SoilMate’s Weekly News Digest #7
Hello dear reader! Nice to see you again. We’ve got a fresh news digest for you!
The farmer just won the lottery — what do they buy first?
Last month, The Farm Journal Pulse Poll asked this question regarding technology purchases. Out of a total of 577 farmers, variable rate application (31%), telematics technology (28%), and auto-steering (17%) were the top three choices.
While drones, smartphone applications, portable technologies, and more get a lot of buzz, 16% of farmers can see profitability in investing in them.
And only 8% said that software and data management is where they would invest.
Studies with Australian growers show that precision planting improves yields and reduces seed costs.
This is the conclusion of the recent article “The agronomic value of precision planting technologies with winter grain crops” of the Grains Research & Development Corporation.
To date, the response of grain yields to precision planting has varied during the testing. That clearly shows that the adoption of technology cannot be justified only based on crop reactions.
Precision planting increased the yield of faba beans by 18% or 22%. There was also a significant increase of 10% (lupin) and 14% (lentils). The results for canola and the pulses showed that, despite the different effects on the establishment, the precise planting yields were equivalent to or higher than in regular planting.
The plant-based and cultivated meat company Eat Just raises $200m from Qatar sovereign wealth fund, Microsoft co-founder.
The plant-based and cultivated meat company is a pioneer in alternative protein raised $200 million in growth funding, bringing the total amount raised since its inception in 2011 to over $650 million. The San Francisco-based company went down in history, becoming the first company in the world to get regulatory approval to produce cell-grown meat last November in Singapore.
By 2030, the meat market could reach $13 billion, and Eat Just plans to reduce the cost of producing meat, increase commercial manufacturing operations, and promote its work on alternative meat.
A new report from Soil Health Partnership shows the relation between conservation practices & profitability.
The report details the financial impact of conservation tillage and cover crops on corn and soybean producers in the Midwest. Conservation tillage reduces operating costs, resulting in a higher net return per acre among the study participants. The producers that practiced conservation tillage had higher net profits and lower costs per acre than the fields in traditional tillage for both corn and soybean. The reduced expenses are mainly related to fuel and oil, machinery, equipment, and repairs.
Happy weekend for everyone!
