X]

Florida Heads for Smallest Orange Crop in Nearly a Century

Florida’s orange harvest is expected to fall to the lowest in nearly a century, as shrinking groves continue to offset improvements in yields.

The state is seen producing 12 million boxes of fruit in the 2025-26 season,… pic.twitter.com/Mg89tJ6TtZ
— Tracy Shuchart (𝒞𝒽𝒾 ) (@chigrl) January 12, 2026

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[DinoNavarre] [X] The Wine Robots of Paso Robles vineyard, California. Thorvald is a modular...

DinoNavarre — 1/6/2026 7:05:30 PM

[X]

The Wine Robots of Paso Robles vineyard, California.

Thorvald is a modular, autonomous robot platform developed by Saga Robotics, that performs UV-C light treatments to kill powdery mildew on grapes and strawberries, without use of chemicals.pic.twitter.com/L1SVKjgdcp
— Massimo (@Rainmaker1973) January 6, 2026

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[Jon Koplik] Bloomberg -- The Price Honeybees May Pay for Biofuel .............................

Jon Koplik — 1/2/2026 11:51:48 AM

Bloomberg -- The Price Honeybees May Pay for Biofuel .................................................................

The Price Honeybees May Pay for Biofuel

Financial incentives to shrink the carbon footprint of air travel could turbocharge the destruction of grasslands critical to pollination.

The expansion of biofuel-driven corn and soybean cultivation across the US midwest could diminish the diverse vegetation essential to bee populations.

Photographer: tomaszm83/iStockphoto/Getty Images

By Virginia Gewin

December 31, 2025

Takeaways by Bloomberg

The Millers, a family of beekeepers in North Dakota, have seen their bee colonies weaken as the diverse vegetation bees depend on is crowded out by corn and soybean production.
The growing use of corn and soybean ethanol in biofuel, including jet fuel, has led to significant land transformation, with about 50% more cropland needed to meet 2050 SAF production goals.
The expansion of biofuel production could have destructive effects on bee populations, food production, and the environment, with experts warning that corn and soybeans are not the answer and that environmental metrics and outcomes should be attached to tax credit payments.

The Millers are a family of beekeepers in Gackle, North Dakota, a tiny farming town about 70 miles east of Bismarck. It was five decades ago when they began their labors here amid the endless swaths of sweet clover, alfalfa and the variety of other plant life that bees thrive on.

North Dakota has long been a top honey producer, churning out 40 million pounds every year and bringing in close to $67 million. All of it courtesy of these undulating fields of wild grasses, and the buzzing insects who return to them each year.

“It was bee paradise,” said Jason Miller.

But not anymore. That paradise is slowly being transformed into a heaving ocean of corn and soybeans. Corn production in North Dakota alone has quadrupled to 16.5 million acres since the turn of the century, crowding out the diverse vegetation bees depend on.

Part of the reason has been the growing use of corn and soybean ethanol in biofuel, which mixes agricultural and waste feedstocks with fossil fuels for use in combustion engines. But more recently, it’s the promise of a newer biofuel that agricultural lobbyists and some environmentalists hope may someday supplant an intractable source of greenhouse gas emissions: jet fuel.

Jason Miller, a beekeeper in Gackle, North Dakota, says he worries the local grasslands that support bee populations will be transformed into monocultures of corn and soybeans.Courtesy of Jason Miller

The Energy Policy Act of 2005 created a US renewable fuel standard in part to decrease dependence on foreign oil. In 2021, President Joe Biden’s “Sustainable Airline Fuel Grand Challenge” turbocharged interest in jet biofuel, offering tax breaks to encourage production of 3 billion gallons of it by decade’s end. The aim was to help shrink the carbon footprint of air travel while locking in demand for US corn and soybeans, especially as the rise of electric vehicles shrinks traditional ethanol use in cars.

Biofuels also can be made from animal fats, algae, waste cooking oils or agricultural waste such as wood chips and straw. While the US Environmental Protection Agency is to evaluate all of the pathways for corn or soybeans to produce SAF, the agricultural industry and its lobbyists continue to prepare for what they hope is a fait accompli.

