Conference told of technology’s future impact on farming

Self-drive tractors, 3D printing of food, synthetic life and artificial intelligence will all find their way on to Irish farms in the coming years, a conference has heard.

The impact of disruptive technologies was the subject of an international conference in Dublin yesterday organised by agricultural research and advisory body Teagasc.

Delegates heard about the emergence of “big data” analytics and changes in our understanding of how diet and the food we eat affect our mental wellbeing.

The final report of a technology foresight exercise carried out by Teagasc was also released at the conference.

Strengths

The report,

Technology Transforming Irish Agri-Food and Bioeconom

y

, identifies five areas where Ireland has strengths:

Plant and animal genomics: using genetic technologies to improve animal quality and yield;

Human, animal and soil microbiota: studying the interactions with the microbes that live in our guts and those that live in the soil;

Digital technologies: the use of advanced sensors, GPS, data storage and other IT suited to farm use;

New technologies for food processing: making use of zero-waste, environment- friendly technologies in Irish food production;

Transformation in the food value chain system: adding value to food production through new and better products while delivering what the consumer wants.

Dr Banning Garrett, a Washington-based entrepreneur and strategic thinker, said future technologies would include the use of robots and the 3D printing of human organs, devices and even entire buildings.

Precision farming

About 22 per cent of farmers in Britain were already involved in

"precision farming"

, using GPS satellite signals to direct a tractor when tilling fields, said Prof Janet Bainbridge , an adviser to the UK’s trade and investment department. She cited the case of a lettuce factory in Japan notable not just because it was controlled by robots but because technology had reduced water consumption by 98 per cent.

Prof Martina Newell-McGloughlin, who is based at the Abu Dhabi Education Council, described advances in the genetics of "merit", the breeding or yield characteristics of livestock. Genetic analysis means merit can now be assessed at birth, she said.

Prof Fergus Shanahan, director of the APC Microbiome Institute in Cork, discussed how the microbes in our gut can affect physical and mental health.

“When you eat you are not just feeding yourself, you are feeding your microbiota. Mind your microbes because they will mind you,” he said.