Syngenta presents Interra^® Scan: high-resolution soil mapping for better soil health

Syngenta has signed a licensing agreement with UK based HL Hutchinsons (HLH) to supply agronomists and farmers with an advanced soil mapping and sampling service initially in continental and Eastern Europe. It will be marketed under the name Interra^® Scan and enables agronomists and growers to make better informed decisions for crop management and soil stewardship.

Interra^® Scan offers high-resolution soil mapping up to 27 layers of information, providing growers with precise information on soil health. ″It allows growers to understand the texture, nutrient and carbon content of their soils in order to optimize nutrition and carbon capture″, explains Mark Hall, Head of Sustainable and Responsible Business EAME. ″Interra^® Scan takes over 800 data reference points per hectare, showing more details and geospatial differences than other mapping techniques such as drones, satellites, or grid sampling. Interra^® Scan can be described as the equivalent of an all-round medical check-up for humans, but for soil.″

This agreement is proof of Syngenta’s commitment to help growers create healthy soils which are the foundation of our food system. They also have a critical role to play as a natural carbon sink to help meet the Paris Climate Agreement. ″Finally, soil health is plant health. This is why we are investing into innovative solutions like Interra^® Scan. In the past, growers would treat the entire field in the same way. With Interra^® Scan, they know exactly what to apply where and how much of it, making the most of precision technology″, says Alexandra Brand, Regional Director EAME. ″As an additional benefit, growers can optimize input costs on fertilizers, seeds and lime which is even more important in the current economic situation. We can clearly say Interra^® Scan is a win-win situation for farmers and the environment.″

The in-field process of collecting data includes two steps: First, the soil is scanned with gamma-ray detection technology by SoilOptix^® to map all of the common nutrient and physical soil properties and physical soil samples are collected. The raw scan, soil data and soil samples are then combined and processed to produce up to 27 high-definition soil property layers. Growers have easy on-the-go access via a digital platform to view the results in a unique soil properties map and develop variable rate application maps for their crop input applications.

About HL Hutchinsons

Hutchinsons is a leading agricultural and horticultural input advice and supply company, which advises clients representing over one million hectares throughout the UK. Founded in 1938, Hutchinsons remains a family business and now employs 500 team members nationwide, with more than half delivering a wide range of professional crop management advisory services to their clients.

About SoilOptix^®

Operating commercially since 2017, SoilOptix^® Inc., based in Ontario, Canada, produces the most detailed, high-definition soil mapping sensors that can accurately map over 25 different layers including macro and micro nutrients, physical properties, pH, organic matter, plant available water, and carbon. With a resolution of over 827 points per hectare and data that is easily implemented into variable rate applications, SoilOptix^® gives growers a deeper understanding of the variability in nutrients and textural-based properties of their field's soil, which results in better optimization of input (fertilizer, seed, etc.) placement for economic and environmental gain.