In the last year, US production capacity of SAF jumped from 5,000 to 30,000 barrels per day, according to government estimates, with much of the increase tied to new facilities coming online. And despite conflicting signals from the White House, the Trump administration just unfroze a $1.67 billion Biden-era loan for biofuel processing plants.

The downside of making jet biofuel from corn or soybean production is that it will likely encourage more land transformation, according to several expert analyses, including one by Braden Limb, a research scientist at Colorado State University. According to his study, about 50% more cropland is needed for corn and soybeans to meet 2050 SAF production goals.

“The maximum amount of land that we’ve converted to cropland in a single year (roughly 1.8 million acres), would have to be quadrupled every year for the next 30 years,” said Limb.

And while collateral damage from efforts to slow global warming is not a new phenomenon, the expanded use of undeveloped land for biofuel-friendly monocultures and its destructive effect on bee populations could be especially significant for food production, the broader environment—and people like Jason Miller.
“We used to make 140 pounds of honey per beehive,” he said. But these days, Miller’s bee colonies appear to be weakening. This year, he averaged only 33 pounds.

Increased demand for biofuels has sparked higher use of nitrogen fertilizers throughout the Midwest. Further expansion is likely to worsen pollution, with runoff intensifying downstream dead zones in places like the Gulf of Mexico.Photographer: Rory Doyle/Bloomberg

The bees that once thrived in North Dakota and places like it are the backbone of a $400 million paid US pollination industry. Miller’s bees follow a pollination circuit in the spring, from almonds to apple and stone fruit orchards throughout the West. By late summer, they return to North Dakota to produce honey.

Honeybee populations already face a number of stressors -- disease, pesticides and poor nutrition. Stressed bees are vulnerable to colony collapses: just one year ago US beekeepers lost more than half of their hives, according to an industry study. Katrina Klett, a doctoral student at the University of Minnesota who studies land use change and honeybee health, has seen up close the negative effects of grasslands giving way to corn.

“What I fear is that we’re not going to attach the environmental ethics to sustainable aviation fuel,” Klett said. “If we properly attach environmental metrics and outcomes to tax credit payments, we could move the needle to support farmers to adopt practices that increase diversity on the landscape.”

A United Airlines Boeing 737 using aviation biofuel arrives at Los Angeles International Airport. Airlines are eager to incorporate biofuel in their climate goals.Photographer: Mario Tama/Getty Images

But as demand for air travel soars, so does aviation’s climate impact. According to the International Air Travel Association, air traffic rose more than 10% between 2023 and 2024, making it one of the fastest-growing sources of greenhouse gas emissions. Aviation contributes roughly 2.5% of global carbon dioxide emissions but is responsible for at least 3.5% of human-caused climate change.

Airlines have been exploring the few options available to lower emissions, including SAF. The industry has committed to biofuel use and the International Civil Aviation Organization adopted an ambitious target of achieving net-zero carbon emissions by 2050, which would require significant biofuel inputs. Researchers such as Limb point to crops other than corn or soybeans, like sorghum and miscanthus, that can be used for biofuel but aren’t as damaging to ecosystems.

“All of our optimization work,” Limb said, “says corn and soybeans are not the answer.”

There are forces at work that may yet forestall the mass repurposing of grasslands for biofuel. In 2022, the 45Z Clean Fuel Production Credit, created by Biden’s landmark Inflation Reduction Act, crafted more incentives for domestic production and sale of low-carbon transportation fuels. But the Republican tax and spending bill passed this summer, while extending the credit, decreased the $1.75 per gallon credit for SAF to $1.

Without that added subsidy, it may be difficult for SAF to be cost-competitive with regular jet fuel. (The bill did, however, change how biofuel sustainability is calculated in a way that makes it easier for producers to qualify while still clearcutting forests or eliminating grasslands).

“Existing policy incentives make renewable diesel more profitable for most biofuel producers.”

There are other reasons SAF may still be too expensive to justify the investment. Jet fuel purity standards require complex processing and specialized equipment, and current feedstocks for SAF -- including virgin vegetable oils -- are typically more expensive than other biofuels. “Existing policy incentives make renewable diesel more profitable for most biofuel producers,” said Andrew Swanson, an agricultural economist at Montana State University.

