VICTORIAN farmers are being urged to have their say about on-farm technology at an upcoming summit in Melbourne.
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Australian precision agriculture expert Professor David Lamb is calling on farmers to participate in the 2016AgriVictoria – State of Opportunity Summit on Thursday, June 9.
Professor Lamb warns that while the current focus on blue-sky ‘big data’ development is important for the future of Australian agriculture, it could leave farmers in the dark when it comes to the practical, simple, effective technologies that are available to make farming easier and more efficient.
Commenting on his role as chair of the ‘Smarter Farming: Investing in Your Future’ panel at the Summit, Professor Lamb, who leads the University of New England’s SMART Farm project, said: “We want to be challenged by the audience - we want to hear what farmers need so we can help to identify the technologies that will work for them.
“There are simple technologies available to make farming easier from assessing pastures and monitoring water trough levels to supply chain management. But I’m concerned these tools get lost in the noise around blue-sky technologies and big data.
“We need farm technology to be sustainable, manageable, practical and readily accessible.”
Panel member Emma Germano, who is the general manager of her family’s horticulture business ‘I Love Farms’, Mirboo North, will provide a case study for how simple ‘app-riculture’ technologies can revolutionise the paddock to plate process.
“It’s understandable that farmers might feel intimated by all the new technology available, but once you know what you need and how to use it, you’ll wonder how you ever worked without it,” Ms Germano said.
Victorian horticulture farmer Andrew Bulmer will also discuss his operation and, together with Ms Germano, will outline how they believe their investments in technology and process innovation have contributed to their ability to tap into Asian export opportunities while also helping them grow their business locally.
Case studies along with Prof Lamb’s expertise around smart farming practices will provide delegates with learnings about what to look for, what not to do and how to avoid pitfalls along the journey.
For more, go to www.agrivictoria.com.au/ or www.heartofvic.com.au/
