Accepting this definition and observing the machines and components exhibited in the Hanover exhibition pavilions , it was clear how, in light of the integration taking place in the sector between the most diverse scientific disciplines, "cultivation techniques" have been replaced by "cultivation technologies ” all having the ultimate objective of rationalizing processes with a view to productivity.
It would be better if by combining the need to cultivate more with fewer resources we can also make the sector more sustainable. Let's be clear, the commitment made by machinery and equipment manufacturers to make their vehicles have the least impact possible on an environmental level is concrete and real, but this is also the awareness that according to United Nations forecasts by 2030 the world population will reach eight and a half billion units and they will all want to eat by drawing food from the same areas that today feed a good half billion fewer people.
Hence the need for increasingly advanced and high-performance machines , the same ones that farmers in Brazil, Germany, France, Japan and the United States anxiously look at, not feeling prepared to use them.
This, according to the “Agriculture in Transition” study commissioned by Continental from the market research institute Innofact Ag and developed through field interviews with users of agricultural equipment and machinery who work on farms with an area of more than 30 hectares.
A good 55 percent of the farmers interviewed actually stated that they do not have the technologies necessary to face the future in their companies, 43 percent ask for easier-to-use technologies, 37 percent specific training courses and 38 percent the ability to upgrade or adapt existing machines instead of having to purchase expensive new ones.
If it is also true that the majority of those interviewed say they are attentive to environmental protection, it is also true that it is above all the pressure on prices that represents an important problem. With commodity prices continuing to fall in global markets and energy, fertilizer and personnel prices continuing to rise. More than half of the farmers also highlighted a decline in soil productivity which adds to the increasingly accentuated shortage of qualified labor and the problems induced by changing climate trends.
All this not only makes it difficult to invest in new technologies as those politicians who legislate in an ideological manner and without having contact with the real world would like, but it also makes it difficult to find the time to prepare and reflect. Given the above, it is clear that it is up to manufacturers to advance operational solutions aligned with market demands and to help politicians to help the sector evolve, accepting the idea that it is not enough to make funds available to buy new tractors and new equipment if those same means are not used to their full potential.
From this aspect, artificial intelligence could help a lot if it is exploited to automatically optimize machine settings and company management, also making it easier for farmers to make basic choices, all objectives towards which the most advanced management apps are already aiming today.
Agritechnica 2023: "green" tires and hydrogen on the shields
There are two sector trends that have been highlighted more than others in Hanover . The most popular tire manufacturers have launched, or announced the upcoming launch, of products made with less use of fossil-derived compounds, while engine manufacturers have exhibited hydrogen-powered versions of their respective engines .
A special space is already dedicated to the latter in the December issue, which will be followed by an extensive report in the next issue of Tractor Machines, while the "green" tyres, sometimes also green in the liveries, will be presented in the space dedicated to components.
Tires and engines have little in common, but in this specific case both products can be understood as concrete proof of how much the sector cares about the environment despite being accused of being among its main forms of pollution. An absurd accusation given that the environment itself represents the place in which agricultural and livestock production takes place, but which is continually supported by a disinformation campaign to which the trade union representatives and sector politicians themselves are no strangers, both intent on spitting in the dish in which they eat in order to earn cards and votes.
Our team was part of this event- Excellent feedback and a media well presented