Still, agricultural lobbies express eagerness when it comes to jet biofuel, given the effect EV use is having on corn and soybean ethanol markets. While pushing for a higher percentage of ethanol in gasoline blends used in land transportation, organizations such as the National Corn Growers Association and state-based trade groups are seeking more government incentives to use corn and soybeans for SAF.

Another driver of aviation biofuel is the Carbon Offsetting and Reduction Scheme for International Aviation (CORSIA), an initiative that aims to stabilize greenhouse gas emissions from international flights. CORSIA is a three-phase international agreement—the first two phases were voluntary, but beginning in 2027, CORSIA becomes mandatory for most of international aviation, with some exceptions. Under the accord, airlines must measure, report, verify and offset emissions that exceed the 2019 baseline.

A plant producing ethanol from corn in Casselton, North Dakota. The Trump administration recently unfroze a $1.67 billion Biden-era loan for biofuel processing plants.Photographer: Jim West/Universal Images Group/Getty Images

For environmentalists, just the threat of SAF-directed agriculture in places like North Dakota is a sobering thought, especially given what’s happened elsewhere. A new study by researchers at the University of California, Davis, found biofuel demand drove the conversion of 1.7 million hectares of forest to oil palm production in Indonesia and Malaysia between 2002 and 2018.

Turning wild grasslands into homogenous fields of corn and soybeans remains a “very real problem for biofuels,” said Jeremy Martin, director of fuels policy at the nonprofit Union of Concerned Scientists, in a Nov. 5 blog post. But there are other troubling consequences of the US biofuels push. Proposals for its production far exceed current domestic availability, meaning current mandates can only be met with imports and diverting vegetable oil from food to fuel, which will raise the cost of both while accelerating deforestation.

Swanson said the wild card in the SAF debate is trade, noting that the US exported almost 2 billion gallons of corn ethanol last year. “If US exports decline,” he said, “then we will need to find ways to increase domestic consumption -- increasing land use change pressure.”

SAF advocates such as Veronica Bradley, director of environmental science for the industry lobby Clean Fuels Alliance America, counter that existing biofuel sources -- used vegetable oil, beef tallow and forestry wastes -- could satisfy near-term demand, as could shifting uses for corn ethanol amid the EV boom. For now, it appears the uncertainty over regulatory policies and incentives has put both the threat and promise of SAF, and in some respects the expanded use of biofuels in general, on hold.

“There is no real indication that we will move towards a clear, widely applicable standard for assessing land-use change and biodiversity impacts,” said Swanson. “This puts the SAF industry in a difficult position. Contradictory policy standards will mean that by catering to one market you are cutting off the opportunity to produce for a different market.”

Back in North Dakota, Klett said beekeeping families like hers and the Millers remain worried about what comes after that uncertainty lifts. “Folks are concerned about how sustainable aviation fuel production could change the landscape,” she said, “unless we get the rules right.”

-- With assistance from Marie Monteleone

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[DinoNavarre] [X] RFK: Monsanto created Celiac Disease Btw, here's a chart of glyphosate on...

DinoNavarre — 12/20/2025 6:23:04 PM

[X]

RFK: Monsanto created Celiac Disease

Btw, here's a chart of glyphosate on wheat (i.e. Roundup) and celiac disease hospital discharges: https://t.co/C2104wL7dS pic.twitter.com/cY5fqRTh0m
— Peter St Onge, Ph.D. (@profstonge) December 20, 2025

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[DinoNavarre] [X] If you invented a machine that: - Runs on grass - Produces high-quality pr...

DinoNavarre — 12/20/2025 6:22:19 PM

[X]

If you invented a machine that:

- Runs on grass
- Produces high-quality protein
- Fertilises soil while operating
- Builds topsoil
- Requires zero electricity
- Self-replicates
- Provides 100+ byproducts (leather, tallow, gelatin, etc.)

You'd win every environmental award.

We…
— Sama Hoole (@SamaHoole) December 19, 2025

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[gg cox] [youtube video]

gg cox — 12/15/2025 5:44:26 PM

[gg cox] trumpo is really REALLY STOOOPID. [youtube video]

gg cox — 12/15/2025 1:51:18 PM

[Julius Wong] Breakthrough Discovery Could Make Rice Cheaper, Healthier, Cleaner scitechdaily...

