IBM Offers Technology Solution to Boost Food, Crop Supply

IBM has announced the global expansion of Watson Decision Platform for Agriculture, with Artificial Intelligence (AI) technology tailored for new crops and specific regions to help feed a growing population.

For the first time, IBM is providing a global agriculture solution that combines predictive technology with data from the Weather Company, an IBM Business, and IoT data to help give farmers around the world greater insights about planning, plowing, planting, spraying and harvesting.

According to IBM, by 2050, the world would need to feed two billion more people without an increase of arable land. IBM is combining power weather data – including historical, current and forecast data and weather prediction models from the Weather Company – with crop models to help improve yield forecast accuracy, generate value, and increase both farm production and profitability.

“As a farmer, the wild card is always weather. IBM overlays weather details with my own data and historical information to help me apply, verify, and make decisions,”

Founder/Operator of Paulman Farms, Roric Paulman, said: “Our farm is in a highly restricted water basin, so the ability to better anticipate rain not only saves me money but also helps me save precious natural resources.”
“New crop models include corn, wheat, soya, cotton, sorghum, barley, sugar cane and potato, with more coming soon. These models will now be available in the U.S., Canada, Mexico, and Brazil, as well as new markets across Europe, Africa and Australia,” he said.

General Manager of Watson Media and Weather Solutions at IBM, Kristen Lauria, said: “These days farmers don’t just farm food, they also cultivate data – from drones flying over fields to smart irrigation systems, and IoT sensors affixed to combines, seeders, sprayers and other equipment.

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