Julius Wong — 12/12/2025 10:09:51 PM

Breakthrough Discovery Could Make Rice Cheaper, Healthier, Cleaner

scitechdaily.com

[johnlw] Nice to see some common sense in play.

johnlw — 12/2/2025 12:43:19 PM

[Julius Wong] Tiny Falcons Are the New Food Safety Patrol in Cherry Orchards zmescience.com

Julius Wong — 12/2/2025 11:41:28 AM

[Jon Koplik] Bloomberg : Bayer / Monsanto / Weighs Roundup exit / Legal Bills ..................

Jon Koplik — 11/9/2025 5:29:02 PM

Bloomberg : Bayer / Monsanto / Weighs Roundup exit / Legal Bills ....................................

bloomberg.com

or :

archive.li

excerpts :

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The chemical that revolutionized farming over the last 50 years is in trouble.

Glyphosate, once vaunted for its ability to kill plants and spare animals, is under assault on both fronts. In the UK, weeds are for the first time refusing to die after being sprayed with the herbicide

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Bayer has coughed up more than $10 billion in legal costs over a product it inherited last decade with its $63 billion acquisition of agrochemical producer Monsanto.

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The litigation has cast such a massive cloud over Bayer’s stock, which is down more than 70% since the Monsanto deal

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Marketed as a cleaner and safer alternative to older herbicides, for 30 years glyphosate has offered a relatively simple commercial model: Farmers pay a premium for seeds that are genetically altered to resist the herbicide in hopes of boosting their profits through cheaper, easier weed management.

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When Monsanto first developed glyphosate for agriculture in its St. Louis labs in the early 1970s, it wasn’t obvious that it would ever turn a profit. A tiny molecule, it works by binding to an enzyme in all plant cells (that animals lack) that helps create essential amino acids for growth. As a result, it pretty much kills everything -- weed or crop -- that’s green and grows.

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Monsanto promoted its chemical as a great way to foster more “ no-till” agriculture, in which farmers stop plowing their land with tractors and thus reduce carbon emissions and negative impacts like soil erosion and nutrient loss.

But that strategy only really triumphed after Monsanto scientists stumbled on a glyphosate resistance gene in an unlikely place -- the waste ponds of the company’s glyphosate factory on the banks of the Mississippi River. There, bacteria had evolved a gene that blunted the chemical’s attack and were thriving. The Monsanto scientists isolated the genetic matter and transferred copies into soybean seeds, kicking off the farming world’s new, genetically modified era.

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Some farmers are turning to wheeled robots and aerial drones to hunt down weeds, then either zap them with lasers or douse them with microdoses of herbicides.

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END.

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[nicewatch] I recently purchased this book as a gift for my mother and she loved it. fwiw. ...

nicewatch — 10/4/2025 12:42:06 AM

I recently purchased this book as a gift for my mother and she loved it. fwiw.

Gardens Illustrated: The New Beautiful: Inspiring Gardens for a Resilient Future

rizzolibookstore.com

[nicewatch] Researchers Just Developed a Tasty New Tomato Called the Scarlet Sunrise smiths...

nicewatch — 9/22/2025 1:51:50 PM

Researchers Just Developed a Tasty New Tomato Called the Scarlet Sunrise

smithsonianmag.com

[kidl] [youtube video]

kidl — 9/18/2025 2:02:05 PM

[robert b furman] Over my organic gardening head. I do try and get a lot of pollinators into my g...

robert b furman — 8/28/2025 9:07:55 PM

Over my organic gardening head.

I do try and get a lot of pollinators into my garden beds.

We grow and can a lot of what we eat.

I hunt deer on my land, and we eat a lot of venison burger.

Country living so far has been good.

That being said, GMO modified seeds that are compatible with Round up are applied everywhere to the point it is not avoidable in Wisconsins dairyland.

More importantly it is present in our beers! <smile>

Bob

[Julius Wong] We need more information. Yarrowia lipolytica: a multitalented yeast species of...

Julius Wong — 8/28/2025 8:39:58 PM

We need more information.

Yarrowia lipolytica: a multitalented yeast species of ecological significance
pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

[robert b furman] Hi Julious, I so often appreciate your posts. We garden and plant perennials t...

robert b furman — 8/28/2025 8:16:55 PM

Hi Julious,

I so often appreciate your posts.

We garden and plant perennials that attract perennials on our entire property.

This year we've noted that the yellow and black bumble bees are smaller in size?

There are so many chemicals sprayed on our dairy land crops that it is impossible to protect our pollinators.

If this product would be available, I'd buy and apply it.

We are daily users of local honey, we trust in its purity - may well be a mistake. sigh.

Thanks for the great article!

Bob

[Julius Wong] Researchers Develop a ‘Superfood’ for Honeybees to Fight the Drastic Decline of ...

Julius Wong — 8/28/2025 8:01:59 PM

Researchers Develop a ‘Superfood’ for Honeybees to Fight the Drastic Decline of Their Colonies

Bees fed an enriched yeast supplement saw 15 times more of their larvae reach the developmental stage right before adulthood, according to a new study

smithsonianmag.com

[kidl] Now there is research which is critical. It deserves to be limitless funded.

kidl — 8/10/2025 2:43:06 PM

[Julius Wong] Assisted by sniffer dogs and DNA sequencing, researchers discover three new truf...

Julius Wong — 8/10/2025 2:12:17 PM

Assisted by sniffer dogs and DNA sequencing, researchers discover three new truffle species

phys.org

[johnlw] Despite raging wildfires, Canada's breadbasket expected to deliver plentiful cro...

johnlw — 8/8/2025 9:17:56 AM

Despite raging wildfires, Canada's breadbasket expected to deliver plentiful crop | Calgary Herald

[gg cox] Wow,, amazing engineering… hydraulic engineering.

gg cox — 7/29/2025 11:20:59 AM

[Snowshoe] The Steepest Farms: Hillside Harvesting in Idaho youtube.com [youtube video]

Snowshoe — 7/29/2025 10:36:47 AM

[nicewatch] Drones, AI and Robot Pickers: Meet the Fully Autonomous Farm Story by William B...

nicewatch — 7/17/2025 8:39:27 AM

Drones, AI and Robot Pickers: Meet the Fully Autonomous Farm

Story by William Boston • 1d • 6 min read

In the verdant hills of Washington state’s Palouse region, Andrew Nelson’s tractor hums through the wheat fields on his 7,500-acre farm. Inside the cab, he’s not gripping the steering wheel—he’s on a Zoom call or checking messages.

A software engineer and fifth-generation farmer, Nelson, 41, is at the vanguard of a transformation that is changing the way we grow and harvest our food. The tractor isn’t only driving itself; its array of sensors, cameras, and analytic software is also constantly deciding where and when to spray fertilizer or whack weeds.

Many modern farms already use GPS-guided tractors and digital technology such as farm-management software systems. Now, advances in artificial intelligence mean that the next step—the autonomous farm, with only minimal human tending—is finally coming into focus.

Imagine a farm where fleets of autonomous tractors, drones and harvesters are guided by AI that tweaks operations minute by minute based on soil and weather data. Sensors would track plant health across thousands of acres, triggering precise sprays or irrigation exactly where needed. Farmers could swap long hours in the cab for monitoring dashboards and making high-level decisions. Every seed, drop of water and ounce of fertilizer would be optimized to boost yields and protect the land—driven by a connected system that gets smarter with each season.

Much of the technology to power an autonomous revolution in agriculture already exists or is nearly ready for market launch.

“We’re just getting to a turning point in the commercial viability of a lot of these technologies,” says David Fiocco, a senior partner at McKinsey & Co. who leads research on agricultural innovation.

A McKinsey survey in 2022 found that around two-thirds of American farms use digital systems to manage their farm operations, but only 15% of large farms and just 4% of smaller ones have yet invested significantly in robotics or automation. Fiocco expects the use of robots to rise dramatically in the coming years.

Despite the promise of digital tools and autonomous machines, cost is a big barrier.

Connectivity is another hurdle. Robots need to talk to each other. Moving data to a cloud requires broadband internet, and from a remote field that likely needs to be wireless. But wireless internet and land-based broadband aren’t available everywhere in rural America. In developing countries, the digital gap is even wider.

Some farmers are experimenting with edge computing, a networking design that stores data closer to where it originates. But experts say ultimately farms need to be connected to cloud-based systems.

Here’s a look at some of the essential components in the vision of the autonomous farm.

Autonomous tractors

Tractors that can plant, till and harvest with little, or only remote, human supervision are moving from prototype to practice.

Traditional manufacturers and tech startups are placing big bets. Monarch Tractor, a Livermore, Calif., firm, has rolled out an all-electric, “driver-optional” tractor now working vineyards. Its MK-V model can run up to 14 hours on a charge and be ready to roll again after six hours plugged in. Farmwise, another California company, has developed an AI-guided mechanical weeder and tiller that uses computer vision and robotics to identify and pluck weeds, running day or night, reducing the need for herbicides. In April, salad giant Taylor Farms acquired Farmwise, citing the technology’s promise to cut labor costs and support more sustainable farming.

Deere & Co. is taking an incremental approach, adding layers of automation to help farmers become comfortable with the technology—and see immediate payoffs—while paving the way toward full autonomy.

Some of Deere’s large sprayers use “See & Spray” technology that incorporates computer vision and machine learning to target weeds in soybean, corn and cotton crops. Trained on thousands of images to identify weeds in real time and command individual nozzles to spray only where needed, it reduces herbicide use by up to two-thirds, the company says. Thirty-six cameras mounted on a sprayer boom scan fields at 2,100 square feet per second—far beyond what the human eye can manage.

Using data and AI to analyze individual plants could eventually become a mainstream practice in farming. A 5,000-acre farm can contain around 750 million plants, and the challenge is giving each one its share of tender loving care. “Sensing technology paired with models, paired with automation and eventually autonomy where it makes sense—there’s a lot of opportunity there,” says Sarah Schinckel, director of emerging technologies at the Moline, Ill.-based company.

Fruit-picking robots and drones

Automation, now most often used on large farms with wheat or corn laid out in neat rows, is a bigger challenge for crops like fruits and berries, which ripen at different times and grow on trees or bushes. Maintaining and harvesting these so-called specialty crops is labor-intensive. “In specialty crops, the small army of weeders and pickers could soon be replaced by just one or two people overseeing the technology. That may be a decade out, but that’s where we’re going,” says Fiocco of McKinsey.

Fragile fruits like strawberries and grapes pose a huge challenge. Tortuga, an agriculture tech startup in Denver, developed a robot to do the job. Tortuga was acquired in March by vertical farming company Oishii. The robot resembles NASA’s Mars Rover with fat tires and extended arms. It rolls along a bed of strawberries or grapes and uses a long pincher arm to reach into the vine and snip off a single berry or a bunch of grapes, placing them gingerly into a basket.

“Robotic harvesting can offer greater consistency and efficiency than manual labor, while reducing expenses and addressing the labor shortages affecting the industry as a whole,” Brendan Somerville, chief operating officer and co-founder of Oishii said in an email, adding that the company’s long-term vision is to fully automate its harvesting operations.

Israel-based Tevel Aerobotics Technologies aims to help fruit growers reduce the need for labor with its “Flying Autonomous Robots” that can prune, thin and harvest crops. Using AI and machine vision, the robots locate the fruit, determine whether it’s ripe and then pluck it off the tree.

“Growers who don’t adopt robotics won’t survive—they simply have no choice,” says Tevel Chief Executive and founder Yaniv Maor. Scaling up, however, remains a cost challenge for the company.

Remote sensing, image analytics

Drones and satellites, guided by artificial intelligence, are turning farms into data-driven operations. By capturing detailed images and sensor readings, they create “digital twins”—virtual replicas of fields that show exactly where crops are too dry, too wet or under attack by disease or pests. This technology lets farmers spot problems early and target interventions more precisely, cutting waste and boosting yields.

While pieces of this system are already in place, the next step is a fully connected network of machines that not only detect issues but learn from them. Ranveer Chandra, a senior Microsoft executive who spearheaded agriculture technology applications, sees a future where tractors and drones work in tandem, performing tasks like planting or spraying while continuously feeding new data into AI models tailored to each farm’s conditions.

“There will be more automation, more use of drones, more robotics—it won’t be farms without farmers, but AI will significantly amplify the productivity of every grower,” Chandra says. “Every time a drone flies or a tractor plants, it’s gathering data that updates the farm’s own unique AI model.”

Soil intelligence

A crop is only as healthy as its soil. Traditionally, farmers send topsoil samples to a lab to have them analyzed. New technology that uses sensors to scan the soil on-site is enabling a precise diagnosis covering large areas of farms rather than spot checks.

The diagnosis includes microbial analysis as well as identifying areas of soil compaction, when the soil becomes dense, hindering water infiltration, root penetration and gas exchange. Knowing this can help a farmer plan where to till and make other decisions about the new season.

Canada-based SoilOptix says microbial soil analysis can enable farmers to more accurately determine changing conditions within a field. Rather than spraying or irrigating an entire field, the farmer can pinpoint where to spray, which dose to use, and the best timing for intervention.

The virtual fence

New technology is also changing livestock management. The creation of virtual fences, which are beginning to be adopted in the U.S., Europe and Australia, has the potential to help ranchers save money on expensive fencing and help them better manage their herds.

Livestock are given GPS-enabled collars, and virtual boundaries are drawn on a digital map. If an animal approaches the virtual boundary, it first gets an auditory warning. If it continues, it gets zapped with a mild but firm electric shock.

msn.com

[Julius Wong] The water buffaloes did not recognize the new owner. Very sad.

Julius Wong — 7/14/2025 5:52:26 PM

[Snowshoe] Very sad... Oklahoma farmer killed by water buffalo he bought at auction just a...

Snowshoe — 7/14/2025 3:15:54 PM

Very sad...

Oklahoma farmer killed by water buffalo he bought at auction just a day prior
siliconinvestor.com

David K. Li
Mon, July 14, 2025

Two "aggressive" water buffaloes fatally attacked an Oklahoma man before confronting — and delaying — police and firefighters who responded to care for the victim, authorities said Monday.

Brad McMichael, 45, died on Friday from injuries he sustained from the large animals he had purchased at auction a day prior, his family and police said.

The emergency call for help came at about 8:35 p.m. local time in the small town of Jones, about 20 miles outside of Oklahoma City, Jones Police Chief Bryan Farrington said in a statement.

[gg cox] We are each unique when it comes to sense of humour. This old standard should g...

gg cox — 6/19/2025 9:02:02 PM

We are each unique when it comes to sense of humour.

This old standard should give you a mild guffaw.

[Snowshoe] Hi gg, Thanks for the suggestion. I checked out Clarkson's farm on Amazon Prim...

Snowshoe — 6/19/2025 8:30:34 PM

Hi gg,

Thanks for the suggestion. I checked out Clarkson's farm on Amazon Prime, but it's just not my cup of tea. Regarding the UK, I'm more likely to watch archaeology shows like Time Team and Digging for Britain.

Have you ever been a farmer? I once spent a few months working on a dairy farm, and the farmer's wife ran off with the milk truck driver. That sounds like a good plot line for Clarkson! ;)

- Snow

[gg cox] Fabulous series… [youtube video] instagram.com

gg cox — 6/9/2025 11:57:36 AM

[johnlw] Deere’s Plans for Offsetting $500 Million in Tariff Costs - WSJ

johnlw — 6/5/2025 9:47:30 AM

[E_K_S] RE: Marine Harvest ASA [Norway] ADR (MHGVY) [graphic] (Bergen, 14 May...

E_K_S — 5/14/2025 7:37:49 AM

RE: Marine Harvest ASA [Norway] ADR (MHGVY)

(Bergen, 14 May 2025) Mowi generated operating revenues of EUR 1.36 billion in the first quarter which translated into an operational profit of EUR 214 million.

The first quarter of 2025 brought increased revenues and results for Mowi compared with the same quarter last year, on strong biological and operational performance, along with improved volumes and cost.

“So far, 2025 has been a very good year operationally and biologically which has resulted in high harvest volumes combined with seasonally record-high biomass in sea,” said Mowi CEO, Ivan Vindheim.

Volume growth across the value chain is one of Mowi’s strategic pillars. The company harvested 108,000 tonnes in the quarter representing growth of 12% compared with last year. Mowi is maintaining its harvest volume guidance for 2025 of 530,000 tonnes, equivalent to annual growth of 6%. This is supported by seasonally record-high biomass in sea with 11% growth year-on-year. Taking into consideration the recent agreement to increase its ownership of Nova Sea from 49% to 95%, Mowi expects to harvest 600,000 tonnes next year.

“Seawater production went very well in the first quarter, with improved growth, survival rates, feed conversion ratio and superior share,” Vindheim said.

As recently as 2018, Mowi’s harvest volumes were 375,000 tonnes, hence the company will have grown its farming volumes by 155,000 tonnes by the end of 2025, which is equivalent to a CAGR of 5.1% versus a projected CAGR for the industry of 3.3%. This comprises mainly organic growth, and Mowi still has further organic growth initiatives that are expected to contribute to additional volume growth.

Mowi Consumer Products, the group’s value-added business, had yet another strong quarter on good operational performance and high volumes.

“Demand for salmon was good in the quarter and downstream earnings improved in Europe, Americas and Asia. At the same time, however, high supply growth put pressure on market prices,” Vindheim said.

Global supply growth in the first quarter was as much as 13% in Europe and 8% globally, an effect that should be seen as a one-off correction following three years of challenging biology. Mowi expects supply growth to be 6% in 2025, before returning to trend growth of around 2-3% thereafter because of regulatory constraints.

Mowi Feed also had a strong quarter with record-high earnings and sold volumes for a first quarter.

“Mowi’s own feed continues to perform very well, constituting a crucially important contributing factor to our harvest volume growth of recent years,” said Vindheim.

[Maple MAGA ] Agricultural seeds are coated with metal compounds, but it's not just for making...

Maple MAGA — 4/22/2025 8:49:56 AM

Agricultural seeds are coated with metal compounds, but it's not just for making them “grow better” in a simplistic sense — it's part of a broader strategy to enhance germination, seedling vigor, and resistance to pests and disease. Here's a breakdown:

1. Micronutrient Coatings Seeds are often coated with metal-based micronutrients such as:

Zinc (Zn)
Manganese (Mn)
Copper (Cu)
Iron (Fe)

These help support early seedling development, especially in soils that are deficient in these elements. For example:

Zinc is vital for enzyme function and hormone regulation.
Manganese and copper help with photosynthesis and disease resistance.

2. Fungicidal and Bactericidal Treatments Some coatings include metal-based fungicides, such as:

Copper sulfate
Manganese ethylene-bis-dithiocarbamate (Maneb)

These are applied to reduce the risk of seed-borne and soil-borne diseases during germination.

3. Other Coating Components Besides metals, seed coatings may also include:

Inoculants (beneficial bacteria like Rhizobium for legumes)
Polymers and colorants (for handling, identification, and safety)
Pesticides or insecticides (e.g., neonicotinoids—though controversial and restricted in many places)

4. Pelleting and Encrusting In high-tech seed treatments, coatings can make small seeds like lettuce or carrot easier to plant by increasing size and uniformity — this is where coating with minerals like lime or clay also comes in.

[IC720] [X] RFK Jr needs to see this This is one of the Most Important Videos you will...

IC720 — 4/22/2025 8:42:08 AM

[X]

RFK Jr needs to see this

This is one of the Most Important Videos you will watch
‌
American Farmer says he’s tested his soil and it has 5x the amount of aluminum it used to have. The GMO seeds grow fine, all his heirloom seed crops are all the sudden failing (shows proof)… pic.twitter.com/K20BtChvHO
— Wall Street Apes (@WallStreetApes) April 21, 2025

[/X]

[IC720] [X] “We are going to kill ourselves because of stupidity.” ~ Allan Savory pic....

IC720 — 4/22/2025 8:40:54 AM

[X]

“We are going to kill ourselves because of stupidity.”

~ Allan Savory pic.twitter.com/bHHPZFhi54
— James Melville 🚜 (@JamesMelville) April 22, 2025

[/X]

[longz] Sounds like that nickle belt cry baby Goosed49 LMAZZOFF!

longz — 4/22/2025 1:32:25 AM

[Maple MAGA ] Feeding them corn for a couple does not completely clean them out. I believe ...

Maple MAGA — 4/22/2025 1:03:19 AM

Feeding them corn for a couple does not completely clean them out.

I believe in catch and release when it comes to hogs.